Solar System Vocab Flashcard

Front

Object of rock and ice; near the sun, ice turns to gas, forming a head and tail.

Back

comet

Front

A chunk of rock and metal orbiting the sun.

Back

asteroid

Front

A rock or metal that burns up entering Earth's atmosphere.

Back

meteor

Front

A rock or metal piece that lands on Earth without burning up in the atmosphere.

Back

meteorite

Front

Area between inner and outer planets with millions of asteroids

Back

asteroid belt

Front

Curved path of a celestial object around another massive object

Back

orbit

Front

Imaginary line through the center of an object, around which it rotates.

Back

axis

Front

Attraction force between two masses

Back

gravity

Front

A spherical celestial body orbiting the sun, not large enough to clear its neighborhood.

Back

dwarf planet

Front

Spinning of a planet on its axis

Back

rotation