Download Our galaxy is one galaxy among billions of galaxies. Our solar

Our galaxy is one galaxy among billions of galaxies.
Our solar system is one star in our galaxy.
Keywords
Solar System: the sun and the celestial bodies moving around it.
Astronomical Unit (AU): the distance between the Earth and the Sun (a measure of
distance within the solar system)
1AU = 150,000,000 km (92,956,000)
Astronomical Measurements
Scientific Notation: A mathematical abbreviation for writing very large or very
small numbers.
Example: the Earth is approximately 150,000,000 km from the Sun. This can be
written as 1.5 x 108
How do you do this?
Step 1: Move the decimal until you get a value between 1 and 10. Count the number
of times you move the decimal.
Step 2: Write down the new number without the zeros.
Step 3: Write "x 10" after the number.
Step 4: Write the number of times you moved the decimal as the power of 10.
Note: If you moved the decimal to the left the exponent is positive, if you moved it
to the right it is negative.
Try it with these numbers:
Distance from our Sun to the closest star (Alpha Centauri)
41,000,000,000,000 km
Distance from Earth to Mars (varies based on orbit)
56,000,000 km
Distance from Sun to Pluto
5,925,000,000 km
Distance Voyager 1 has traveled from Earth (roughly)
15,900,000,000 km
Light Years
Light Year: the distance light travels through space in oneyear.
Light travels at 300,000 kilometers per second.
Challenge: How many kilometers are in a light year?
What else is in the solar system?
Asteroid Belt: rocky material left over from the creation
of the Solar system.
Kuiper Belt: region outside Pluto's orbit that contains
many icy objects. Possible source of many comets.
Oort Cloud: theorized area outside the Kuiper Belt that
has many comets.
and...