ASTRONOMY - THE SOLAR SYSTEM

The solar system is about 4.6 million years old. It began as a spinning disc of hydrogen and helium which, over a period of
25 million years, formed into the sun and surrounding planets.

THE SUN
The Sun is a nuclear reactor generating energy by the conversion of hydrogen into helium. The rate of conversion is
relatively slow, there is enough hydrogen for another 15 billion years.
The granular surface (photosphere) is constantly changing, the main features of which are sunspots and erupting jets of gas
(spicules). Above the surface is a hydrogen chromosphere and beyond this is the corona. The Sun is classified as
a G2 yellow dwarf.
THE TERRESTRIAL PLANETS
The inner four planets all have an iron core, rock mantle and a crust of varying thickness.
MERCURY Mercury, the innermost planet, is heavily cratered, very hot and has virtually no atmosphere. It
spins very slowly, only three times in every two orbits of the sun.
Mean Orbit: 57 909 100 km Mean Diameter: 4 878 km
Orbital Period1: 88.0 days Mass: 0.055 Satellites: None

VENUS Venus is often the brightest object in the night sky due to the reflective cloud layer, the result of
a hot carbon-dioxide atmosphere. The rocky surface is relatively flat with two pronounced
highland regions, a temperature of over 800 C and prone to violent volcanic activity.
Mean Orbit: 108 208 600 km Mean Diameter: 12 102 km
Orbital Period1: 224.7 days Mass: 0.815 Satellites: None
EARTH The third planet, Earth, is so far the only one known to support life. Two thirds of the surface is
covered by water and the atmosphere is mostly nitrogen-oxygen. See previous chapters for more
information.
Mean Orbit: 149 598 600 km Mean Diameter: 12 756 km
Orbital Period1: 365.3 days Mass: 1.000 Satellites: Moon
MARS Mars: the red planet. The surface is barren and cratered with massive volcanos, deep chasms
and two small polar ice caps. The red colour comes from the iron rich sand that is literally
rusty. Mars has a thin carbon-dioxide atmosphere.
Mean Orbit: 227 939 200 km Mean Diameter: 6 794 km
Orbital Period1: 687.0 days Mass: 0.107 Satellites: Phobos, Deimos.
THE GAS GIANTS
So called because of their gaseous surfaces (albeit frozen), all the gas giants have ring systems of dust and ice fragments.
In some cases the rings are 'shepherded' by small satellites.
JUPITER The largest planet in the solar system. Jupiter has a rocky core and a hydrogen/helium
atmosphere the inner layers of which are very dense. The atmosphere is distorted by the high
rotational speed causing the equator to budge. The circulating winds form coloured belts that
include a huge storm called the Great Red Spot. The outermost satellites are probably captured
asteroids.
Mean Orbit: 778 298 400 km Mean Diameter: 142 984 km
Orbital Period11: 11.9 years Mass2: 317.828
Satellites: Metis, Adastra, Almathea, Thebe, Io, Europa, Ganymede,
…………………..Callisto,Leda, Himalia, Lysithea, Elara, Ananke, Carme, ……………………
Pasiphae, Sinope.
SATURN Very similar to Jupiter in composition. Saturn has a distinctive ring system split into 7 main
bands each containing hundreds of separate rings. 
Mean Orbit: 1 426 394 000 km Mean Diameter: 120 536 km
 Orbital Period1: 29.5 years Mass2: 95.161
Satellites: Pan, Atlas, Prometheus, Pandora, Epimetheus, Janus, Mimas,
…………………Enceladus, Tethys, Telesto, Calypso, Dione, Helene, Rhea, Titan,
…………………Hyperion, Iapetus, Phoebe.
URANUS Uranus, the seventh planet, has a rocky core, a frozen shell of water, methane and ammonia, and
an atmosphere of hydrogen, helium and methane. Uranus has nine rings and the axis is
horizontal: it rolls rather than spins round the sun. 
Mean Orbit: 2 875 039 000 km Mean Diameter: 51 118 km
Orbital Period1: 84.0 years Mass2: 14.536
Satellites: Cordelia, Ophelia, Bianca, Cressida, Desdemona, Juliet, Portia,
………………….Rosalind, Belinda, Puck, Miranda, Ariel, Umbriel, Titania, Oberon.
NEPTUNE The structure of Neptune is similar to that of Uranus. The atmosphere contains distinctive, blue,
fast moving clouds and the Great Dark Spot; a storm the size of Earth about which a smaller
storm, the Scooter, orbits.
Mean Orbit: 4 504 450 000 km Mean Diameter: 49 600 km
Orbital Period1: 164.8 years Mass2: 17.132
Satellites: Naiad, Thalassa, Despina, Galatea, Larissa, Proteus, Triton,
…………………..Nereid.
PLUTO Pluto is a small rocky planet with a thick ice mantle that orbits high out of the elliptic and, until
1999, was inside the orbit of Neptune. 
Mean Orbit: 5 913 490 000 km Mean Diameter: 2 894 km
Orbital Period1: 248.5 years Mass2: 0.002 Satellites: Charon.

