Solar System Vocab

Front

Brightness of a star at standard distance from Earth

Back

Absolute brightness

Front

Brightness of a star as seen from Earth

Back

apparent brightness

Front

Unit of distance = avg. distance Earth to sun (150M km)

Back

astronomical unit

Front

A star system with two stars

Back

binary star

Front

Rocky objects orbiting the sun, too small to be planets.

Back

asteroid

Front

Middle layer of the sun’s atmosphere

Back

chromosphere

Front

Fuzzy outer layer of a comet

Back

coma

Front

A loose collection of ice and dust orbiting the sun in a long, narrow path.

Back

comet

Front

Outermost layer of the sun

Back

corona

Front

A force causing the universe's expansion to accelerate.

Back

dark energy