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161 Cards in this Set

  • Front
  • Back

Sunspot

Relatively dark spot on the sun that contains intense magnetic fields.

Granulation

Hot magma rising and falling, then cools. Caused by convection

Convection
occurs when hot fluid rises and cold fluid sinks
Supergranules
: very large convective features in the sun's surface
Filtergram
: a photograph (usually of the sun) taken in the light of a specific region of the spectrum

(Example: H∝ filtergram)
Spicule
: a small, flame–like projection in the chromosphere on the sun
Coronagraphs
: a telescope designed to photograph the inner corona of the sun
Magnetic Carpet
: the network of small magnetic loops that covers the solar system
Solar Wind
: rapidly moving atoms and ions that escape from the solar corona and blow outward through the solar system
Helioseismology
: the study of the interior of the sun by analysis of its modes of vibration
Weak Force
–1 of the 4 forces of nature

–responsible for some forms of radioactive decay
Strong Force
–1 of the 4 forces of nature

– binds protons and neutrons together in atomic nuclei
Nuclear Fission
: reactions that BREAK the nuclei of atoms into fragments
Nuclear Fusion
: reactions that JOIN the nuclei of atoms to form more massive nuclei
Proton–Proton Chain
: a series of 3 nuclear reactions that builds a helium atom by adding together protons.

–The main energy sources is in the Sun
Deuterium
: an isotope of hydrogen in which the nucleus contains a proton and neutron
Positron
: the antiparticle of the electron
Neutrino
: a neutral, massless atomic particle that travels at or nearly at the speed of light
Coulomb Barrier
: the electrostatic force of repulsion between bodies of like charge

–Commonly applied to atomic nuclei
Radiative Zone
: the region inside a star where energy is carried outward as photons
Convective Zone
: the region inside a star where energy is carried outward as rising hot gas and sinking cool gas
Maunder Butterfly Diagram
: a graph showing the latitude of sunspots vs. time

–First plotted by W.W. Maunder in 1904
Zeeman Effect
: the splitting of spectral lines into multiple components when the atoms are in a magnetic field

–Used by astronomers to measure the magnetic fields on the sun
Maunder Minimum
–Historical records show that there were very few sunspots from about 1645–1715.

*This phenomenon is known as the "Maunder minimum". Coincides w/ a period called the "little ice age", a period of unusually cool weather in Europe and N. America
Dynamo effect
: the process by which a rotating, convecting body of conducting matter, such as Earth's core, can generate a magnetic field
Differential rotation
: the rotation of a body in which different parts of the body have different periods of rotation.

–This occurs in the sun, the Jovian planets, and the disk of the galaxy
Babcock model
: a model of the sun's magnetic cycle in which the differential rotation of the sun winds up and tangles the solar magnetic field in a 22–year cycle.

–This is thought to be responsible for the 11–year sunspot cycle
Prominence
–Eruption on the solar surface

–Visible during total solar eclipse
Filaments
–a solar prominence
–seen from above
–silhouetted against the bright photosphere
Flares
a violent eruption on the sun's surface
Reconnection
: on the sun, the merging of magnetic fields to release energy in the forms of flares
Aurora
:colorful light caused by charged particles from the sun interacting with our atmosphere to excite atoms and emit photons

–gases emit visible light
Coronal Mass Ejections (CMEs)
: matter ejected from the sun's corona in powerful surges guided by magnetic fields
Coronal Holes
* They are sources of the solar wind
* Related to the sun's magnetic field
* 20% of the surface
Stellar Parallax (p)
: a measure of stellar distance
Parsec (pc)
: the distance to a hypothetical star whose parallax is 1 second of arc.

: 1 pc= 206,265 AU= 3.26 ly
Flux
: a measure of the flow of energy through a surface. Usually applied to light.
Absolute Visual Magnitude (Mv)
: Intrinsic brightness of a star

: The apparent visual magnitude the star would have if it were 10 parsec (pc) away.
Luminosity (L)
: the total amount of energy a star radiates in 1 second
Hertzsprung–Russell (H–R) diagram
: a plot of intrinsic brightness vs. the surface temperature of stars

–separates the effects of temperature and surface area on stellar luminosity
–commonly plotted as
Absolute Magnitude vs. Spectral Type
–or–
Luminosity vs. Surface Temp. of Color
Main Sequence
: the region of the H–R diagram running from upper left to lower right

–includes about 90% of all stars
Giant stars
: Large, cool, highly luminous stars in the upper right of the H–R diagram.

