Science 9

Unit 5: Space

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Topic 7 The Solar System Up Close

The Sun
The Sun is made up of mostly hydrogen gas. It is 1.4 million km in diameter. Its temperature is about 15 million degrees Celsius. 600t of hydrogen are converted, by nuclear fusion, into helium per second. This is the energy released from the Sun. The Sun emits charged particles in all directions. This solar wind bombards the Earth at 400km/s, but the magnetic field of the Earth protects us.

Traveling through The Solar System

The formation of our solar system is based on the protoplanet hypothesis, which follows three steps: 1. A Nebula or a cloud of gas & dust in space begins swirling 2. Most of the matter (more than 90% of it) accumulates in the center forming the Sun 3. The remaining materials accumulate (forming planets) and circle the Sun The only way to see the detail on the planets in our solar system was to send spacecraft up close to take pictures and send them back to the Earth.

The Moon - The first other world seen up close was the Moon. On
July 17, 1969 Neil Armstrong and Edwin Aldrin landed on the moon for a first hand look.

The Planets The Inner Planets (Terrestrial)- Mercury, Venus, Mars and the Earth - are considered the terrestrial planets because of their composition. The Outer Planets (Gas Giant) Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, and Pluto are similar because of their gaseous composition. Planet Data see p. 412-415

Exploring the Outer Planets

(To boldly go where no human has gone before) Observation equipment is sent out into space to explore distant areas of our solar system. Space probes are unmanned satellites or remote-controlled landers that put equipment on or close to planets where no human has gone before. Probes have done remote sensing on Mercury and Jupiter, taken soil samples on Mars, landed on Venus, and studied Saturns rings up close. The most recent probes to explore Mars are still there. They are Spirit and Opportunity. They are looking for evidence of water to determine if Mars at one time could have sustained life. The only place that has been explored by humans in space, other than our Earth is the Moon. Apollo 11 was the first landing and there have been many others since. The next step is to establish a base for interplanetary manned missions to Mars. Voyager Today (note: the following is extra info) As of April 4, 2007, Voyager 1 is over 15.18109 km or 101.4 AU from the Sun, and has thus entered the heliosheath, the termination shock region between the solar system and interstellar space, a vast area where the Sun's influence gives way to the other bodies in the galaxy. If Voyager 1 is still functioning when it finally passes the heliopause, scientists will get their first direct measurements of the conditions in the interstellar medium. At this distance, signals from Voyager 1 take more than thirteen hours to reach its control center. Voyager 1 is on a hyperbolic trajectory and has achieved escape velocity, meaning that its orbit will not return to the inner solar system. Along with Pioneer 10, Pioneer 11, and Voyager 2, Voyager 1 is an interstellar probe. Voyager 2 launched on August 20, 1977. It is identical to its sister Voyager program craft, Voyager 1, but unlike Voyager 1, Voyager 2 followed a slower trajectory that allowed it to be kept in the ecliptic so that it could be sent to Uranus and Neptune by means of gravity assist during the 1981 encounter at Saturn. Because of this, Voyager 2 could not see the moon Titan up close like its twin, but it allowed the probe to become the first spacecraft to travel to Uranus and Neptune, thus completing a portion of the so-called Planetary Grand Tour, a rare geometric arrangement of the outer planets that only occurs once every 176 years.