1. The orbital (sidereal) period is measured in "Earth" units. For example: 1 Mercury year = 88 Earth days. 
2. The masses of the planets are given relative to the mass of the Earth which is 6 × 10 21tonnes.

THE ATMOSPHERE
The atmosphere is divided into a number of layers, each with its own set of conditions.The constituents of
the atmosphere are the same throughout.
LAYERS
Troposphere. (0-10km).--Contains most of the weather and clouds. The temperature usually decreases
with height.
Tropopause.- Boundary between the troposphere and stratosphere.
Stratosphere. (10-50km).-- Nacreous clouds and most of the ozone. Temperature increases slowly with
height.
Mesosphere. (50-80km).-- Noctilucent clouds. Temperature decreases with height.
Ionosphere. (80-400km).--Radio reflective layer of electrically charged nitrogen and oxygen particles.
Thermosphere. (80-500km).-- Temperature increases with height.
Exosphere. (>500km). --Beyond the atmosphere.
CONSTITUENTS
Invariables.-- Nitrogen 78%, oxygen 21%, argon 1%. Less than 1%: neon, helium, methane, krypton,
hydrogen, nitrous-oxide, xenon.
Variables.-- Water vapour 0.0 to 0.7%, carbon-dioxide 0.01 to 0.1% (average 0.034%), ozone up to
0.000007%.
Contaminants.-- Sulphur-dioxide <0.0001%, nitrogen-dioxide <0.000002%, traces of ammonia and carbon-
monoxide.

WEATHER TERMS
Anti-cyclone.-- An area of slowly rotating high atmospheric pressure. Cloud formation is restricted and the weather is
……………………. usually settled.
Atmospheric pressure.-- The weight of the air at a specific location and height.
Depression.-- An rotating area of low atmospheric pressure. The rotation of the depression  generates circulating winds.
Dew. --Water condensed at night from the bottom layer of air.
Drizzle. --Fine droplets of rain less than 0.5 mm in size.
Drought. --Long period of dry weather.
Climate. --The prevailing weather conditions in a particular area.
Clouds. --Water evaporating from the Earth's surface is held as a vapour in rising warm air. As the air cools the vapour .
…………. condenses into water droplets which form clouds. Clouds are classified into two main groups: cumulus and
………… .stratus (massed and layered).
Cyclone.-- A depression.
Fog.-- A mass of cool air filled with tiny droplets forming upwards from ground level.
Front.-- A thermal wall across which there is a rapid temperature change. The source of most bad or unsettled weather.
Frost. --Water that freezes a ground level when the air temperatures falls below 0oC.
Hail. --Ice particles about 5 mm in diameter formed about dust particles.
High.-- An anti-cyclone.
Isobars.-- The lines on a weather map that indicate areas of equal air pressure. Tightly packed isobars indicate unsettled
……………. weather.
lightning.-- Discharge of an electric field from a cloud.
low.-- A depression.
Mist. --A mass of cool air filled with tiny droplets close to ground level.
Precipitation.-- Water that reaches the ground.
Rain. --Falling water droplets greater than 0.5 mm in size.
Seasons.-- Climatic changes caused by the position of the earth relative to the sun. The temperate zones have 4 seasons
……………..and the tropics two.
Shower.-- A heavy, short lived period of precipitation.
Sleet. --A mixture of rain and snow.
Snow.-- Ice crystals that 'grow' in clouds.
Weather. --The daily changes in the atmospheric conditions, primarily the movement of air. In the temperate zones the
………………most influential phenomena are the changes in air pressure. These changes generate the clouds, wind and
………………rain that we call the weather.
Wind. --Wind is the lateral movement of air from high to low pressure areas.
CLOUDS
NAME HEIGHT DESCRIPTION REMARKS
Stratus 0-1500ft Whitish, grey layer, often covering hills. May give drizzle.
Cumulonimbu 1500-6500ft Huge towers of heavy dense clouds. The tops are Often bring showers and thunder.
s flat, usually spreading.
Cumulus 1500-6500ft Detached dense clouds with sharp outlines and Associated with sunny weather and
rising domes, mounds or towers. scattered showers.
Stratocumulus 1500-6500ft Grey or white rolling patches or sheets. Bring dull weather, sometimes with drizzle.
Nimbostratus 3000-10000ft Dark grey cloud layer, usually diffused by rain or Ragged patches of stratus may occur
snow. below the layer.
Altostratus 3000-10000ft Flat, thick blue-grey sheet. Indicates rain or snow if associated with
cirrostratus.
Altocumulus 6500-23000ft White or grey rounded clouds, Usually break up leaving good weather.
Cirrostratus 16500-45000ft A transparent milky veil which can be fibrous or smooth. Indicates rain later.
Cirrocumulus 16500-45000ft Thin rippled sheets of rounded clouds. Form on the edge of unsettled weather.
Cirrus 16500-45000ft Fibrous or hairlike clouds with a silky sheen.  An indication of bad weather to follow
with strong winds at the cloud level.
Nacreous   Mother of pearl clouds found very high over mountains, usually lit by sunlight.  
Noctilucent   Very high bluish clouds, probably cosmic dust. Normally only seen in high latitudes.  