–typically 10–100 times the diameter of the sun
Supergiant stars
: exceptionally luminous star whose diameter is 10–100 times that of the sun
Red Dwarfs
: a faint, cool, low–mass, main–sequence star
White Dwarfs
: dying stars at the lower left of the H–R diagram that has collapsed to the size of Earth and is cooling off slowly
Luminosity Class
: a category of stars of similar luminosity, determined by the widths of lines in their spectra
Spectroscopic Parallax
: the method of determining a star's distance by comparing its apparent magnitude with its absolute magnitude as estimated from its spectrum
Binary Stars
: pairs of stars that orbit around their common center of mass
Visual Binary System
: a binary star system in which the two stars are separately visible in a telescope
Spectroscopic Binary System
: a star system in which the stars are too close together to be visible separately

–we see a single point of light
–only in a spectrum can the two stars be detected
Eclipsing Binary System
: a binary star system in which the stars eclipse each other
Light Curve
: a graph of brightness vs. time commonly used in analyzing variable stars and eclipsing binaries
Mass–Luminosity Relation
: the more massive a star, the more luminous it is
Catastrophe hypotheses
depend on a rare event such as sun colliding into another star
Evolutionary hypotheses
the planets formed by gradual, natural processes
Solar Nebula Theory
proposes that the planets formed in a disk of gas and dust around the protostar that became the sun
Terrestrial planets
the four inner planets that are small, rocky, and dense
Jovian planets
the four outward planets that are large and low density
Kuiper belt
composed of small, icy bodies (called Kuiper belt objects) that orbit the sun beyond the orbit of Neptune
Protoplanets
unchanged composition of accreted matter over time
Accretion
condensated clumps sticking to the other clumps in outer space
Planetessimals
bigger clumps of accretion sticking together
Comparative planetology
the approach of comparing and contrasting planets to identify principles and understand the planets better
Why do we use Earth as a standard for comparative planetology
we know it best and it contains all the phenomena found on the other terrestrial planets
Which are the terrestrial planets?
Earth, Moon, Mercury, Venus, Mars
(moon included because it is a complex world and makes a striking comparison to Earth)
Terrestrial Worlds
differ mainly in size
have low–density crusts, mantles made out of dense rock, and metallic cores
Main points of Comparative Planetology:
1. Cratered surfaces are old
2. Heat flowing out of a planet is what drives geological activity
3.The nature of the planet's atmosphere depends on the size of the planet and its temprature
4 Stages of Earth's evolution:
1.differentiation
2.cratering
3.flooding
4.slows surface evolution
Differentiation
the separation of material into layers according to density (earths evolution)
Cratering
after a solid surface has formed, heavy bombardment of the early solar system made craters (earths evolution)
Flooding
by lava and water (earths evolution)
Slows surface evolution
constant changing sections of crust slide over and against each other (earths evolution)
Seismic waves
vibrations caused by earthquakes and are detected by seismographs
Pressure waves
waves that can pass through a liquid, such as sound
Shear waves
travel as a side–to–side vibration and cannot pass through liquid
Earth
4.6 billion years old and happened from the inner solar nebula
Earths core
liquid (we know that because seismic waves don't travel through it)
composed of iron and nickel
Earths mantle
plastic–like and can deform and flow under pressure
Earths crust
brittle and breaks under stress
Primary atmosphere
earths first atmosphere that was composed mostly of carbon dioxide, nitrogen, and water vapor
Secondary atmosphere
current atmosphere that was composed mostly of carbon dioxide and plants have added oxygen
Greenhouse effect
when infrared ration is absorbed by the atmosphere but cannot get back out and heats up the earths surface
Ejecta
debris blasted out of craters
(can produce rays and secondary craters)
Multiringed basins
very large pits formed by large impacts
Micrometeorites
tiny and constantly bombard the moons surface
Moon– Highlands
oldest part of surface and heavily cratered
Moon– Lowlands
filled by lava, causing it to be smooth maria
lunar rocks– Vesicular basalts
lava–made rocks that contain holes from bubbles
lunar rocks– anorthosite
light–colored and low–density rock that floated to the surface of the highlands when it was a magma ocean
lunar rocks– breccias
rocks made of fragments of broken rock cemented together under pressure
Mercury
–smaller than earth (1/3 of earths diameter)
–larger than the moon
