Miss BResett Astronomy

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absolute magnitude - a measure of how bright a star would be if all stars were the same distance from Earth

aphelion - position of a planet (earth) when it is farthest from the Sun in its orbit (occurs around July 3)

apparent daily motion - the way celestial objects "appear" to move across the sky in a 24 hour period

apparent magnitude - a measure of how bright a star appears to be to an observer on Earth

apogee - the position of the moon in its orbit when it is farthest from Earth

arc - the apparent path of the Sun, Moon and other celestial objects across the sky

astronomy - branch of science dedicated to the study of everything in the Universe above Earth's atmosphere

aurora - the amazing light display that results from the interaction of the solar wind with Earth's magnetic field; the charged particles from the solar wind cause atoms in the atmosphere to emit light

autumnal equinox - date on which the Sun crosses the celestial equator moving southward, occurring on or near September 21; direct rays of sunlight would be on the equator

azimuth - angular distance along the horizon from North (0°) clockwise (0° - 359°)

blue shift - a shift in electromagnetic radiation towards the blue (or shorter end of the spectrum) which is the result of movement towards the observer

celestial coordinates - the grid system similar to latitude and longitude used to locate objects on the celestial sphere

celestial equator - zero point for declination; directly above Earth's equator

chromosphere - lower layer of Sun's atmosphere directly above the photosphere

constellation - a distinct pattern of stars that humans have grouped into animals, legendary heroes and mythological gods

continuous spectrum - an unbroken band of colors which shows that the source is emitting light of all visible wavelengths

corona - the outer layer of the Sun's atmosphere visible form Earth when the moon blocks the photosphere and chromosphere during a solar eclipse

crater - bowl shaped depressions formed primarily as a result of the impact of meteors

declination - angular distance above or below the celestial equator (similar to latitude on Earth)

eccentricity - a measure of the flatness of an ellipse; a ratio of the distance between foci divided by the length of the major axis

ecliptic - the path among the stars that the Sun traces throughout the year; Moon and planets also stay close to the ecliptic

emission (bright line) spectrum - a series of unevenly spaced lines of different colors and brightness

equinox - literally "equal night"; date on which the Sun crosses the celestial equator

foci - the two special points along the major axis of an ellipse whose separation determines the eccentricity

fusion - the combining of the nuclei of lighter elements to produce heavier elements and energy; the process which provides energy for stars

geocentric model - model that puts Earth at the center of the solar system and all objects revolve around the Earth, has since been proven to be false

heliocentric model - model places the Sun at the center of the solar system with planets revolving around it

insolation - incoming solar radiation; energy the Earth receives from the Sun

intensity - the amount of degree of strength of a quantity, such as intensity of light

jovian planets - four giant planets of the outer solar system which resemble Jupiter in general physical and chemical properties

lunar eclipse - occurs when the moon passes into the Earth's umbra preventing sunlight from reaching the moon; occurs at the full moon phase

major axis - the length of an ellipse measured through the foci from one side of the ellipse to the other

meteor - the bright light streak made by a meteoroid as it passes through Earth's atmosphere

meteorite - the part of a large meteoroid that survives its trip through the atmosphere and strikes the surface of a planet or moon

moon - a natural satellite; for Earth it is the name of its natural satellite

neap tide - lowest tidal range occurring at first and third quarter moon phases

nuclear fusion - the combining of the nuclei of lighter elements to produce heavier elements and energy; the process which provides energy for stars

parallelism - refers to Earth's axis always pointing to the same place in space (Polaris); as Earth revolves, its axis is parallel to its previous position

penumbra - the area of partial shadow cast by an opaque object; the blurry edges of the shadow

perihelion - position of a planet (earth) when it is closest to the Sun in its orbit (occurs around January 3)

photosphere - the visible surface of the Sun that emits the radiation that reaches Earth

plasma - a state of matter where electrons are separated from the atom leaving a mix of positively charged nuclei and negatively charged electrons

red shift - a shift in electromagnetic radiation towards the red (or longer end of the spectrum) which is the result of movement away from the observer

retrograde motion - the apparent backward (west to east) motion of planets against the background of the stars that results from the difference in orbital speed and distance of the planets

right ascension - celestial coordinate used to measure "longitude" on the celestial sphere; zero point is position of the Sun as it crosses the celestial equator on the Vernal Equinox

rotation - the spinning of a celestial body (like Earth) on an imaginary axis

solar eclipse - occurs when the moon passes between the sun and Earth and the moon's shadow strikes the Earth's surface

solar flare - an explosion on the sun's surface which is the result of magnetic instabilities that accelerate solar material at high speeds and blasts it out into space

solar wind - an outward stream of electrically charged particles and radiation escaping from the Sun

solstice - literally "sun stop"; date on which the sun stops its daily increase or decrease in the altitude of the noon sun; sun reaches its greatest distance north or south of the celestial equator

spectroscope - an instrument that uses a prism or diffraction to split light into a spectrum

star - a ball of gas and plasma held together by gravity and produces light through the process of nuclear fusion

summer solstice - The date on which the sun reaches the greatest distance north (in the Northern Hemisphere) of the celestial equator. In the Northern Hemisphere, the summer solstice occurs when the sun in overhead at the Tropic of Cancer (latitude 23° 27' N) on or about June 21.

sunspots - areas of slightly cooler gas that appear on the photosphere as dark areas and are caused by magnetic field lines extending out of or into the Sun

star trail - a time-exposed photographic image that shows the apparent motion of stars; it appears as a blurry line across the film

terrestrial planets - four innermost planets which resemble Earth in general physical and chemical properties

tides - the periodic rise and fall of the ocean's surface due to the influence of the Moon's and the Sun's gravity

umbra - the area of total shadow cast by an opaque object; the interior of the shadow

vernal equinox - date on which the Sun crosses the celestial equator moving northward, occurring on or near March 21; direct rays of sunlight would be on the equator

waning phases - those phases of the moon where the illuminates surface of the moon appears to be growing smaller; includes waning gibbous, last quarter, and waning crescent; phases between full moon and new moon

waxing phases - those phases of the moon where the illuminated surface of the moon appears to be growing larger; includes waxing crescent, first quarter, and waxing gibbous; phases between new moon and full moon

winter solstice - The date on which the sun reaches the greatest distance south (in the Northern Hemisphere) of the celestial equator. In the Northern Hemisphere, the winter solstice occurs when the sun in overhead at the Tropic of Capricorn (latitude 23° 27' S) on or about December 21.

zodiac - Greek for "circle of animals". The set of constellations situated along the ecliptic in the sky, through which the Sun, Moon and planets move.