Astronomy 1010 - Concepts and Terms
Dr. Donald Gudehus
Chapter 1 - Charting the Heavens
Altitude
Annular
Apparent Solar Time
Autumnal Equinox
Azimuth
Celestial Equator
Celestial Sphere
Coriolis Effect
Declination
Earthshine
Eclipse Seasons
Ecliptic
Equinox
First Contact
Foucault Pendulum
Gibbous
Gregorian Calendar
Harvest Moon
Julian Calendar
Last Contact
Latitude
Longitude
Magnitude
Mean Solar Time
Node
Penumbra
Phases
Precession
Occultation
Right Ascension
Saros
Siderial Day
Siderial Time
SI Units
Solar Day
Solar Time
Solstice
Synodic Month
Terminator
Transit
Tropical Year
Twilight
Umbra
Vernal Equinox
Zenith
Chapter 2 - Early Astronomy
Aristarchus
Aristotle
Barycenter
Caracol
Centrifugal Force
Centripetal Force
Conjunction
Copernicus
Deferent
De Revolutionibus
Eccentricity
Ellipse
Elongation
Epicycle
Eratosthenes
F=ma
Galileo
Geocentric
Heliocentric
Hipparchus
Hyperbola
Kepler
Kepler's Laws
Lagrangian Points
Newton
Parabola
Ptolemy
Quadrature
Retrograde Motion
Semimajor Axis
Siderial Period
Stonehenge
Synodic Period
Tycho Brahe
Chapter 3 - Radiation
Ångstroms
Blackbody
Blueshift
Diffraction
Doppler Effect
Electromagnetic Radiation
Gamma Rays
hertz
Infrared
Inverse Square Law
Kelvins
Planck
Redshift
Stefan-Boltzmann Law
Ultraviolet
Velocity of light
Wien's Law
X-rays
Chapter 4 - Spectroscopy
E=hf
Ion
Ionized
Molecule
Photon
Chapter 5 - Telescopes
Adaptive Optics
Astigmatism
AXAF
Brightness
CCD
Cassegrain Focus
Charge Coupled Device
Chromatic Aberration
Coma
Coudé Focus
Declination Axis
Equatorial Axis
Focal Length
Focal Ratio
Focus
GRO
HST
Interferometer
Inverted Image
IRAS
IUE
Light Pollution
Magnification
Monolithic Mirror
Newtonian Focus
Parabolic Surface
Photomultiplier
Point Source
Primary Mirror
Prime Focus
Reflector
Refractor
Resolution
Reversed Image
ROSAT
Schmidt Telescope
Secondary Mirror
Seeing
Segmented Mirror
Speckle Interferometry
Spectrograph
Spherical Aberration
VLA
VLBA
VLBI
Chapter 6 - The Solar System in General
Asteroids
Comets
Comparative Planetology
Jovian
Planets
Satellites
Terrestrial
Titius-Bode Law
Chapter 7 - Earth
Asthenosphere
Aurora
Basalt
Core
Cratering
Crust
Daughter
Differentiation
Flooding of Basins
Greenhouse Effect
Inner Core
Ionosphere
Lithosphere
Magnetic Poles
Magnetosphere
Mantle
Mesosphere
Midocean Ridge
Neap Tide
Ocean Trench
Outer Core
Outgassing
Ozone Layer
P-waves
Pangea
Parent
Plate Tectonics
Pressure Waves
Radioactive Dating
Radioactivity
Rayleigh Scattering
S-waves
Shadow Zone
Shear Waves
Seismic Waves
Spring Tide
Stratosphere
Subduction
Surface Evolution
Tidal Bulge
Tidal Slowing
Tropopsphere
Van Allen Belts
Chapter 8 - The Moon
Albedo
Anorthite
Apollo
Basalt
Breccia
Capture Hypothesis
Co-accretion Hypothesis
Corner-cube Reflector
Ejecta
Features (craters, maria)
Fission Hypothesis
Gabbro
Highlands
KREEP Norite
Large-impact Hypothesis
Laser Ranging
Mascons
Orbital Parameters (periods)
Physical Properties (density, diameter, distance, gravity, magnetic
field, temperature)
Rays
Refractory
Regolith
Retention of Atmosphere
Rilles (sinuous and graben)
Stages of Evolution (differentiation, cratering, flooding of
basins, surface evolution)
Synchronous Rotation
Volatile
Wrinkle Ridges
Chapter 8 cont. - Mercury
Caloris Basin
Intercrater Plains
Lobate Scarp
Old Cratered Plains
Orbital Parameters (periods, eccentricity)
Physical Properties (density, diameter, distance, gravity, magnetic field,
temperature)
Resonance
Smooth Plains
Weird Terrain
Chapter 9 - Venus
Aphrodite Terra
Arachnoids
Corona
Dynamical Parameters (periods of rotation and revolution, orientation,
distance from sun
Greenhouse Effect
Ishtar Terra
Lakshmi Planum
Maxwell Montes
Orbital Parameters (periods, eccentricity)
Physical Properties (albedo, atmospheric composition, density, diameter,
distance, gravity, magnetic field, mass,