GLOSSARY OF GEOGRAPHICAL AND GEOLOGICAL TERMS

Alluvial plain. --A plain built up from the deposition of water borne sediment. See  flood plain.
Anticline. --An upward fold in the crust. See  syncline.
Arctic and Antarctic. --The polar regions, the limits of which are 66.5 o above and below the equator.
Arête. -- A knife edge ridge formed by glacial erosion.
Artesian basin. -- A source of fresh water formed where an aquifer is trapped between two layers of impervious rock.
Atoll. --Island surrounded by a coral reef.
Bar. --A strip of sediment parallel to the coastline.
Barchan dune. --A crescent shaped dune, moved forwards by the wind.
Bight. --A large bay.
Cataract. -- A large waterfall.
Catchment area. -- An area of land that feeds a river.
Cirque glacier. -- A glacier formed at the head of a valley.
Col --A ridge between two mountains.
Continent. -- A single large land mass.
Continental shelf. -- The offshore seabed down to a depth of about 200m.
Coral. --A structure built from the skeletons of calcareous marine animals.
Dale. -- A valley open at both ends.
Delta. --Fan shaped area of land at the mouth of a river, built up from the deposition of alluvium and broken by a number of streams.
Desert. --An arid area with little vegetation that is not necessarily sandy, the lack of rainfall is the determining factor.
Dune. -- Accumulation of wind borne sand.
Earthquake. -- Earthquakes are the result of movement along faults in the Earth's crust usually when two  tectonic
………………………..plates slide across one another. The source of an earthquake is called the epicentre.
Equatorial rain forest. -- A hot, wet forest with a heavy daily rainfall.
Erg. --An area of shifting sand dunes.
Erosion. --The physical removal of the crustal rocks.
Extrusive (volcanic) rocks. -- Igneous rocks formed on the surface and usually fine-grained (andesite,.basalt, pumice and rhyolite).
Fault-block mountains. --Mountains formed by the vertical movement of rocks along a set of fault lines.
Flood plain. An area of land covered with water during river flooding. Flood plains are the basis of  alluvial plains.
Fold mountains. --Compressed sedimentary rocks that rise in a series of concertina-like folds.
Forest. -- A predominately wooded area of land.
Fossils. -- The mineralised remains of plants and animals embedded in rocks.
Gemstones. --Minerals that have an aesthetic or rarity value.  Gemstone list.
Geosyncline. --A broad trough in the crust, often filled with sediment.
Glacier. --A slow moving mass of ice that is replenished at its source.
Gorge. --A deep steep-sided valley.
Grassland. --A predominately grassed area of land where there is not enough rainfall to support a forest.
Gulf. -- A large bay.
Hanging valley. -- A tributary that joins the main river through a series of rapids or waterfalls.
Igneous rocks. --Igneous rocks are formed by the crystallization of minerals within cooling magma. Either  intrusive or extrusive.
Intrusive (plutonic) rocks. --  Igneous rocks formed underground, predominately quartz and usually coarse grained. (gabbro, .
…………….. granite and peridotite).
Inverted relief. -- A landscape in which synclines form high ground and anticlines form valleys.
Isthmus. -- Narrow strip of land linking two larger land masses.
Jungle--. A tropical monsoon forest.
Kame. --A mound of material marking the former edge of an ice-sheet or glacier.
Karst scenery. --An uneven fissured landscape formed by underground drainage and caves.
Knick point. -- A break in the slope of a river marked by rapids or waterfalls.
Lava. --Magma that reaches the surface.
Levee. --An alluvial bank built up on either side of a river.
Littoral zone. --An area between high and low tide.
Longshore drift. --The build up of river borne  sediment along a coastline.
Magma. -- Molten rock, the raw material for all  igneous rocks.
Metamorphic rocks. --Rocks that have been changed by pressure or heat but not melted.
Minerals. -- Naturally formed inorganic substances with a defined homogenous chemical structure, usually crystalline.
