GCSE Astronomy Revision Notes
TOPIC 1 EARTH, MOON AND SUN TOPIC 1.1 PLANET EARTH . What three features distinguish Earth from other planets in our solar system? * Liquid water, atmosphere, life . Explain how Raleigh scattering makes the sky appear blue. * When blue light hits oxygen and nitrogen in the atmosphere, it is absorbed and reemitted in any direction. This is due to the shorter wavelength of blue light compared to other colours, meaning that it is scattered more often than other colours, which pass through more easily. This is why the sun appears more orange at sunset – the light passes through more atmosphere, so more light is scattered, so only the most red light passes through, as all of the blue light is scattered. . Why is Earth’s atmosphere beneficial to humans? * The atmosphere keeps the Earth at a relatively warm temperature suitable for life. It also protects Earth’s surface from ultraviolet radiation. This is due to the ozone gas filtering out these rays. It contains oxygen and carbon dioxide, which are needed for life. . Name three causes of light pollution. * Shopping centres, floodlights, street lights, etc . Why is light pollution undesirable for astronomers? * It makes it difficult to see fainter stars and galaxies. . What shape is the Earth? * Oblate spheroid (squashed sphere). The diameter is greater at the equator than it is at the poles. . What is the
My Project On Artificial Satellites.
INTRODUCTION Space Exploration, quest to use space travel to discover the nature of the universe beyond Earth. Since ancient times, people have dreamed of leaving their home planet and exploring other worlds. In the later half of the 20th century, that dream became reality. The space age began with the launch of the first artificial satellites in 1957. A human first went into space in 1961. Since then, astronauts and cosmonauts have ventured into space for ever greater lengths of time, even living aboard orbiting space stations for months on end. Two dozen people have circled the moon or walked on its surface. At the same time, robotic explorers have journeyed where humans could not go, visiting all but one of the solar system's major worlds. Unpiloted spacecraft have also visited a host of minor bodies such as moons, comets, and asteroids. These explorations have sparked the advance of new technologies, from rockets to communications equipment to computers. Spacecraft studies have yielded a bounty of scientific discoveries about the solar system, the Milky Way Galaxy, and the universe. And they have given humanity a new perspective on the earth and its neighbors in space. The first challenge of space exploration was developing rockets powerful enough and reliable enough to boost a satellite into orbit. These boosters needed more than brute force, however; they also
When one begins to study satellites he or she is bound to find out that orbits are an important part of the whole study. An orbit is the path of a body through space and has many functions
When one begins to study satellites he or she is bound to find out that orbits are an important part of the whole study. An orbit is the path of a body through space and has many functions. An orbit is what keeps a satellite alive. They control the speed, distance, and the height of where a satellite is and how long it will remain there. There are so many basic questions out there about launching satellites and what happens after they are launched. Learning about orbits will help one answer these questions and at the same time will give him or her better understanding of how they work. Types of orbit There are many types of orbits and they work in a variety of ways. One type of orbit is known as a north-south orbit. These orbits are also called polar orbits because they pass near the north and south poles. With a polar orbit a satellite will be able to pass every spot on the earth's surface. This fact makes them a favorite for military spy satellites. There are two other important types of orbits and they are known as synchronous orbits. Synchronous simply means "matched in time." A geosynchronous orbit is always directly above the equator. The orbit time is matched in time with the spin of the earth. A sun-synchronous orbit circles the earth in a north-south direction. Each time the satellite passes overhead the sun is always in the same position. There are many other types
In the beginning God created the Heavens and the Earth.
In the Beginning God Created the Heavens and the Earth Introductory Reading: Genesis 1 One of the vexatious questions of science today concerns the age of the earth. Why would this be an important issue? It is an issue because it has a profound influence on the way people understand the origin and purpose of life, and because if we can understand origins, we are better able to develop new things as we will understand how the plans work. Ancient records from many cultures speak of the origin of life as a fairly recent phenomena, the result of the creative power and acts of a great being; scientists of this era suggest life is millions of years old, and the earth even older. There are strong opinions for both viewpoints, which cannot be reconciled. Is it possible to come to any undisputable position of truth in the matter? Fundamentally, it is not possible to come to an indisputable position, and the reason is quite simply because we cannot turn back the clock! What we have to do instead is evaluate the various belief systems, and choose the one which makes most sense, the one which has the most secure foundation. Even within the ranks of the main opinions we find experts sniping at their own colleagues, both in the scientific and the religious communities. It is little wonder then that ordinary folk might be perplexed, or even worse, just accept whatever proposition
Sustaining life on Mars - the survival of the human race.
I: Introduction Whether it is from eminent destruction by an asteroid impact or the more feasible situations of overpopulation, nuclear fallout, or atmospheric depletion, life some day may not be able to sustain itself on Earth. Mankind has to prepare for a great migration to a new habitat in order to preserve its species. This habitat must be able to sustain life just as Earth did. It will have to filter out harmful radiation from space, produce plentiful sources of food and energy, as well as contain a vast amount of water. It will not necessarily need gravity to sustain all life, but it most likely will have it because of its importance to humans in their daily functions, but more importantly for plant life, which has been found to not grow well without it. There is no habitat that we know of in our solar system or anywhere else that could sustain life without modification other than Earth. Scientists have been pondering the dilemma of where and how a habitat will be produced some day. There are many ideas that sound feasible, but when they are analyzed with scrutiny, small flaws are found that can jeopardize even the most intricate of plans. By far, the most alluring option is to change the planet Mars into a life-sustaining environment. This is not as simple as it might seam. In order to sustain the human race as well as many other life forms that are necessary
Journey to the farthest planet (Pluto).
