Download a tool that makes distant objects appear larger, brighter, and sharper

Chapter 1 Test Review
telescope – a tool that makes distant objects appear larger, brighter, and sharper
magnify – to make an object appear larger
optical telescope – magnifies distant objects by collecting light
radio telescope – magnifies distant objects by collecting radio waves that computers use to make pictures of
space
Hubble Space Telescope – an optical telescope in space that helps scientists to clearly see objects beyond Earth’s
atmosphere and gives scientists a clearer view of distant regions of space
solar system – the Sun, orbiting planets, their moons, and other objects traveling around the Sun
sun – a huge sphere of hot gases that gives off heat and light; the nearest star to Earth
planets – large bodies of rock or gas in space that move around a star
o
do not produce light of their own, reflect light from the sun
orbit – move in a path around an object
moon – small, rounded body in orbit around a planet
o
does not produces its own light, reflects light from the sun
inner planets – Mars, Venus, Earth, Mars
o
closest planets to the sun
o
get a lot of heat and light
o
small and made of rocky materials
o
surfaces have mountains and craters
space probe – a craft that travels into space with instruments, but not people
o
carries lab equipment, cameras, and other tools to gather data
o
data is sent back to Earth using radio waves
outer planets – Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune
o
cold and dark because they are far from the sun
o
large, made of gases, and have many moons
o
each has a system of rings
gas giant – a very large planet made up of mostly gases
dwarf planet – round, orbiting body like a planet but much smaller
Planets
Mercury
closest to the sun
smallest planet
very hot during the day and very cold at night
moves very quickly through space because it is so
close to the sun
orbit = 88 days
rotation (1 full spin of the planet) = 59 days
moons – 0
Venus
2nd planet from the sun, hottest planet, Earth’s
twin
covered by thick clouds of gas that trap the heat
and make it very hot
spins very slowly in opposite direction of most of
the other planets
orbit = 225 days
rotation (1 full spin) = 243 days
moons – 0
Chapter 1 Test Review
Earth
3rd planet from the sun
only planet known to support life
atmosphere keeps the planet from getting too hot
or too cold
rotates (spins) every 24 hours causing day and
night
orbit = 365 days or 1 year
position of the planet in orbit causes the seasons
moons – 1
Mars
4th planet from the sun
called the Red Planet because the soil has iron
oxide (rust) in it
many craters, mountains, and volcanoes
rotation (1 full spin) = 24 1/2 hours
orbit = 687 days
Neptune
8th planet from the sun
smallest of the outer planets
very cold, stormiest planet
blue color caused by methane in the atmosphere
rotation (1 full spin) = 17 hours
orbit = 165 Earth years
moons – 13 discovered so far
Pluto: A Dwarf Planet
considered a planet until 2006 when it was
classified as a dwarf planet
rocky and icy
rotation (1 full spin) = 6 hours
orbit = 248 Earth years
moons – 3
Review Questions
Jupiter
5th planet from the sun
largest planet
Great Red Spot - a large wind storm in the
atmosphere
rotation (1 full spin) = 9.8 hours
orbit = 12 Earth years
moons – 63 discovered so far
Saturn
6th planet from the sun
2nd largest planet
spins/rotates so quickly it has a flattened shape
beautiful rings made of dust, ice, and rocks
rotation (1 full spin) = 10 1/2 hours
orbit = 29 1/2 Earth years
moons – 47 discovered so far
Uranus
th
7 planet from the sun
1st planet to be discovered with a telescope
3rd largest planet
blue-green color caused by methane in the
atmosphere
spins/rotates on its side
rotation (1 full spin) = 17 hours
orbit = 84 Earth years
moons – 27 discovered so far
1. Why do scientists use telescopes?
2. What problem does a telescope help to solve?
3. Why do you think it is dangerous to look directly
at the sun, especially with a telescope?
4. How is a radio telescope different from an optical
telescope?
5. How can technology be used to see distant objects
in the sky?
6. Name the planets in order of their distance from
the Sun.
7. How are the inner planets and outer planets alike?
How are they different?
8. A planet has a very long year compared to Earth’s
year. Do you think that this planet is closer to or
farther from the Sun than Earth? Explain your
answer.
9. How does a gas giant differ from other planets?
10. A year on Jupiter is 12 Earth years. What does
this data tell you about Jupiter’s distance from the
Sun as compared to Earth’s?