–old, heavily cratered surfaces; extremely thin atmosphere
–very high density
–metallic core is large compared to its diameter
Lobate scarps
long curving cliffs formed by a wrinkling crust, which forms when its large metallic core solidifies and contracts (Mercury)
Venus
–almost as large as earth
–can't be seen from earth because of the atmosphere
–carbon dioxide in the atmosphere drives an intense greenhouse effect and makes the planet a world of volcanoes and lava flow
–slightly closer to the sun than earth
Shield volcanoes
found on Earth, Venus, and Mars, are caused by rising columns of magma (hot spots)
Composite volcanoes
only on earth, associated with plate tectonics and subduction zones
Geological activity
due to volcanisms and vertical tectonics
Coronae
large circular uplifted regions
Mars
–half the size of earth
–thin atmosphere; last much internal heat, but not all
–cold and has low escape velocity
–air pressure is too low for water
––liquid water would boil away
––remaining water is frozen in polar ice caps and as permafrost in the soil
water related features– outflow channels
appear to have been cut by massive floods
(prove that conditions on Mars must have once been different, allowing liquid to flow on the surface)
water related features– valley networks
long term drainage caused riverbeds with sandbars, delta, and tributaries
(prove that conditions on Mars must have once been different, allowing liquid to flow on the surface)
Mars Moons
two moons (Phobos and Deimos)
–most likely captured asteroids
–small, airless, cratered
–no internal heat left
Jovian Planets
large, massive low–density worlds in the outer solar system
(Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune)
have extensive satellite systems and moons (regular/irregular)
Belt–zone circulation
cloud belts parallel to the planets equator
Liquid Giants
Jupiter and Saturn are composed mostly of liquid metallic hydrogen
Ice Giants
Uranus and Neptune are abundant in solid water
Regular Satellites
large, close to parent planet, move in prograde direction (with the rest of the solar system)
Irregular Satellites
small, far from parent planet, and have high orbital inclinations
Jupiter
core made of heavy elements surrounded by a deep mantel of liquid metallic hydrogen
–large and strong magnetic field
Magnetosphere
around Jupiter; traps high–energy particles from the sun to form intense radiation belts
Atmosphere (Jupiter)
–three layers of clouds formed of hydrogen–rich molecules
–cloud layers are located at certain temperatures within the atmosphere
–cloud stripes parallel to equator are light/dark
Jupiter atmosphere cloud stripes
1. light–colored, high–pressure regions of rising gas
2. darker belts, lower–pressure areas of sinking gas
Spots in Jupiter's atmosphere
includes the Great Red Spot, are circulation weather patterns
Jupiter's Moons
–Galilean moons
–linked together in orbital resonances
–Io, Europa, Ganymede
Io (Jupiters Moon)
active volcanoes, orbits Jupiter 4 times
Europa (Jupiters Moon)
smooth ice and cracks, orbits Jupiter 2 times
Ganymede (Jupiters Moon)
grooved terrain, orbits Jupiter once
Jupiter's ring
composed of small particles that are bright when illuminated from behind (forward scattering)
Roche limit
distance from a planet within which the tidal stress can destroy or prevent one from forming (Jupiter's ring lies within Jupiter's Roche limit)
Saturn
–less dense than water
–contains a small core with less metallic hydrogen than Jupiter, therefore magnetic field is 20 times weaker
–moons are icy and mostly heavily cratered
Titan (Saturn's moon)
Saturn's largest moon; cold, cloudy nitrogen atmosphere
(so cold that gas molecules do not travel fast enough to escape)
Enceladus (Saturn's moon)
has a light surface with some uncratered regions
Saturns rings
composed of icy particles ranging in size from boulders to dust
–composition and brightness of the rings particles vary
–grooves in the rings can be produced by orbital resonances, or waves, that propagate through the rings caused by moons near or within the rings
Shephard satellites
the gravitational effect of small moons; can cause narrow rings and sharp ring edges
Jovian planets rings
cant be material left over from the formation of the planet
rings are replenished occasionally with material produced by meteoroids, asteroids, and comets colliding with moons
Uranus
–1/3 diameter of Jupiter, 1/20 as massive
–internal pressure cannot produce liquid hydrogen
–heavy–element core, mantle of solid or slushy ice and rocky material below a hydrogen–rich atmosphere
–atmosphere is almost featureless at visible wavelengths (pale blue color is caused by traces of methane which absorbs red light)
–rotates on its side (possibly due to major impact or tidal interactions with other planets during its early history)
–larger moons are icy and heavily cratered
