The luminous celestial body around whichEarth and other planets revolve and

receive heat and light!

Sun

Star

A self-luminous celestial body consisting of a mass of gas held together by its own

gravity in which the energy is generated by nuclear reactions in its interior

Dwarf Planets

Objects that were bigger than small solar system bodies such as comets and asteroids but not

quite planets. There are five recognized dwarf planets: Pluto,

Ceres, Eris, Makemake & Haumea.

Planet

• Any of the large celestial bodies that revolvearound the Sun in the Solar System

Inner Planet

Any of the rocky, terrestrial planets of

Mercury, Venus, Earth, and Mars whose

orbits range is within the asteroid belt

Outer Planet

Any of the planets Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and

Neptune whose orbits lie beyond the asteroid belt

Moons

Moons are a natural satellite of a planetEarth’s moon (natural satellite) revolves around Earth from

west to east

Galilean moons

The four largest moons of Jupiter

Meteoroid

A natural chunk of rock or dust existing outside Earth’s atmosphere

Meteor

Small meteoroid that burns upon entry of Earth’s atmosphere

Meteorites

Remains of meteoroids that strike the surface of Earth or the Moon

Asteroid

Piece of rock or metal made up of material similar to that which formed the planets that orbit the

Sun

Comet

Consists primarily of ice, dust, and rock whose orbit is a long narrow ellipse

Orbit

A curved path followed by a satellite as it revolves around an object in space

Gravity

The force of attraction that pulls objects toward each other

Solar System

The Sun together with the group of planets that are held by its attraction and revolve

around it!

Space Probe

An unmanned spacecraft designed to explore the Solar System and transmit data back to Earth

Space Shuttle

A reusable spacecraft designed to transport

people and cargo between Earth and space

Space Station

A large artificial facility designed to be occupied for long periods and to serve as

a work space to conduct research

Rocket

A spacecraft that gets power from an engine full of chemical propellants

Rotation

The spinning of Earth on its axis that causes day and night to occur

Revolution

Earth’s year-long elliptical orbit around the Sun

NASA

National Aeronautics and Space Administration; Founded to combine all of the separate rocket development teams in the US to create new

rockets.