ASTEROIDS

1. ASTEROIDS • Objects made of rock, metal and ice that are much smaller than planets and revolve around the Sun, mostly concentrated in a belt between Mars and Jupiter.

2. Objects made of rock, metal and ice that are much smaller than planets and revolve around the Sun, mostly concentrated in a belt between Mars and Jupiter. Asteroids are found all throughout our solar system, but seem to be more concentrated in a belt between Mars and Jupiter’s orbits. Asteroids occur in many different sizes and shapes. FYI- Large asteroids are sometimes called “Minor Planets”.

3. COMET • Object made mostly of ice, which follows a long, narrow orbit around the sun.

4. CometsObject made mostly of ice, which follows a long, narrow orbit around the sun. A cloud of dust and gases called a COMA surrounds the core. The COMA and the CORE form the comet’s head. A comet’s head is usually smaller than most asteroids; however the tail can extend millions of kilometers. FYI- As a comet approaches the sun, the solar wind creates a long glowing tail on the comet.

5. MOON • A natural satellite, or an object that revolves around a planet held in place by the gravitational pull of the planet and are at the exact distance necessary to orbit

6. MoonsA natural satellite, or an object that revolves around a planet.held in place by the gravitational pull of the planet and are at the exact distance necessary to orbit (any closer they would be pulled into the planet and any further they would drift off into space).

7. PLANET A celestial body that is or was orbiting a star or stellar remnant and is massive enough to be rounded by its own gravity—two main types terrestrial and gas giants

8. PlanetsA celestial body that is or was orbiting a star or stellar remnant and is massive enough to be rounded by its own gravity • Under IAU definitions, there are eight planets in the Solar System. • There are two main types: • Terrestrial- smaller &rocky • Mercury • Venus Earth • Mars • Gas Giants- large, low-density • Jupiter • Saturn • Uranus • Neptune • The Solar System also contains dwarf planets: Ceres, Pluto, Makemake, Haumea and Eris

9. STARS Huge objects in space made up of gas and giving off light and heat from nuclear reactions

10. StarsHuge objects in space made up of gas and giving off light and heat from nuclear reactions • Stars look like twinkling points of light -- except for the sun. It looks like a ball because it is much closer to Earth than any other star. • Some of the stars known as supergiants have a radius about 1,000 times that of the sun. The smallest stars are the neutron stars, some of which have a radius of only about 6 miles (10 kilometers).

11. SOLAR SYSTEM Consists of the Sun(star) and those celestial objects bound to it by gravity (including the asteroid belt and dwarf planets).

12. Solar System • Consists of the Sun(star) and those celestial objects bound to it by gravity (including the asteroid belt and dwarf planets).

13. Galaxy • A system of stars, dust, and gas held together by gravity. • Our solar system is in a galaxy called the ______ ______. • Scientists estimate that there are more than 100 billion galaxies scattered throughout the visible universe. • Small galaxies have fewer than a billion stars. Large galaxies have more than a trillion. FYI-The Milky Way has a diameter of about 100,000 light-years. The solar system lies about 25,000 light-years from the center of the galaxy. There are about 100 billion stars in the Milky Way.

14. GalaxyShapes • Most galaxies can be classified by shape as spiral, barred spiral, elliptical, or irregular.

15. A system of stars, dust, and gas held together by gravity-- shaped like a disk with a bulge in the center. The disk resembles a pinwheel, with bright spiral arms that coil out from the central bulge SPIRAL GALAXY

16. Spiral Galaxies • A spiral galaxy is shaped like a disk with a bulge in the center. The disk resembles a pinwheel, with bright spiral arms that coil out from the central bulge. • The Milky Way is a spiral galaxy. Like pinwheels, all spiral galaxies rotate -- but slowly. FYI-The Milky Way, for example, makes a complete revolution once every 250 million years or so.

17. BARRED SPIRAL GALAXY A system of stars, dust, and gas held together by gravity-- same spiral structure as normal spirals, but also have a prominent ‘bar’ that extends from both sides of the nucleus

18. Barred Spiral Galaxies • Approximately one-third of the known galaxies are barred spirals. • They have the same spiral structure as normal spirals, but also have a prominent ‘bar’ that extends from both sides of the nucleus. • The spiral arms extend out from the ends of the bar

19. IRREGULAR GALAXY A system of stars, dust, and gas held together by gravity--lack a simple shape.

20. Irregular Galaxies • These galaxies lack a simple shape. • Some consist mostly of blue stars and puffy clouds of gas, but little dust. • Others are made up mostly of bright young stars along with gas and dust.

21. ELLIPTICAL GALAXY • A system of stars, dust, and gas held together by gravity-- Elliptical galaxies range in shape from almost perfect spheres to flattened globes

22. Elliptical Galaxies • Elliptical galaxies range in shape from almost perfect spheres to flattened globes. • The light from an elliptical galaxy is brightest in the center and gradually becomes fainter toward its outer regions. • As far as astronomers can determine, elliptical galaxies rotate much more slowly than spiral galaxies or not at all.