Distribution of Space and Matter

Elliptical paths can help astronomers and scientists to trace and predict where bodies in space are, have been and will be in the future. The understanding of orbits has led to the discovery of many different comets. NASA tracks asteroids, comets and meteors that have been discovered by observatories and amateur astronomers. Astronomical unit is used for measuring local distances in the solar system. It is equal to the distance from the center of the Sun to the center of the Earth (approximately 149,599,000 kms). Light year is equal to the distance light travels in 1 year (approximately 9.5 trillion kms). It is used for longer distances to stars and galaxies. The distance to our nearest star, Proxima Centauri is a little over 4 light years. Comets- a celestial body made of ice and dust that orbits the Sun. It has a bright centre and long faint tail that always points away from the Sun. (ex. Halleys Comet- we see it every 76 years- its last pass was in 1986) Meteors and Meteorites- a meteor is a piece of rock or metal that enters the Earths atmosphere and glows brightly from the friction. (Ex. Shooting stars) A meteorite is a meteor that has landed on the Earths surface. Looking into the Past? When you view an object in the sky you are seeing it as it was in the past. It has taken the light a very long time to reach the Earth. Light from the Sun takes about 5 minutes to reach the Earth, whereas light from Pluto takes about 5 hours. The farther away, the longer light takes to reach the Earth. Light from the stars in the center of the universe takes about 25,000 years to reach the Earth. The Hubble telescope is capturing light from 12 billion years ago. Stars Stars are born in a nebula. A star is a hot, glowing ball of gas (mainly hydrogen) that gives off light energy. Stars vary in their characteristics. Very hot stars look blue, while cooler stars look red. In the 1920s, Ejnar Hertzsprung and Henry Norris Russell compared the surface temperature of stars with its brightness (luminosity). They graphed their data to show the relationship between brightness and temperature of stars was not random. The process of star-building is known as fusion (when hydrogen is converted to helium), which releases great amounts of energy and radiation.

Topic 7 Assignment Vocabulary:

Solar Wind: high-energy subatomic particles that stream off the Sun and define the boundaries of the solar system. Inner Planet: the four planets closest to the Sun Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars sometimes called terrestrial planets because of their terrestrial, or rocky, composition. Outer Planet: the four planets furthest from the Sun Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune all have gaseous composition. Proto-Planet Hypothesis: a theoretical mass of gas in the clouds of gas and dust around a star that is believed to develop into a planet. Space Probe: a satellite or other spacecraft that is designed to explore the solar system and transmit data back to Earth. Nebula: a region or cloud of interstellar dust and gas appearing variously as a hazy bright or dark patch. NASA: do I even need to define this ok fine National Aeronautics and Space Administration. Fusion: nuclear explosion. Comet: an astronomical object that is composed of a mass of ice and dust and has a long luminous tail produced by vaporization when its orbit passes close to the Sun. Meteor: a mass of rock from space that burns up after entering the Earth's atmosphere. Meteorite: a piece of rock that has reached Earth from outer space. Use your notes and textbook to answer the following questions. 1. Write out the protoplanet hypothesis. Step One: the solar system begins to form as a rotating cloud called nebulae then collapses on itself due to gravity. Step Two: Particles stick together. The dust particles accrete into billions of planetesimals with diameters of about 10 m. The planetesimals collide and form protoplanets. Protosun in the centre becomes massive and hot enough to turn on by fusing hydrogen. Step Three: Sun begins to radiate energy. Vaporizes smaller particles in the solar system. Remaining gas is blown away by solar winds. 2. List 3 interesting facts about the Sun that you read about: Regions cooler than the areas around them are darker and are called Dark Spots.

110 times diameter of Earth 600 t of hydrogen is converted into helium per second 3. What is solar wind? Near dark spots, violent outbursts called solar flares erupt, sending streams of high-energy subatomic particles into space. These particles are called solar wind and it defines the boundaries of the solar system. If a location in space feels it, then its considered to be in the solar system. 4. When did the first astronauts land on the moon? Who were they? July 17, 1969. Neil Armstrong and Edwin Aldrin. 5. Complete the table using the data cards

In the planets chart. 6. Which planet is most similar to Earth? Why? Mars because of a thin atmosphere and a surface that has mountains and valleys, extinct volcanoes, and what looks like dried-up riverbeds. 7. Venus is considered Earths twin, yet we would probably not survive on Venus. Why? Because the pressurized 96% carbon dioxide atmosphere which traps heat. Wed become incinerated before we could touch its surface. 8. How does the Sun release energy? 600 t of hydrogen is converted into helium per second. 9. Why do many of the inner planets show evidence of heavy cratering? Because theyre all within the asteroid belt. Some formations in the belt could break free and kind of float towards the Sun (gravity) and in that process be pulled toward one of the inner planets and smash into them, making craters. 10. What are Voyager I and II and why are they special.

They are spacecrafts and have been sent to the edge of the solar system, both at different trajectories. 11. Why are comets called dirty snowballs?

Because theyre made of ice and rock. 12. What is the difference between a meteor and a meteorite?

A meteor is a rock formation from outer space that burns up when it enters the Earths atmosphere, while a meteorite is a rock formation from outer space that has actually landed on Earth.