Space physics

Question 1

What is in the solar system?

Answer 1

One star (sun), mercury, venus, earth, mars, jupiter, saturn, uranus, neptune, dwarf planets (pluto) moons and asteroids

Question 2

How to calculate planets orbital speed?

Answer 2

V =2πr / T

Question 3

How is the suns gravity affected by distance?

How does this affect orbital speed?

Answer 3

Greater distance causes suns gravitational strength to decrease.
It also causes orbital speed to decrease

Question 4

How does the sun create energy?

Answer 4

Nuclear fusion: Hydrogen nuclei join to form Helium nuclei releasing energy. The 2 positive hydrogen nuclei fuse due to the extreme temperatures.

Question 5

How are stars formed?

What determines their size?

Answer 5

Stars form from a nebula(cloud of gas and dust mainly hydrogen and helium). The nebula’s gravitational attraction causes it to collapse, spin and increases temperature. creating a protostar

Question 6

How do protostars become stable stars?

Answer 6

When internal gravitational attraction is balanced by the outwards radiation pressure

Question 7

What happens during the death of a small mass star?

Answer 7

Star runs out of hydrogen, cools, and swells forming a red giant. When its core collapses, the outer layers are pushed away into a planetary nebula and the core forms a white dwarf.

Question 8

What happens during the death of a large mass star?

Answer 8

Star gains heat and expands forming red supergiant. The core contracts and the star explodes (supernova) ejecting a nebula of hydrogen and heavier elements(metals) into space. The core then either forms a neutron star (large mass) or blackhole(VERY large mass) depending on its original mass.

Question 9

What is the aprox diameter of the milky way?

Answer 9

100,000 light years

Question 10

How old is the universe?

Answer 10

13.8 billion years

Question 11

Evidence for the big bang theory?

2

Answer 11

1. Light from distant galaxies shows them rushing away from Earth. Therefore the universe must be expanding from the big bang.
2. Microwaves come from all directions in space, theorised to be left over radiation from the big bang.