Name ________________________________________________ Mod ____________ Date ________________________

AstronomyUnit Study Guide and Notes

Section 1: The Solar System

Vocabulary

• ____________________________— The study of the moon, stars, and other objects in space.

• Space—The area ____________________ of Earth’s atmosphere.

• ____________________________—An object that revolves around another object in space.

• _______________________ __________________—How big the planets are when compared to each

other and the sun.

• Relative distance—How ______________ ___________________ the planets are when compared

to each other and the sun.

Notes _____________________________ is the study of the ______________ __________________. The solar

system includes the ____________, _______________, stars, planets, and other objects in space,

including meteoroids, asteroids, and comets. Space is the area outside of Earth’s

______________________________.

A _________________________ orbits the sun. A comet is a bright object with a long tail of

glowing _______________________ made up of ice, dust, and small rocky particles. You can

think of a comet as a “_______________ _______________________.”

An _________________________________ is a rocky object that orbits the sun. Asteroids are too

small to be planets. Most asteroids are in orbit between Mars and Jupiter in a region

known as the ______________________________ ___________________. Most asteroids are less than 1

kilometer in diameter, but some are much larger. Scientists think that asteroids are

leftover pieces of rock from the ________________ ________________ _____________________.

A __________________________________ is a chunk of rock or dust in space. Some meteoroids

form when asteroids _______________________ into each other. Other meteoroids form when

________________________ break apart. Meteoroids can enter Earth’s atmosphere. When one

does, ______________________ between the meteoroid and the air produces a ____________________

_________ __________________ in the sky.

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Name ________________________________________________ Mod ____________ Date ________________________

A meteor is a _______________________ ____________ ____________________ in the sky produced by a

meteoroid. Most meteoroids _______________ __________ ___________________________in Earth’s

atmosphere. However, some hit Earth’s surface. Meteoroids that hit Earth’s surface are

called ____________________________.

Planets are large celestial bodies that _____________________ ___________ ______________ and are

___________________________ by light from the sun. The _____________________ planets are Mercury,

Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune.

A star is a large body consisting of a mass of ___________________ that produces its own

energy and light. The _________________ is a ___________________ that is the _________________

______________ of our solar system.

A moon is a natural ___________________________ of a planet that ____________________ around that

planet. A satellite is an object that ___________________ ___________________ _____________________

____________________ in space. Some planets do not have any moons, while other planets

have seventeen or more moons. Earth has one moon.

Review Questions (Answer the following questions. Use the ideas in your notes to help you.)

1. Read each word in the box. In each sentence below, fill in one of the words.

a. A bright object with a long tail of glowing gases that orbits the sun is a(n) ________________.

b. A rocky object that orbits the sun and is too small to be a planet is a(n)

___________________.

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moon star asteroid planet comet

Thought Box

Name ________________________________________________ Mod ____________ Date ________________________

c. A natural satellite of a planet is called a(n) _________________.

2. Read each word in the box. In each blank in the table below, fill in one of the words.

Rocks From Space

Term Description

a. ______________________________a streak of light in the night sky

b. ______________________________a meteoroid that hits Earth’s surface

c. ______________________________a chunk of rock or dust in space

Notes

_______________________________ __________________ means how big the planets are when

__________________________ _________ ______________ ___________________ and the sun.

______________________________ __________________________ means how ____________ _______________

the planets are when compared to each other and the sun.

The sun _________________________ to be the largest of all of the stars. However, astronomers

believe that other stars may be over 1,500 times bigger than the sun. The sun _____________

_____________________ than other stars because it is much __________________________ to the earth

than any other star.

The sun and the moon often appear to be the _______________________ ____________________. This

is due to the fact that _____________________ ________ __________ ___________, the moon is much

____________________________ to Earth.

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Meteor Meteoroid Meteorite

Thought Box

Name ________________________________________________ Mod ____________ Date ________________________

Review Questions (Answer the following questions. Use the ideas in your notes to help you.)

3. Circle the letter of the statement that best explains why the Sun and the Moon appear to

be about the same size in the sky.

a. The Sun and the Moon are the same distance from Earth.

b. The Moon is smaller in diameter and is closer to the Earth than the Sun.

c. The Sun and the Moon have the same diameter.

d. The Moon is larger in diameter and farther from Earth than the Sun.