Moor. --Open ground, usually coarse grass, heather and bracken.
Moraine. --A mass of boulder clay carried by a glacier.
Oceanic ridge. -- A volcanic mountain chain formed at the boundary between two oceanic tectonic plates.
Ore. -- A mineral from which metals can be extracted.
Pampas. --South American grasslands.
Pediment. --The sloping ground leading to a mountain range.
Permafrost. -- A layer of earth that is permanently frozen even though the overlaying layers may thaw.
Plain. --Low altitude area of land, unbroken by mountain ranges.
Plateau. --High altitude area of land, unbroken by mountain ranges.
Rift valley. -- A valley formed when the strip of land between two faults subsides.
Rocks--Rocks are consolidated or crystalline aggregates of  minerals and are classified as sedimentary, igneous or metamorphic.
Savannah. --Open tropical grassland with few trees.
Sediment. --A build-up of water or air borne particles.
Sedimentary rocks. --Sedimentary rocks are formed by the layering of air or water borne mineral grains cemented together
…….. (chalk, clay, coal, limestone, mudstone, sandstone and shale).
Seif dune. --A long, sinuous, ridged sand dune parallel to the prevailing wind.
Shoal. --A group of sandbanks.
Sinkhole. --A limestone hole into which a stream disappears.
Spit. --A narrow accumulation of sediment projecting into the sea.
Steppe. --Grasslands spreading from central Europe to Siberia.
Swamp. -- Permanently waterlogged ground, usually overgrown.
Taiga. --Temperate evergreen forests, particularly those in North America and Asia.
Tectonic plate. -- A section of the Earth's lithosphere. Each tectonic plate is bounded by oceanic ridges, trenches or ..
…….. mountain chains. The 7 major plates and numerous minor plates link together to form the Earth's surface.
Temperate zone. --The area between the tropics and Arctic circles.
Tombolo. --A bar or spit linking an island to the mainland.
Trench. --A submarine valley.
Tropical monsoon forest. --A forest with a distinct wet and dry season.
Tropics. --The area between the Tropics of Cancer and Capricorn. The Tropic of Cancer is 23.5 o north of the equator and the
……. Tropic of Capricorn is 23.5o south of the equator.
Tsunami. --A huge wave, the result of an undersea earthquake.
Tundra. --Treeless zone between the icecaps and  taiga.
Vaclusian stream. --A stream that begins underground.
Veld. --South African grasslands.
Volcano. --A break in the crust from which lava emerges. Volcanoes are a major source of continental  igneous rocks.
Watergap. --A river that cuts through a ridge.
Yardang. --A steep-sided rock rib, etched by the wind in arid areas.

COMPOSITION AND STRUCTURE OF THE EARTH

The Earth is the third planet in the solar system and is about 4600 billion years old. Over 65% of the surface is
covered in water, the remainder broken up into five continental land masses.
The Earth rotates in an anti clockwise direction about an axis tilted over at 23.5o . The Earth is an oblate spheroid,
flattened at the poles and bulging at equator.
CHEMICAL COMPOSITION
crust.-- The outermost rock layer, divided into continental and oceanic crust. The continental crust is 25-90 km thick
and is mostly granite and andesite. The oceanic crust is 6-11 km thick and mostly basalt.
mantle.-- The mantle stretches from the below the crust to 2900 km below the surface. The upper part is partially
molten and the lower part is very dense. The main mantle rock is peridotite.
core.-- The core is about 7000 km in diameter with a temperature of 6000oC and a pressure of over 3 million
atmospheres. The inner core is a lumpy solid iron sphere and the outer core is a thick liquid iron layer.
PHYSICAL STRUCTURE
lithosphere.-- Equivalent in part to the crust, the lithosphere comprises of a number of tectonic plates that 'float' on
the asthenosphere.
asthenosphere.-- Ductile rocks that lie from below the lithosphere to 250 km below the surface.
mesosphere. Solid rocks below the asthenosphere.