Download NASA Training Activity 2 Astronomy

Name: _____________________________________
Period: ____________
Training Activity #2: Space Notes on Astronomy
Astronomy is the study of all physical subjects _____________________________________ Earth.
Light-year: a unit of length equal to the distance that light travels through space in 1 year.
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The speed of light is approximately 300,000 kilometers per second (about 186,000 miles per
second)
Astronomers
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Ptolemy – believed the Earth was at the ___________________________________ of the
universe.
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Copernicus – the __________________________ is at the center of the universe.
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Galileo Galilei: first to use a _______________________________ to observe celestial bodies.
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Isaac Newton: explained that _______________________________ is the force that keeps
planets orbiting the sun and moons orbiting planets.
Constellations are sections of the sky that contain recognizable star _____________________________.
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Different _________________________________ named the constellations after their gods or
objects in their daily lives.
The constellations change from season to season because of Earth’s revolution.
Telescopes
A telescope is an instrument that collects electromagnetic radiation from the sky and _______________
it for better observation.
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Types
 Refracting: a curved objective __________________________ bends light and focuses the
light to be magnified by the eyepiece.
 Reflecting: light enters the telescope and is reflected from a large, curved _______________
to a focal point above the mirror.
Name: _____________________________________
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Period: ____________
Hubble Space Telescope: an optical telescope that is in _____________________________.
o Provided clearer images in space than any ground based telescope.
Chandra X-ray telescope is the most powerful X-ray telescope ever built.
o Launched in 1999.
Our Place in the Universe
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The Universe - 93 billion light years in _____________________________________
o The Milky Way Galaxy - 100,000 light years in diameter
 Our Solar System - the Sun's gravity extends out to around 2 light years. So it is
about 4 light years in diameter.
 Earth – 3rd planet to our Sun
Name: _____________________________________
Period: ____________
Study Jams Universe Video
Quiz Score: ______________________________
Inner Planets – all terrestrial (have land)
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Mercury- terrestrial
o Closest to the Sun
o Can be as hot as 427° C
o Its year is only ____________________________ Earth days long!
Venus – terrestrial
o About the same size, mass, and density as ______________________________.
o Rotates in the opposite direction than Earth.
o It's day (243 Earth days) is longer than it's year (about 225 Earth days).
o Hottest planet: Averages 464 ° C because there is so much greenhouse gas.
Earth – terrestrial
o Just the right distance from the _________________.
o Allowed water to develop which is the key to life.
Mars – terrestrial
o The ____________________________ Planet
o Cold planet, ______________________ atmosphere, very low pressure
o There is ice found on Mars.
Study Jams Inner Planets Slide Show
Quiz Score: __________________________
Outer Planets – all gas giants
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Jupiter- gaseous
o __________________________ planet. Has the Great Red Spot (a spinning storm)
o Made of primarily hydrogen and helium.
o Takes almost 12 years to revolve!
Saturn- gaseous
o Second largest planet
o Similar composition to Jupiter.
o Rings are made of ________________________ particles.
Uranus- gaseous
o Bluish-green color.
o Made of mostly hydrogen and methane.
o Very dense and it’s axis is tilted almost ______________________ ° !
Neptune- gaseous
Name: _____________________________________
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Period: ____________
o ____________________________ color
o Temperature is -225 °C
o The atmosphere has belts of clouds
Pluto – like a terrestrial planet
o ____________________________ from the Sun. Has a moon called Charon
o Now considered a ______________________ planet because it is more like an asteroid.
o Half the size of Mercury
o Made of rock and ice. Atmosphere is mostly methane.
Study Jams Outer Planets Slide Show
Quiz Score: _______________________________
Comet: a small body of ______________________, rock and cosmic dust loosely packed together.
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“Dirty ______________________________”
Comet tails: gas and dust that the comet gives off when solar radiation heats it.
They orbit in an elliptical shape.
Scientists believe comets come from outside our solar system (Oort Cloud).
Name: _____________________________________
Period: ____________
Asteroids are large rocky bodies in ___________________________ around the sun.
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Irregularly shaped.
Most orbit in a region between Mars and Jupiter called the asteroid ______________________.
Meteoroid/Meteorite/Meteor
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A meteoroid is a ___________________________, rocky body orbiting the sun.
o They are smaller than an asteroid.
A meteorite is when a meteoroid enters the Earth’s atmosphere and strikes the ground.
A meteor is the bright streak of light caused by a meteoroid or comet dust burning up in the
atmosphere.
A star is a hot, brilliant ball of __________________________.
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Stars go through a life cycle.
Absolute magnitude is the actual _______________________________________ of a star.
The H-R (Hertzsprung-Russell) diagram is a graph showing the relationship between a star’s
surface temperature and it’s absolute magnitude.
Our sun is an average star (dwarf star).
Hertzsprung-Russell (HR) Diagram
Name: _____________________________________
Period: ____________
The Sun
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Our sun is an _____________________________ star (dwarf star).
The energy from the sun is produced by fusion.
Sun spot- cool, dark spots on the sun
Solar flare- giant storm on the surface of the sun.
o Can affect _______________________
Old Stars
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Supernovas: ___________________________ of a large star by explosion.
o Produces silver, gold, and lead.
Name: _____________________________________
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Period: ____________
Neutron Stars: a star formed from the left over materials a _____________________________.
o
Extremely dense.
o
Particles inside the star become ____________________________.
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Pulsars: a __________________________________ neutron star.
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Black Holes: an object that is so ___________________________ (in other words, has enough
mass in a small enough volume) that its gravity is strong enough to prevent light or anything else
from escaping.
o
Astronomers theorized that these are created after a supernova and when the universe
began.
A Stars’ Life Cycle Video:
What are stars made of (it is the fuel for the star)? ____________________________________________
What does a star’s life cycle depend on? Circle one:
It’s size
or
Where it’s born
What will our sun turn into after it runs out of fuel? ___________________________________________
Name: _____________________________________
Period: ____________
Galaxies
A galaxy is a large ______________________________ of stars in space (1 million to 1 trillion stars)
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Types:
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____________________________- bulge at the center and spiral
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Most galaxies are this type.
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The Milky Way is thought to be this type
Elliptical- bright centers and very little dust and gas.
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o
Contain only _______________________ stars.
Irregular
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No definite shape
The Big Bang Theory:
The scientific theory, discovered by _______________________________ _______________________,
that the Universe was born from a single point in a violent explosion and has been expanding ever since.
What is 1 thing you learned from the Big Bang Theory video? __________________________________
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