Section 2: Earth’s Rotation & Revolution

Vocabulary

• _______________________— An imaginary line that passes through Earth’s center and the North

and South poles, about which the earth rotates.

• Rotation—The ______________________________ motion of a planet on its axis.

• ______________________________—The movement of an object around another object.

• Orbit—The path of an object as it _________________________ around another object in space.

• ______________________________—A force that pulls objects toward each other.

Notes

__________________________ is spinning. Earth rotates on its ___________________. Earth’s axis is an

______________________________ ______________ through the North and South poles.

Earth’s rotation causes __________________ ________________ ______________________. As Earth

rotates from west to east, the sun appears to move across the sky. The direction of

Earth’s rotation is what causes the sun to _________________ in the _________________ and

___________ in the _______________. The sun is not really moving. Earth’s rotation makes it

appear to move. It takes Earth about ___________ ___________________ to rotate once.

Earth also moves around the ___________________. This movement is called

______________________________. Revolution is the movement of _____________ _________________

________________________ ____________________________.

The path that Earth follows around the sun is called an ______________________. Earth takes

one _________________ (365 ¼ days) to travel all the way around the sun in its orbit.

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Name ________________________________________________ Mod ____________ Date ________________________

___________________________ is the force that attracts all objects toward each other. Because of

gravity, Earth _______________ _________ ____________ ________________. The moon also pulls on

Earth. The __________________ stays in orbit around the Earth because of gravity. Gravity

also keeps the ___________________ in orbit as they revolve around the sun.

Review Questions (Answer the following questions. Use the ideas in your notes to help you.)

4. The longitude of a location determines which time zone it is in. Different time zones are

the result of

a. Earth’s rotation

b. Earth’s revolution

c. the moon’s rotation

d. the moon’s revolution

5. Draw a line from each term to its meaning.

Term Meaning

axis a. the movement of one object around another object

rotation b. the imaginary line that passes through Earth’s center and poles

revolution c. the spinning of Earth

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Thought Box

Name ________________________________________________ Mod ____________ Date ________________________

6. The picture shows the planet Earth. Draw a line through the picture that shows Earth’s

axis.

7. In New York State, an observer will usually see the Sun rise in the

a. north b. south

c. east d. west

8. On the map below, place an X at 40o N 20o W.

Explain why location B will experience sunrise before location A.

_______________________________________________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________________________________________

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Name ________________________________________________ Mod ____________ Date ________________________

9. The length of a year is equivalent to the time it takes for one

a. rotation of Earth

b. rotation of the Sun

c. revolution of Earth around the Sun

d. revolution of the Sun around Earth

10. Which force keeps the planets in their orbits around the sun and the moon in its orbit

around Earth?

__________________________

Notes

Earth’s ____________________ ________________________ as the Earth ____________________________

around the sun.

Earth’s axis is ________________________, or slanted and always points the same way. When

Earth is on one side of the sun, Earth tilts toward the sun. When Earth is on the other

side, Earth tilts away from the sun.

When Earth tilts ____________________ the sun, it is summer in the ___________________________

Hemisphere. When Earth tilts ____________________ from the sun, it is ________________________ in

the ______________________ Hemisphere.

When it is ___________________ in the Northern Hemisphere, it is ______________________ in the

Southern Hemisphere. When it is ____________________ in the Northern Hemisphere, it is

_______________________ in the __________________________ Hemisphere.

Since the _____________________ always tilts toward the sun, it remains a ______________

_______________________, warmer ____________________________ at the equator throughout the year.

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Thought Box

Name ________________________________________________ Mod ____________ Date ________________________

Review Questions (Answer the following questions. Use the ideas in your notes to help you.)

11. Circle the factor that contributes to seasons occurring in New York State.

a. the revolution of the Moon around Earth

b. the tilt of Earth on its axis

c. the distance of Earth from the Sun

12. The diagram below shows Earth at four locations in its orbit around the Sun.

Which motion do the arrows in the diagram represent?

a. Earth’s rotation

b. the Sun’s rotation

c. Earth’s revolution

d. the Sun’s revolution

13. Label the diagram below using the dates of March 21, June 21, September 21, and December 21. Then answer the question below.

____________________

____________________ ____________________

____________________

On which date does North America usually experience the longest period of daylight?

