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Name ______________________________ # _____ Our Solar System Study Guide
The Earth and the Sun: pages 322 – 326
1) The force that draws Earth towards the Sun is __________________________. It is a force of attraction, or
pull, between any two objects.
2) The strength or pull of gravity is affected by the total ______________________ of the objects and by the
_______________________________ between them. If you wanted to decrease the pull of gravity between
two objects, how would you do it? ____________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________
3) An __________________ is the path a planet or object takes around another object.
4) The two forces that work together to keep Earth in orbit around the Sun, instead of flying off into space or
being pulled into the sun, are _______________________ and ___________________. Earth’s nearly circular
orbit is called an _______________________.
5) Is Earth always the same distance from the Sun? ______________
6) A ____________________________ is one complete trip around the Sun. Earth makes this trip in one year
or _____________ days or ____________________ months. How many months would it take Earth to go
half-way around the Sun? _______________________
7) The angle at which sunlight hits Earth changes during a year because Earth’s axis is ________________
about 230. An ________________ is a straight line about which an object spins.
8) The ________________________ are caused by the tilt of Earth on its axis.
9) During winter in the Northern Hemisphere, the Northern Hemisphere is titled ____________________
from the Sun. It does not receive as much direct, concentrated sunlight and temperatures are ___________.
10) During summer in the Northern Hemisphere, the Northern Hemisphere is angled towards the sun, so the
heat energy of the sunlight is more ____________________________ and direct. The ground receives more
heat energy, and the ___________________________ are warmer.
11)Seasons in the Northern and Southern Hemispheres are always _________________________ because the
tilt of Earth’s axis always points in the same ______________________. So when it is winter here in the
U.S.A., it would be ___________________ in Brazil, and when it is spring in Australia, it would be
_______________ in England.
12) In ____________________ and _________________ both hemispheres receive equal warmth from the
Sun, making mild temperatures.
13) Earth spins in a circle on its axis. One ________________________ is a complete spin on its axis. Earth
makes one rotation every ___________, or ________ hours.
14) At any point half of Earth faces the Sun and is in _______________________. We call this day. At the
same point, half of Earth faces away from the Sun and is in _______________________. We call this night.
15) Objects in the sky, like the sun, appear to rise in the ___________________ and set in the __________.
This is because as Earth rotates from ______________ to ____________ objects in the sky appear to move in
the direction opposite Earth’s movement.
The Earth and the Moon: pages 332 – 336
16) On July 20, 1969, astronaut ___________________________________ was the first person to walk on
the moon.
17) Why are there no winds and no weather on the Moon? _______________________________________
18) The Moon’s surface contains ___________________, rills (valleys), _____________________, and
mountains that can be seen. (Use the caption on page 332)
19) The side of the Moon that faces the _________________ is always lit by sunlight. As the Moon
_______________________ around Earth, different amounts of light reflect from the Moon’s surface to
Earth, and the Moon appears to change _______________________.
20) During a __________________ moon phase, you can see the entire half of the Moon that is lit by sunlight.
During a __________________ moon phase, the lit side of the Moon is facing away from Earth.
21) A _____________________ of the Moon is the appearance and shape of the Moon as you see it at a
particular time.
22) The time from one phase of the Moon until the next time the Moon reaches the same phase is _______
days or about one month. This is the time that it takes the Moon to revolve completely around Earth.
23) Label the phases of the Moon below as seen from Earth. Draw arrows to show the correct order from one
phase to the next.
24) An ___________________________ occurs when one object moves in front of another object in space.
25) A _____________________ eclipse occurs when the Moon passes directly between Earth and the Sun.
The moon casts a ________________________ on Earth when this happens. People on Earth see darkness
move across the _____________. This can only occur during a ___________ _______________ phase.
26) A _____________________ eclipse occurs when the Moon moves into Earth’s shadow and is no longer
reached by direct sunlight. When this happens, Earth is between the _________________ and the Moon. This
happens only during a _______________ ___________________ phase.
27) Why do new moons and full moons occur once a month, but eclipses occur less frequently? _________
________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________
28) The area where the sun is completely blocked during an eclipse is called the ____________________. The
area around where light is not completely blocked is called the ______________________________.