Ovoids
grooves on Miranda, the innermost moon, caused by internal heat driving convection in the icy mantle
Occultations
the passage of the planet in front of a star during which the rings momentarily blocked the stars light
(how the rings of Uranus were discovered)
Rings of Uranus
narrow hoops of ice with traces of methane confined by shepherd satellites
Neptune
–ice giant with no liquid hydrogen
–has heat flowing from its interior
–atmosphere is rich in hydrogen and colored blue by traces of methane
Nereid (Neptunes Moon)
far off and follows a large elliptical orbit
Triton (Neptunes Moon)
–orbits backwards
–icy with a thin atmosphere and frosty polar caps
–smooth areas suggest past geological activity
–dark smudges mark the location of active nitrogen geysers
Neptunes rings
made up of icy particles in narrow hoops and contains arcs produced by the gravitational influence of one or more moons
Pluto
–small world with 3 moons, one of which, Charon, is quite large in relation to Pluto
–mostly rock with a substantial amount of ice
–redefined as a dwarf planet
–member of a family of Kuiper belt objects orbiting beyond Neptune
Plutinos
Kuiper belt objects that follow orbits like Pluto that have an orbital resonance with Neptune
Meteroid
small solid particles orbiting in the solar system
Meteor
visible streak of light from a meteoroid heated and glowing as it enters Earth's atmosphere
Meterorite
space material that has reached Earths surface
Iron meterorites
solid chunks of iron and nickel
(when sliced open, polished, and etched they show Widmanstatten patterns)
Widmanstatten patterns
reveal that the metal cooled from a molten state slowly
Stony meteorites
commonly seen falling to earth
Chondrites
dark, gray granular rocks containing chondrules
Chondrules
small, glassy particles that are solidified droplets of unknown once–molten material
Stony–iron meteorites
rare and a mix of stony and metallic material
Carbonaceous chondrites
rich in volatiles and carbon
(some contain CAls (calcium aluminum rich inclusions) which are understood to be the very first solid particles to condense in the cooling solar nebular)
CAls
calcium aluminum rich inclusions) which are understood to be the very first solid particles to condense in the cooling solar nebular)
Achondrite
no chondrules or volatiles
(appear to have been melted after they formed)
Meteor showers
suggest that meteorites are fragments of asteroids because they come from the same area in the sky (called the radiant)
Sporadic meteors
meteors that occur but are not part of showers
–many meteorites appear to have formed as parts of larger bodies that were broken up
–core fragments became iron meteorites
–outer layer fragments became stony meteorites
–intermediate layers became stony–iron meteorites
Asteroids
–irregular in shape and heavily cratered from collisions
–surface are covered by gray, pulverized rock
–some have densities so low they must be fragmented rubble piles
–most lie in a belt between Mars and Jupiter
Asteroids outside the belt
–Trojan asteroids
–Near Earth objects
–Centaurs
Trojan asteroids
two groups of asteroids caught in the Lagrange point of Jupiter (caught between the gravitational pull of Jupiter and the Sun)
60' ahead of planet in its orbit and 60' behind
Near Earth objects
NEOs that cross the earths orbit and could potentially hit Earth
Centaurs
asteroids that orbit among the planets of the outer solar system
C type asteroids
common in outer asteroid belt where the solar nebula was cooler; darker and may be carbonaceous
S type asteroids
most common and may be the source of chondrites; bright and red
M type asteroids

appear to have nickel–iron compositions and may be the cores of different asteroids shatters by collision; bright semi–red

Comets
produced by a lump of ices and rock, referred to as the comet nucleus
–nucleus stars frozen until it nears the sun, then some of the ices vaporize and release dust and gas that is blown away to form a head and tail
–comets have very dark, rocky crusts and jets of vapor and dust issue from active regions on the sunlit side
–the low density of comet nuclei shows that they are irregular mixtures of ices and silicates
–comets are believed to have formed as icy planetessimals in the outer solar system but some were ejected to form the Oort cloud
Gas tail
ionized gas carried away by the solar wind
Dust tail

solid debris released from the nucleus and blown outward by the pressure of sunlight
(a comets tail always points away from the sun no matter in what direction the comet is moving due to the effects of solar wind and radiation pressure

Coma

head of a comet (can be up to a million km in diameter)

Oort cloud

spherical cloud of icy bodies that extend from the sun
–other icy bodies in the outer solar now make up the Kuiper belt