3.6.3

Other Astronomical Bodies

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Other Astronomical Bodies

As well as planets, there are lots of other bodies in the solar system.

Meteors, meteoroids and meteorites

Meteors, meteoroids and meteorites

  • Meteoroids are smaller than asteroids.
  • Meteoroids orbit the Sun.
    • A meteoroid that enters our atmosphere and burns up is called a meteor.
    • A meteor that streaks through the night sky is commonly called a shooting star.
    • If a small piece of meteoroid reaches the Earth’s surface, we call this a meteorite.
Other bodies

Other bodies

  • In the solar system, there are:
    • 5 dwarf planets – these are too small to be a planet.
    • Over 180 moons – these orbit planets.
    • 566,000 asteroids - these are rocks that orbit the Sun between Jupiter and Mars in the asteroid belt.
    • Over 3,000 comets - these are made from dust and ice like big dirty snowballs.
      • A comet called Halley’s Comet is pictured in the Bayeaux Tapestry.
History of the solar system

History of the solar system

  • The solar system is thought to have formed 4.6 billion years ago.
  • People first thought that the Earth was the centre of the Universe. This is NOT correct.
  • Observations show that the Sun is the centre of the solar system.
  • We call the modern day model of the solar system 'The Heliocentric Model'.
    • Helios was the Ancient Greek word for the Sun.
    • A Polish astronomer called Nicolaus Copernicus suggested the Heliocentric Model.
Jump to other topics
1

Biology

1.1

Cells, Tissues & Organs

1.2

Reproduction & Variation

1.3

Ecological Relationships & Classification

1.4

Digestion & Nutrition

1.5

Plants & Photosynthesis

1.6

Biological Systems & Processes

2

Chemistry

2.1

Particles

2.2

Chemical Reactions

2.3

Atoms, Elements, Compounds

2.4

The Periodic Table

2.5

Materials & the Earth

2.6

Reactivity

2.7

Energetics

2.8

Properties of Materials

3

Physics

3.1

Energy

3.2

Forces & Motion

3.3

Waves

3.4

Electricity & Magnetism

3.5

Matter

3.6

Space Physics

4

Disciplinary Knowledge

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