Solar Systems Review
Instructions: Read each question carefully and give the best answer.
1. Which statement describes the motion of Earth around the sun?
2. If it is summer in the northern hemisphere, which statement is true?
3. How does a straight alignment between Earth, the sun, and the moon impact
the tides on Earth?
4. Which describes the difference between nuclear fission and nuclear fusion?
5. How does heat from the sun get to Earth?
6. Why do green plants require solar energy?
7. Which natural phenomenon occurs as a result of Earth rotating on its axis?
8. How does the tilt of the Earth’s axis affect the seasons?
9. Which is an effect of lower levels of solar radiation striking Earth?
10. What types of path do orbital bodies in space travel?
True/False
Instructions: Decide whether the statement is true or false. If the statement is
false please underline, change, and explain your change to the statement to
make it true.
11. The two main elements in all stars are the gases Helium and Carbon.
12. The accepted model of the solar system is the Geocentric model, which has
the Earth as the center of the Solar System, with all of the bodies traveling
around it.
13. Kepler’s Three Laws are as Follows: The Law of Ellipses, The Law of Equal
Areas, and the Law of Harmonies. The first two laws look at individual
planets, while the third laws compares each of the planets to each other.
14. The main reason for the seasons on Earth has to do with the fact that the
Earth’s axis is tilted at 32.5 degrees. This allows the Northern Hemisphere to
be pointed towards the Earth, while the Southern Hemisphere is pointed
away from the Earth, and vice versa.
15. The seasons of Earth are dependent on the location of that part of Earth. If
the Hemisphere is tilted towards the sun it is summer and if it is pointed
away from the sun it is winter.
16. The Southern Hemisphere is in summer when the Earth is closest to the sun,
while the Northern Hemisphere is in summer when the Earth is farthest from
the sun, due to the tilt of the Earth. There isn’t much of a difference in the
seasons due to distance because the Northern Hemisphere has more oceans
in it.
17. The revolution of the Earth’s axis, which takes approximately18,000 years is
called precession.
18. The wobble effect of the Earth’s precession is called the Barycenter. Each
wobble takes approximately 18 years and is a possible explanation for the
slight changes in the seasons from year to year.
19. The most accepted theory of the beginning of the Universe is the Steady –
State Theory. In the Steady-State Theory the universe is ever expanding and
no new matter is being added each year.
20. The Barycenter is center of mass of two objects in space. When a smaller
object is revolving around the bigger object , both objects are actually
orbiting around the barycenter of the objects.
Short Answer:
Instructions: Answer each questions in complete sentences. Make sure to use
units if you need to complete an equation.
Needed Equation
Eccentricity = Distance Between Foci/Length of Major Axis
21. Determine the eccentricity of the ellipses in the following chart.
Planet
Distance
Length of Major
Eccentricity
Between Foci
Axis
Quez
1100 km
1400 km
Derrick
1750 km
37000 km
Tate
97 km
297 km
Tanner
777 km
190000 km
Zora
12000 km
75000 km
22. Which planet has the most elliptical orbit? Explain
23. Which planet has the least elliptical orbit? Explain
24. How would a perfectly circular orbit differ from an elliptical orbit? Explain
25. What would be the Length of the Major Axis of a planet with an eccentricity
of .00876 and a foci distance of 976 km? Show your work.