Earth Science Exam 3 - 11/17

Front 1

geocentric

Back 1

view that the Earth is at the center of the solar system

Front 2

heliocentric

Back 2

view that the sun is at the center of the solar system

Front 3

retrograde motion

Back 3

apparent westward movement of the planets with respect to the stars

Front 4

Aristotle

Back 4

determined the earth was spherical bc it casts a curved shadow on the moon

Front 5

Eratosthenes

Back 5

first successful calculation of the size of the Earth

Front 6

Aristarchus

Back 6

Proposed a heliocentric universe. First calculated distance between Earth and sun. First calculated the size of the sun and moon.

Front 7

Nicolaus Copernicus

Back 7

Repurposed a heliocentric universe on his deathbed.

Front 8

Tycho Brahe

Back 8

made accurate and key observations to disprove a heliocentric universe that ended up proving it

Front 9

Johannes Kepler

Back 9

1. Planet orbits are elliptical, not circular

2. Planets speed up and slow down

3. Planets' distance to the sun is proportional to the length go their years

Front 10

Galileo Galilei

Back 10

Venus has phases like the moon, proved a heliocentric universe

Front 11

inertia

Back 11

property of matter that resists a change in its motion

Front 12

Law of universal gravitation

Back 12

every body in the universe attracts every other body with a force that is proportional to their masses and inversely proportional to the square of the distance between them

Front 13

constellation

Back 13

apparent group of stars originally named for mythical characters

Front 14

equatorial system

Back 14

method of locating stellar objects much like the coordinate system used on Earth's surface

Front 15

declination

Back 15

angular distance north or south of the celestial equator denoting the position of a celestial body

Front 16

right ascension

Back 16

angular distance measured eastward along the celestial equator from the vernal equinox

Front 17

revolution

Back 17

motion of one body about another, such as Earth about the sun

Front 18

axial precession

Back 18

slow motion of Earth's axis that traces out a cone over a period of 26,000 years

Front 19

mean solar day

Back 19

average time between two passages of the sun across the local celestial meridian

Front 20

sidereal day

Back 20

period of rotation with respect to the stars

Front 21

perihelion

Back 21

points the orbit of a plane where it is closest to the sun

Front 22

aphelion

Back 22

point in the orbit of a planet where it is farthest from the sun

Front 23

ecliptic

Back 23

yearly path of Sun plotted against the background of stars

Front 24

plane of ecliptic

Back 24

imaginary plane that connects Earth's orbit with the celestial sphere

Front 25

axial precession

Back 25

slow motion of Earth's axis that traces out a cone over a period of 26,000 years

Front 26

synodic month

Back 26

time period of revolution of the Moon around Earth with respect to the Sun

Front 27

sidereal month

Back 27

time period of revolution of the Moon around Earth with respect to the stars

Front 28

phases of the moon

Back 28

progression of changes in the Moon's appearance during the month

Front 29

solar eclipse

Back 29

eclipse of the Sun

Front 30

lunar eclipse

Back 30

eclipse of the Moon