______________________________

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Name ________________________________________________ Mod ____________ Date ________________________

14. The diagram below shows Earth as viewed from space.

Which season is occurring in the Northern Hemisphere?

a. summer b. autumn

c. winter d. spring

Section 3: The Moon

Vocabulary

• _______________________—One of the different apparent shapes of the moon as seen from

Earth.

• solar ________________________—The blocking of sunlight to Earth that occurs when the moon

is directly between the sun and Earth.

• lunar eclipse—The blocking of sunlight to the moon that occurs when _____________________

is directly between the sun and the moon.

Notes

Very long ago, big rocks were moving around in space. Scientists think that one of these

big rocks may have __________________________ into Earth. Material from Earth broke off. The

____________________ ___________ _____________________ of Earth became the ____________________.

The moon ___________________________ around Earth. It takes the moon about ____________ days

to _______________________ ________________________ _______________________.

As the moon and Earth move, their positions _______________________ in relation to each other.

Their positions also change in relation to the ___________________.

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Name ________________________________________________ Mod ____________ Date ________________________

The moon __________________ ____________ ________________ ______________ its own light. The

moon _________________________ light from the sun.

The moon _______________________ to have different _______________________ at different times.

These different shapes of the moon that you see are called _______________________.

As the moon ___________________________ around Earth, you see the moon _______________

___________________________ ___________________. You cannot always see all of the part of the

moon that is lit by the sun.

___________________ ___________________ ___________________ ___________________

Sometimes the _____________________ moves between Earth and the sun. The moon blocks

the _____________________________ from reaching Earth. A __________________ _______________________

occurs when a ______________ __________________ ________________________ your view of the sun.

A _________________ ____________________ occurs when ____________________ _______ __________________

the moon and the sun. A lunar eclipse occurs when there is a ___________________ moon and

Earth’s _______________________ hits the moon.

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Thought Box

Name ________________________________________________ Mod ____________ Date ________________________

Review Questions (Answer the following questions. Use the ideas in your notes to help you.)

15. The Moon’s surface is visible to an observer on Earth because the Moon

a. reflects sunlight

b. absorbs light from Earth

c. produces its own light

d. transmits sunlight

16. Approximately how long does it take to cycle from one new Moon to the next new Moon?

a. a day

b. a week

c. a month

d. a year

17. The diagram represents the motion of the Moon around Earth as seen from above the North Pole. One position of the Moon in its orbit is shown.

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Name ________________________________________________ Mod ____________ Date ________________________

18. The diagram below shows the positions of the Sun, Earth, and the Moon as seen from space.

Which event is caused by the Moon passing through Earth’s shadow?

a. a meteor shower b. an eclipse

c. a change of season d. an earthquake

Section 4: Tides

Vocabulary

• __________________________— The daily rise and fall of Earth’s waters on its coastlines.

• Gravity— A force that __________________ objects toward each other.

Notes

________________ are the regular ___________________ _____________ ________________ of ocean water.

The moon’s _______________________ ____________________ _________________. The force of the

moon’s gravity causes ___________________ ___________________ on Earth to move higher in some

places and lower in other places.

The sun’s gravity also pulls on Earth’s ocean waters, so when __________________________ with

the moon’s gravity, the ________________________ possible high tide is created. This happens

when there is a new moon since the ______________, ________________, __________ _________________

are all ___________________ _________ in a straight line.

There are _______________________________ ___________ hours between high and low tides, so

several high and low tides occur every day.

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Thought Box

Name ________________________________________________ Mod ____________ Date ________________________

Review Questions (Answer the following questions. Use the ideas in your notes to help you.)

19. Circle the letter of each sentence that is true about tides.

a. The moon’s gravity causes tides.

b. The sun’s gravity causes tides.

c. The sun’s gravity and the moon’s gravity do not combine.

20. The table below shows the dates and the times of high and low ocean tides in a certain location. The data show a cyclic pattern.

Based on the data, predict the date and time of the next low tide.

Date: ________________________________ Time: ____________________________

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Name ________________________________________________ Mod ____________ Date ________________________

21. The graph below shows the water levels that result from tidal action over a 24-hour period.

What was the approximate height of the water on the tide marker at 6 p.m.?

a. 4.3 ft b. 5.4 ft

c. 8.5 ft d. 11.2 ft

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