pressure, temperature)
Runaway Greenhouse Effect
Search for Life
Shield Volcano
SO2
Spacecraft Visits
Sulfuric Acid
Chapter 10 - Mars
Canali
Deimos
Dust Storms
Dynamical Parameters (periods of rotation and revolution, orientation,
distance from sun
Hellas
Lowell
Orbital Parameters (distance, periods, eccentricity)
Physical Properties (albedo, atmospheric composition, density, diameter,
gravity, magnetic field, mass,
pressure, temperature)
Olympus Mons
Outflow Channels
Patera
Phobos
Polar Caps
Runoff Channels
Satellites
Shield Volcano
Valles Marineris
Chapter 11 - Jupiter
Ammonia
Ammonium Hydrosulfide
Belts
Callisto
CH4
Decametric Radiation
Decimetric Radiation
Dynamical Parameters (periods of rotation and revolution, orientation,
distance from sun
Europa
Ganymede
Great Red Spot
Io
Liquid Molecular Hydrogen
Magnetosphere
Metallic Hydrogen
Methane
NH3
Orbital Parameters (distance, periods, eccentricity)
Physical Properties (atmospheric composition, density, diameter,
gravity, magnetic field, mass, temperature)
Plasma Torus
Radiation Belts
Rings
Volcanoes
Voyager Spacecraft
Zones
Chapter 12 - Saturn
Co-orbital Satellites
Comparison to Jupiter
Gaps in Rings
Mimas
Physical Properties (atmospheric composition, density, diameter,
gravity, magnetic field, mass, temperature)
Ring System
Roche's Limit
Shepherd Satellites
Titan
Chapter 13 - Uranus, Neptune, and Pluto
Charon
Discovery
Dynamical Parameters (periods of rotation and revolution, eccentricity,
orientation, distance from sun)
Eclipses
Geysers
Herschel
Nereid
Physical Properties (atmospheric composition, density, diameter,
gravity, magnetic field, mass, temperature)
Resonance
Rings
Shepherd Satellites
Titania
Tombaugh
Triton
Chapter 14 - Asteroids, Meteoroids, and Comets
Achondrites
Amor Asteroids
Apollo Asteroids
Carbonaceous Chondrites
Ceres
Chondrites
Collisions with Earth
Dust Tail
Dynamical Parameters of Asteroids and Comets (orbits, periods of
revolution, eccentricity, inclination, distance from sun)
Gas Tail
Gegenschein
Halley
Kirkwood's Gaps
Kuiper Belt
Meteor
Meteorite
Meteoroids
Oort Cloud
Physical Properties of Asteroids (classification, composition,
density, diameter, mass)
Physical Properties of Comets (composition, structure, time development)
Physical Properties of Meteoroids (composition, velocities)
Tektites
Trojan Asteroids
Tunguska
Zodiacal Light
Chapter 15 - Formation of the Solar System
Accretion
Condensation Theory
Encounter Theory
Nebular Hypothesis
Planetesimals
- Adaptive Optics
- Astigmatism
- AXAF
- Brightness
- CCD
- Cassegrain Focus
- Charge Coupled Device
- Chromatic Aberration
- Coma
- Coudé Focus
- Declination Axis
- Equatorial Axis
- Focal Length
- Focal Ratio
- Focus
- GRO
- HST
- Interferometer
- Inverted Image
- IRAS
- IUE
- Light Pollution
- Magnification
- Monolithic Mirror
- Newtonian Focus
- Parabolic Surface
- Photomultiplier
- Point Source
- Primary Mirror
- Prime Focus
- Reflector
- Refractor
- Resolution
- Reversed Image
- ROSAT
- Schmidt Telescope
- Secondary Mirror
- Seeing
- Segmented Mirror
- Speckle Interferometry
- Spectrograph
- Spherical Aberration
- VLA
- VLBA
- VLBI
- Asteroids
- Comets
- Comparative Planetology
- Jovian
- Planets
- Satellites
- Terrestrial
- Titius-Bode Law
- Asthenosphere
- Aurora
- Basalt
- Core
- Cratering
- Crust
- Daughter
- Differentiation
- Flooding of Basins
- Greenhouse Effect
- Inner Core
- Ionosphere
- Lithosphere
- Magnetic Poles
- Magnetosphere
- Mantle
- Mesosphere
- Midocean Ridge
- Neap Tide
- Ocean Trench
- Outer Core
- Outgassing
- Ozone Layer
- P-waves
- Pangea
- Parent
- Plate Tectonics
- Pressure Waves
- Radioactive Dating
- Radioactivity
- Rayleigh Scattering
- S-waves
- Shadow Zone
- Shear Waves
- Seismic Waves
- Spring Tide
- Stratosphere
- Subduction
- Surface Evolution