Chemistry ISU Articles (Scientific Americans) AFRICIUS C.M Tan Mr. Jason Ellis Period: 4 30th September 2002 SCHOAc Journey to the Farthest Planet (Pluto) Summary The once most deserted and isolated planet in our solar system has provide new insights for astronomers. Recently, astronomers have found out that the planet could provide clues that scientists could obtain revelations in the history of our solar system. Astronomers have discovered a swarm of comets (around 100 000) orbiting the planet which came to known as the kuiper belt and that they have not identify the frequent faint objects hurling towards and orbiting around the planet. The amazing Hubble Space Telescope could only provide blurred image of that region and the planet. Pluto has one satellite Charon, which is half the planet's size. One thing peculiar is the vast differences between the planet and Charon is the unique appearance and their bizarre atmosphere. Astronomers said that Pluto is made up of water ice and essential gas for life to pervade, which they conclude Pluto and Charon could somehow provide critical information of evolution and science and the concepts of binary world and stars. Now, NASA has planned to learn about this discovery but is cancelled due to the staggering amount needed to run the program. NASA was not without supporters and was opened to
The Eclipse.
The Eclipse The eclipse of the sun, which you have requested me to describe, occurred in the summer of 1806, on Monday, the 16th of June. Its greatest depth of shadow fell upon the American continent, somewhere about the latitude of 42 deg. I was then on a visit to my parents, at the home of my family, among the Highlands of Otsego, in that part of the country where the eclipse was most impressive. My recollections of the great event, and the incidents of the day, are as vivid as if they had occurred but yesterday. Lake Otsego, the headwaters of the Susquehanna, lies as nearly as possible in latitude 42 deg. The village, which is the home of my family, is beautifully situated at the foot of the lake, in a valley lying between two nearly parallel ranges of heights, quite mountainous in character. The Susquehanna, a clear and rapid stream, flowing from the southeastern shore of the lake, is crossed by a high wooden bridge, which divides the main street of the little town from the lawns and meadows on the eastern bank of the river. Here were all the materials that could be desired, lake, river, mountain, wood, and the dwellings of man, to give full effect to the varied movement of light and shadow through that impressive day. Throughout the belt of country to be darkened by the eclipse, the whole population were in a state of almost anxious expectation for weeks before the
Global Warming - Is it man Made?
Case Study Global warming Is it man made ? Global warming - Is it man made ?: Chapter 1: Introduction Chapter 2: What is Global warming ? Chapter 3: What causes global warming ? Chapter 4: The effects of global warming Chapter 5: What protects the global warming against a drastic increase ? Chapter 6: Is it man made ? Chapter 7: What happens if... Chapter 8: Conclusion & recommendation Chapter 9: Bibliography Chapter 1 - Introduction I will discuss in this case study using information and scientific testify about global warming. I will explain, what is global warming? What causes it? And what protects it against a drastic increase? I would like to present both scenarios, in chapter 7 - what happens if .... I will describe in detail each source. Professor Nigel Weiss, Emeritus Professor in Mathematical Astrophysics at Cambridge, has affirmed the announcement by scientists that global warming is primarily a man-made problem and has nothing to do with natural changes. http://www.varsity.co.uk/news/124 The reason why I choose this topic is simple. The whole world is worried about climate change. But few are well informed about this topic. These few people know exactly what happened to the world. I would like to explain what exactly happens to our world. It is my world. It's your world. It is our world. We all have to do something, to save our earth.
Should We Persue Manned Space Flights?
Manned Space Should We Pursue Manned Space Exploration? By Rohan Shah So why are we asking this now? Man's presence in space started with Yuri Gagarin in 1961 and reached its climax just eight years later when Apollo XI carried men to the moon, 250,000 miles from earth. However do we really need to continue exploring space through manned space flights, is there any real need? Or is there an alternative and why are we asking ourselves this question now? Manned space flights are hugely expensive and there is a huge risk to human health. As well as the cost there is the fact that if the mission goes wrong and blows up or we learn nothing new from the mission that it has been a great waste of money. In space there are countless things that could happen that would damage human health and often result in death. There have been occasions in the past where the shuttles have proved faulty before even leaving the Earth's atmosphere killing all the crew on board. Do all these negatives cancel out any positives manned space might have to offer? In this case study I shall write about manned space flights and their positives and negatives, discussing whether they should or should not continue and the evidence supporting both sides of the argument. Contents Introduction Page 1 A brief history about manned space exploration Page 2 What was the motivation behind these missions?
My project this year is based on the solar system. In my project I will discuss the theory behind the start of the solar system. I will also describe the sun and planets moving round it.
Introduction My project this year is based on the solar system. In my project I will discuss the theory behind the start of the solar system. I will also describe the sun and planets moving round it. Some planets can easily be seen at night but you need a powerful telescope to see others. A lot of the findings in our solar system are obtained recently from the photographs sent be space probes like Voyager. Findings have also been made by using powerful radio telescopes on earth. I will conclude my project with what may be in store for us in the future. Chapter 1 History of the Solar System The region of the universe in which we live, the solar system, is one of many clusters of planets and stars in space. Of the nine planets that orbit our nearby star, the sun, Earth is the only one known to support life. Our Solar System lies in a particular region of the universe known as the Milky Way galaxy. The solar system cosists of the Sun, together with the planets, their satellites, and asteroid, meteoroids, and comets, all of which are travelling around the Sun in paths called orbits. The word "solar" comes from the Latin word 'sol,' which means "sun." The Sun's gravitational pull keeps the planets and other members of the solar system in orbit and stops them from travelling of into space. The Sun also provides the heat and light in the solar system. The other
