CH.3 The Solar System

This planet spins on its side

the trapping of heat by the atmosphere

The largest planet in the Solar System

The only inner planet without an atmosphere.

This planet has "Goldilocks" conditions because it's not too cold or too hot, it's just right.

This causes seasons

The four outer planets are often called this.

An oval shape or flattened circle

This planet has the most moons

About how long in takes Earth to revolve around the Sun.

The smallest planet in our solar system.

This planet spins the opposite of other planets and its day is longer than it year.

Consists of the sun, the planets, their moons, and a variety of smaller objects.

When a meteoroid does not burn up in the atmosphere and strikes the surface

The hottest planet in our solar system.

This was demoted from a planet to a dwarf planet.

An imaginary line around which an object spins

The movement of one object around another

This makes up almost 100% of the mass of the solar system.

The largest volcano (Olympus Mons) in the entire solar system belong to this planet.

Natural satellites that orbit a planet

small, irregular, rocky objects (most found between Mars and Jupiter)

The planet with the most spectacular rings.

A loose collection of ice, dust, and small rocky particles whose orbit is very long and narrow

small chunks of rock or dust that are flying through space

Must be round, orbit the sun, and have cleared out the region along its orbit.

This planet is less dense than water and would float.

When a meteoroid hits Earth's atmosphere and friction (heat) produces a streak of light

The "Red Planet"

A region in the solar system between Mars and Jupiter

This causes night and day

Is round, orbits the sun, but has not cleared the area of its orbit.

a thin disk of small particles of ice and rock that can orbit a planet