Earth And Space Science

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Astronomy

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Astronomy is the study of space and the relationship of objects to space. Astronomers use optical telescopes and radio telescopes, including the orbiting Hubble Telescope to study space and objects in space.

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Solar system

Back 2

Our solar system has one star (the sun), nine planets, some comets, and lots of satellites (moons). asteroids, and meteors.

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The Sun

Back 3

The sun is a star a turbulent mass of incredibly hot gases exploding with repeated nuclear fusion reactions. Without the heat and light of the sun, our universe would not exists. About 1,000,000 earths could fit inside the sun. the sun's diameter is about 864,000 miles, and the surface temperature is over 10,000 Farenheit. Still, the sun is just average size by galactic standards.

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More facts about the sun

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The sun is the center of our solar system although this was not realized until the 1500's The most noticeable features of the sun's surface are the sunspots (noticeably cooler areas that move across the sun's surface. Sunspots appear in somewhat predictable cycles and are associated with interruptions in radio and television transmission.

Front 5

Earth

Back 5

Third planet from the sun. The earth's distance from the sun ranges from about 91,000,000 to 95,000,000 miles

Front 6

How long does it take light to travel from the sun to earth?

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It takes light about eight minutes to travel from sun to earth. The earth's diameter is about 7,900 mules. The earth's rotation and revolution have a tremendous impact on life here.

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Rotation

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The earth rotates on it's axis, which roughly runs through the geographic north and south poles. This rotation creates day and night as parts of the earth are turned toward and then away from the sun.

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Revolution

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The earth revolves in an orbit (path) around the sun. The earth's axis is tilted about 23
degrees from perpendicular with the orbit around the sun. The tilting and revolving creates seasons as regions of the earth are tilted toward the sun and away from the sun.

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Moon

Back 9

a name for the satellite that revolves around earth. The moon also rotates around it's axis. The moon's diameter is about 2100 miles and it is about 240,000 miles from the earth to the moon. The moon has no atmosphere and it's surface is covered with craters from meteorites and volcanoes.

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Explain the moon's rotation and revolution

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The both take about 27.5 days. These equal periods of rotation and revolution mean that the same part of the moon always faces the earth. It was not until the lunar exploration in 1970 that the other side of the moon had ever been seen.

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High Tides

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The phases of the moon are also integrally related to tides on earth. High tides occur on the parts of earth directly under the moon and on the other side of earth directly opposite this point.

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Low Tides

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Low tides occur halfway between the two high tides. The tides move around the eath as the moon revolves around the earth, creating two high and two low tides each day at each place on earth. The lowest and highest tides occur when the sun and the moon are in a straight line. These tides are called spring tides. The moon is either new or full during this direct alignment.

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Eclipses

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The position of the sun, earth, and moon can create eclipses. A lunar eclipse occurs when the moon is in the earth's shadow. A solar eclipse occurs when the sun is hidden behind the moon.

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Planets

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Nine planets including earth travel around the sun. Also in orbit around the sun are a belt of asteroids from 1 to 500 miles in diameter that may be the remains of an exploded planet.

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Mercury

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3,100 diameters in miles. 36,000,000 miles from sun 88 days revolution

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Venus

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7,700 diameters in miles. 67,000,000 miles from the sun. 225 days revolution.

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Earth

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7,900 diameters in miles. 93,000,000 miles from sun. 365.25 days revolution.

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Mars

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4,200 diameters in miles. 142,000,000 miles from sun 687 days revolution.

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Asteroids

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161,000 diameters in miles from the sun

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Jupiter

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88,700 diameters in miles from sun. 483,000,000 distance from the sun in miles. Revolution 12 years

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Saturn

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75,000 miles in diameters. 886,000,000 miles from sun 29.25 years revolution.

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Uranus

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32,000 miles in diameters. 1,783,000,000 miles from sun 84 years revolution.

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Neptune

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28,000 miles in diameters. 2,794,000,000 miles from sun. 165 years revolution.

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Pluto

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3,670,000,000 miles from sun; revolution 248 years.

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More facts about the planets

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unmanned spacecraft and other observations reveal more about the planets each year. Recent discoveries of meteorites on earth thought to have come from mars and evidence of ice and a former ocean bed on Mars have fueled speculation that some life forms might exist, or might have existed on Mars.