Unit 5.1: Components of the Solar System

Front

What is a small body of ice, rock, and cosmic dust that follows an elliptical orbit around the sun and gives off gas and dust in the form of a tail as it passes close to the sun?

Back

Comet

Front

What is a small, rocky object that orbits the sun and is located in a band between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter?

Back

Asteroid

Front

What is the name of the region in space that contains many small icy bodies and is located beyond the orbit of Neptune?

Back

Kuiper Belt

Front

What is the hypothetical region of space that is believed to surround the solar system and contains many comets?

Back

Oort Cloud

Front

What is a celestial body that revolves around a body that is greater in mass than itself and is a natural satellite?

Back

Moon

Tags

NGSS.MS-ESS1-1

Front

What is the path that a body follows as it travels around another body in space?

Back

Orbit

Tags

NGSS.MS-ESS1-1

NGSS.MS-ESS1-2

Front

What is the term for the gravitational pull that keeps celestial bodies in orbit around larger bodies?

Back

Gravitation

Tags

NGSS.MS-ESS1-1

NGSS.MS-ESS1-2

Front

What is the difference between a comet and an asteroid?

Back

Comets are made of ice and dust, while asteroids are primarily rocky and metallic.

Front

What scientific tool is crucial for identifying objects in the Kuiper belt and the Oort cloud?

Back

Advanced telescopes

Front

What is the primary component of a comet's tail?

Back

Gas and dust