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GED Science
Lesson 4 Earth in the Solar System
Term | Definition |
---|---|
solar system | consists of the sun, the planets, their satellites, or moons, the asteroids, and the comets |
planet | any of the eight large heavenly bodies revolving about the sun and shining by reflected light: Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, or Neptune, in the order of their proximity to the sun. |
satellite | a natural body that revolves around a planet; a moon |
asteroid | Also called minor planet; any of the thousands of small bodies of from 480 miles (775 km) to less than one mile (1.6 km) in diameter that revolve about the sun in orbits lying mostly between those of Mars and Jupiter. |
mass | amount of matter |
gravity | the force of attraction by which terrestrial bodies tend to fall toward the center of the earth |
inner planets | the planets that are relatively close to the sun; includes Mercury, Venus, Earth, and Mars; they are all small, rocky planets |
outer planets | the planets that are great distances from the sun; includes Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune; they are all gas giants |
lunar phases | changes in the proportion of the moon's surface that is in shadow |