29) Label each picture as either a solar eclipse or a lunar
eclipse.
_______________________________
_____________________________
30) The pull of ________________________ between Earth and the Moon and between Earth and the Sun
causes a bulge on the surface of Earth. The pull causes the _____________________, or the rise and the fall
of the ocean’s surface.
31) The pull of gravity causes ocean water to bulge on the side of Earth facing the _________________. A
matching bulge occurs on the side opposite as well. This causes _______________ tides at both locations.
___________________ tides occur halfway between high tides. Most oceans have ___________ high and
________ low tides every day.
32) _____________________ tides occur during new and full moon phases when the Sun and the Moon line
up and pull in the same direction. This causes higher high tides and lower low tides.
33) When the Sun and the Moon pull in different directions it can cause high tides that are lower than usual
and low tides that are higher than usual. This tides are called _______________________ tides, and they can
occur during the first quarter and last quarter moon phases.
The Planets: pages 342 – 350
34) A _________________________ ____________________ is mad of a star and the objects that orbit
around it. A __________________________ is a large object that orbits a star. A _________________ is a
natural object that orbits a planet.
35) How many planets in our solar system have no moon? __________
36) A ___________________ is a mixture of frozen gases, ice, dust, and rock that moves in an elliptical orbit
around the sun. An __________________________________ is a rock that revolves around the sun.
The asteroid belt is located between ____________________________ and _______________________.
37) A _____________________________________ is a small object in the solar system. If it crosses paths
with Earth and enters Earth’s atmosphere, it is called a ________________________________. If it lands on
the ground, it is called a __________________________________.
38) The _________________________ planets are made mostly of rock. Because of this they are called the
____________________________________ planets. They have few or no moons, and none of them have
_____________________________. These planets are ___________________________ , ______________ ,
_____________________________ , and _____________________ .
39) Which planets have no moon? ___________________________________________________________
40) Which planet has the smallest mass in our solar system? ______________________________________
41) On _____________________, a day is longer than a year.
42) Because it has not atmosphere, ___________________________ has extremely high day temperatures
and extremely low night temperatures even thought it is the closest to the Sun.
43) The outer planets are _______________________________ , _________________________________ ,
_________________________________ , and _____________________________ . They are made mostly of
________________. They are much _________________________ than the inner planets. All of the outer
planets have rings and many ________________________.
44) Which two planets have the most moons? __________________________________________________
45) Which planet has the greatest mass? ______________________________________
46) The _______________ on the outer planets are very short because they spin very rapidly on their axis.
47) Which planet has the greatest gravity? ____________________________________
48) _____________________________________________ is blue-green in color due to methane in the
planet’s upper atmosphere.
49) One of Neptune’s moons, ________________________________, is larger than Pluto.
50) Pluto is a __________________________ planet. Two other objects classified like this are ___________
and _______________________.
51) The ________________________ _______________ ________________ is a huge storm on Jupiter that
has been blowing for over 400 years.
52) Mars has __________________________ moons.
53) Which moon of Jupiter is the largest in the solar system and is larger in diameter than Pluto and Mercury?
______________________________________
54) Many moons have __________________________, bowl-shaped holes that form when small objects in
space collide with large objects.
55) Two small rovers, Spirit and Opportunity, explored the surface of ______________________ taking
pictures and examining the rocks and soil.
____ 56) Which statement explains the position of the side of Earth where it is night?
A. The side of Earth is facing the moon.
B. The side of Earth is facing away from the sun.
C. The side of Earth is being blocked by the moon.
D. The side of Earth is between the sun and the moon.
The following table lists several characteristics of each planet in the solar system.
___ 57) What is the connection between the distance from the sun and the period of revolution?
A. The planets farther from the sun have longer days.
B. The planets farther from the sun have longer years.
C. The planets closer to the sun have longer days.
D. The planets closer to the sun have longer years.
The following table lists several characteristics of Venus and Neptune.
___ 58) Which explanation describes the difference in temperature between the two planets?
A) Rocky planets are cooler than gaseous planets. B) Venus is warmer because it is closer to the sun.
C) The gases of Neptune allow for heat to escape. D) Neptune is colder because it rotates faster on its axis.