World's most versatile flashcards

or...
Reset Password Sign Up

A Family of Planets

        Help  

Word
Definition
astronomical unit (AU)   the average distance between the Earth and the sun, or approximately 150,000,000 km  
terrestrial planets   the small, dense, rocky planets of the inner solar system  
prograde rotation   the counter-clockwise spin of a planet or moon as seen from above the planet's north pole  
retrograde rotation   the clockwise spin of a planet or moon as seen from above the planet's north pole  
gas gaints   the large, gaseous planets of the outer solar system  
satellite   a natural or artifical body that revolves around a planet  
phases   the different appearance of the moon due to varying amounts of sunlight on the side of the moon that faces the Earth  
eclipse   an event in which the shadow of one celestial body falls on another  
comet   a small body of ice, rock, and cosmic dust loosely packed together that gives off gas and dust in the form of a tail as it passes close to the sun  
asteroid   a small, rocky body that revolves around the sun  
asteroid belt   the region of the solar system most asteroids occupy  
meteoroid   a very small, rocky body that revolves around the sun  
meterorite   a meteoroid that reaches the Earth's surface without burning up completely  
meteor   a streak of light caused when a meteoroid or comet dust burns up int he Earth's atmosphere before it reaches the ground  


   


 

 

 

 

 

 
Follow us on Twitter
Be a StudyStack fan on Facebook
www.eapps.com




Copyright ©2001-2009 John Weidner All rights reserved.
About -  Terms of Service -  Privacy Statement