Glossary
the amount of sunlight that reflects
back into space
six NASA missions (1969-1972)
that studied the Moon
a rocky object in space made from
the same materials from which the planets formed.
a scientist who studies space
the distance from
the Earth to the Sun; 150 million kilometers
1) a line that is used to find or draw
points; the x and y lines of a graph
2) an imaginary line through the center of a planet
around which it spins
a scale for temperature measurement
one of the Galilean (Jupiter) moons;
its surface looks to be the oldest of the Galilean
moons.
the goods or freight carried in a ship,
airplane, or vehicle
These students calculate
the cargo needs for the rescue trip to and from
their planet. They must calculate the cargo needs
for the astronauts going on the rescue and for the
additional astronauts they bring back from the ship.
Cargo needs include food, water, oxygen, and the
packing crates necessary to pack the cargo.
having to do with space; heavenly
prefix meaning 1/100; 0.01
a system of signals or symbols used for
communication
a symbol on a map with points
for direction
a number that identifies a point
on a graph or map
a graph that displays coordinates
for identification
the innermost layer of a planet
a circular depression formed by rocky
objects from space striking the surface
the outermost layer of a planet
to convert a code to a recognized message
the amount of mass an object has for
its volume
not in the center of a circle.
an elongated closed circle
Venus and Mercury in the evening
as they appear to follow the Sun across the sky to
the west
one of the Galilean (Jupiter) moons,
about the same size and density as our Moon.
a scale used to measure
temperature.
one of the Galilean moons (Jupiter),
the largest known moon in the solar system.
a planet composed mostly of the
gases hydrogen and helium; the large gaseous planets
(Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune) as compared to
the smaller, rocky planets.
a giant storm the size
of Earth on Neptune; resembles the Great Red Spot
on Jupiter. It vanished and another giant storm, the
Great Dark Spot 1994, appeared in the northern hemisphere.
a giant storm on Neptune
which appeared and was photographed by the Hubble
Space Telescope in 1994.
on Jupiter, a giant atmospheric,
swirling storm.
a giant storm on Saturn that
forms at 29.5-year intervals; is thousands of kilometers
wide. It appeared in Sept. 1990 and faded from view
by November.
gases in the atmosphere that
can trap heat
parallel to or in the plane of the
horizon
a telescope in space
a theory of the formation
of the Moon that suggests the Earth was hit by a Mars-sized
body; the resulting debris accumulated to form the
Moon
the small rocky planets inside
the asteroid belt; Mercury, Venus, Earth and Mars
One of Jupiter’s moons; the most volcanically
active body in our solar system.
the International unit and scale
for measuring temperature
prefix meaning 1000
when the visible disk of the Moon
appears to shift due to slight variations in the Moon’s
motions; we actually see about 59% of the Moon’s
surface over time.
a table or list of symbols on a map
or chart that explains the symbols used
an area that has magnetic forces
the middle layer of a planet (between
the core and the crust)
low-lying areas on the Moon
the amount of matter in an object
a streak of light made of hot gases
produced by a burning meteoroid in an atmosphere
a meteor that reaches a surface of
a planet or moon
a metric unit for measuring distance
or length.
a specific job or task to perform;
a flight operation of an aircraft or spacecraft, as
in a space mission
a tool to assist in remembering
a list of names, fact, or figures by using letters,
rhymes, words, or names.
melted
Venus and Mercury in the morning
as they arrear to lead the Sun to the west
Laws of gravity as
proved by Isaac Newton.
a nuclear reaction in which
atomic nuclei are fused together to form a different
element with the release of energy; these reactions
take place in the core of a star.
the job of getting ships, aircraft,
or spacecraft from place to place; the method of determining
positions, courses, or distances traveled
Students plot the location
of each planet on an x,y coordinate graph. They also
plot the location of “unknowns” in the
outer system and plot the course of the ship to determine
where the ship could be now. The Navigation Specialists
work with the Transmission Specialists to identify
the present location of the lost ship.
a nuclear reaction in which
atomic nuclei are fused together to form a different
element with the release of energy; these reactions
take place in the core of a star.
largest volcano in the solar system;
on Mars
the path an object takes around another
object
the point where the axes cross
a list of two number, where the
order of the numbers is important. For a coordinate
graph, the x coordinate is listed first, the y is
listed second.
the large gaseous planets (and
small, rocky Pluto) that are outside the asteroid
belt; Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune and Pluto
a frontier settlement
the load carried by an aircraft or
spacecraft
permanently frozen soil
2 moons of Mars; small, rocky,
and irregular Plot—to mark a location on a graph or map
a spacecraft carrying instruments intended
for use in exploration of outer space or celestial
bodies (other than Earth).
the areas that are formed when two
lines intersect to form four quarters.
a distance from the center of a circle
or sphere to its circumference or surface.
dangerous energy released as nuclear
changes occur
powdery soil on the Moon produced
by shattering rock with meteorite impacts
anything that can be used
to save from danger
rotation of a planet or moon from
the east to the west
a complete cycle of movement of one
object around another.
the movement of a planet or moon spinning
around its axis
any object that orbits or revolves
around another object
using smaller measurements to represent
larger measurements
a story-line of a possible course
of events or actions, especially when imagined
an instrument that records earthquakes
and plate movements
a practice activity which duplicates
the actual situation as closely as possible
streams of ions that flow away from
the Sun
a person who is particularly knowledgeable
about a certain job
a rotational time (spinning
on the axis) that is the same as the time to travel
around the planet
a Saturn moon with a dark-orange color;
is larger than the planet Mercury.
These specialists
receive information from near their planet about where
the lost ship has been each day. The information is
encoded (written in code) and students must decode
the message to get the information, record it on the
Problem-solving Chart, and pass it along to Mission
Control.
Greek symbols=Words
Circular symbols=Individual letters
Math equations=Words
one of Neptune’s moons that orbits
Neptune in the opposite direction to the planet’s
rotation.
a type of radiation with wavelengths
shorter than those of visible light, but longer than
those of x-rays.
on Mars; a network of rocky
valleys extending 5000 Km around the equator. This
system of canyons stretches a distance equivalent
to the distance from New York to Los Angeles.
at right angles to the horizon or
ground level
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