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29 Cards in this Set
- Front
- Back
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temperature
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a measure of the average kinetic energy of particles in a substance
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photon
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an individual particle of light, characterized by a wavelength and a frequency
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wavelength
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the distance between adjacent peaks of a wave
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frequency
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describes the role of which peaks of a wave pass by a point
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ion
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atoms with a charge (excess of protons or electrons)
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isotope
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same # of protons, different # of neutrons
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doppler effect
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the effect that shifts wavelengths of spectral features in objects that are moving towards or away from the observer
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redshift
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light emitted from an object moving away from you will have its wavelength lengthened
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blueshift
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light emitted from an object moving towards you will have its wavelength shortened
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angular resolution
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the smallest angle at which you can distinguish two objects
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light pollution
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human-made light that hinders astronomical observations
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solar nebula
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the piece of the interstellar cloud from which our own solar system was formed
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condensation
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the formation of solid or liquid particles from a cloud of gas
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accretion
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process by which small objects gather together to form large objects
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planetesimals
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the building blocks of planets, formed by accretion in the solar nebula
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half-life
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the time it takes for half of the nuclei in any given quantity of a radioactive substance to decay
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extrasolar planet
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a planeet orbiting a star other than our sun
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core (planet)
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the dense central region of a planet that has undergone differentiation
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core (star)
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central region in which nuclear fusion can occur
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mantle
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the rocky layer that lies between a planets cor and crust
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lithosphere
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relatively rigid outer layer of a planet; generally encompasses the crust and uppermost part of the matle
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differentiation
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the process in which gravity separates materials according to density
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convection
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energy transport process in whichwarm material expands and rises while cooler material contracts and falls
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tectonics
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the disruption of a planet's surface by internal stresses
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tidal heating
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a source of internal heating created by tidal friction. it is particularly important for satellites with eccentric orbits such as io and europa
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comet
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relatively small, icy object that orbits a star
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kuiper belt
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comit -rich region of our solar system that spans 30-100AU from the sun; comets in this region have orbits that lie fairly close to the plane of planetary orbits and travel around the sun in the same direction as planets
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oort cloud
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huge, spherical region centered on the sun, extending perhaps half-way to the nearest stars, in which trillions of comets orbit the sun with random inclinations, orbital directions and eccentricities
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coriolis effect
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causes air or objects moving on a rotating planet to deviate from straight-line trajectories.
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