- Tidal Bulge
- Tidal Slowing
- Tropopsphere
- Van Allen Belts
- Albedo
- Anorthite
- Apollo
- Basalt
- Breccia
- Capture Hypothesis
- Co-accretion Hypothesis
- Corner-cube Reflector
- Ejecta
- Features (craters, maria)
- Fission Hypothesis
- Gabbro
- Highlands
- KREEP Norite
- Large-impact Hypothesis
- Laser Ranging
- Mascons
- Orbital Parameters (periods)
- Physical Properties (density, diameter, distance, gravity, magnetic
field, temperature)
- Rays
- Refractory
- Regolith
- Retention of Atmosphere
- Rilles (sinuous and graben)
- Stages of Evolution (differentiation, cratering, flooding of
basins, surface evolution)
- Synchronous Rotation
- Volatile
- Wrinkle Ridges
- Caloris Basin
- Intercrater Plains
- Lobate Scarp
- Old Cratered Plains
- Orbital Parameters (periods, eccentricity)
- Physical Properties (density, diameter, distance, gravity, magnetic field,
temperature)
- Resonance
- Smooth Plains
- Weird Terrain
- Aphrodite Terra
- Arachnoids
- Corona
- Dynamical Parameters (periods of rotation and revolution, orientation,
distance from sun
- Greenhouse Effect
- Ishtar Terra
- Lakshmi Planum
- Maxwell Montes
- Orbital Parameters (periods, eccentricity)
- Physical Properties (albedo, atmospheric composition, density, diameter,
distance, gravity, magnetic field, mass,
pressure, temperature)
- Runaway Greenhouse Effect
- Search for Life
- Shield Volcano
- SO2
- Spacecraft Visits
- Sulfuric Acid
- Canali
- Deimos
- Dust Storms
- Dynamical Parameters (periods of rotation and revolution, orientation,
distance from sun
- Hellas
- Lowell
- Orbital Parameters (distance, periods, eccentricity)
- Physical Properties (albedo, atmospheric composition, density, diameter,
gravity, magnetic field, mass,
pressure, temperature)
- Olympus Mons
- Outflow Channels
- Patera
- Phobos
- Polar Caps
- Runoff Channels
- Satellites
- Shield Volcano
- Valles Marineris
- Ammonia
- Ammonium Hydrosulfide
- Belts
- Callisto
- CH4
- Decametric Radiation
- Decimetric Radiation
- Dynamical Parameters (periods of rotation and revolution, orientation,
distance from sun
- Europa
- Ganymede
- Great Red Spot
- Io
- Liquid Molecular Hydrogen
- Magnetosphere
- Metallic Hydrogen
- Methane
- NH3
- Orbital Parameters (distance, periods, eccentricity)
- Physical Properties (atmospheric composition, density, diameter,
gravity, magnetic field, mass, temperature)
- Plasma Torus
- Radiation Belts
- Rings
- Volcanoes
- Voyager Spacecraft
- Zones
- Co-orbital Satellites
- Comparison to Jupiter
- Gaps in Rings
- Mimas
- Physical Properties (atmospheric composition, density, diameter,
gravity, magnetic field, mass, temperature)
- Ring System
- Roche's Limit
- Shepherd Satellites
- Titan
- Charon
- Discovery
- Dynamical Parameters (periods of rotation and revolution, eccentricity,
orientation, distance from sun)
- Eclipses
- Geysers
- Herschel
- Nereid
- Physical Properties (atmospheric composition, density, diameter,
gravity, magnetic field, mass, temperature)
- Resonance
- Rings
- Shepherd Satellites
- Titania
- Tombaugh
- Triton
- Achondrites
- Amor Asteroids
- Apollo Asteroids
- Carbonaceous Chondrites
- Ceres
- Chondrites
- Collisions with Earth
- Dust Tail
- Dynamical Parameters of Asteroids and Comets (orbits, periods of
revolution, eccentricity, inclination, distance from sun)
- Gas Tail
- Gegenschein
- Halley
- Kirkwood's Gaps
- Kuiper Belt
- Meteor
- Meteorite
- Meteoroids
- Oort Cloud
- Physical Properties of Asteroids (classification, composition,
density, diameter, mass)
- Physical Properties of Comets (composition, structure, time development)
- Physical Properties of Meteoroids (composition, velocities)
- Tektites
- Trojan Asteroids
- Tunguska
- Zodiacal Light
- Accretion
- Condensation Theory
- Encounter Theory
- Nebular Hypothesis
- Planetesimals