Astronomy: Chapter 8 – Solar System Review Sheet
Self-quiz: Ch 8 Self Quiz p.358
Questions: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 12, 13, 24
Listof Concepts: for each you a definition, characteristics and examples.
Ex. Star: a fixed luminous point in the night sky which is a large, remote incandescent body like the sun. It is
bright, hot, very large, has gravity, and creates light. Ex. Sun, the North Star, Sirius.











Celestial Object
Star
Planet
Terrestrial planet
Gas giant planet
Satellite
Milky Way
Scientific Notation
Appropriate units of measure
Light Year
Astronomical Unit












Dwarf Planets
Solar System
Inner Planets
Outer Planets
Asteroids
Meteroids
Comets
Gravitational force
The Moon
Tides
Solar Mass
Relative Magnitude
Handouts
Day 1-Touring the Night Sky
+ Voyager Farthest Video
Day 2 – Astronomical Distances
Day 3 – The Sun
Day 4 – Sun and the Planets
+ Formation of the Solar System Video
Day 5 – Characteristics of Stars
Day 6 – Solar Nebula Theory
+ Crash course video: Solar system Introduction
Day 7 – Life Cycle of Stars
Earth's motion: Direction of rotation, tilt of the Earth, Precession, Solstice, Equinox, Geocentric,
Heliocentric, Orbital Radius.
Stars: 5 Characteristics of Stars. Star brightness. Apparent Magnitude. Colour, Temperature.
Composition of a star.
Characteristics of the Solar System: (1) The sun is at the center of the universe. (2) The planets orbit
counter-clockise around the sun. (3) all planets (except Venus) spin counter-clockwise (4) The planets
orbit the sun on the same plane (5) small rocky terrestrial planets are near the sun, gas giant planet are
further out from the sun. (6) distance from each planet from the Sun is twice as far as the next planet
Solar Nebula Theory: The solar system was formed ~5 billion (5x10^9) years ago from a cloud of gas and
dust that began to contract
The Life Cycle of stars: The Life of a Star, Protostar, Hertzsprung-Russel diagram, Medium-sized stars,
Large sized stars.