Space, Star patterns and

many more!
AN INTRODUCTION TOWARDS SPACE
Space is composed of many celestial bodies which
are bound by the gravitational force of the Sun. These
celestial bodies are the, Sun, Planets, Dwarf planets,
Natural satellites, Asteroids, Comets and meteors.

This is our solar system where Mercury is the 1st planet and Neptune being the last
planet. The planet we live on is Earth. The largest planet is Jupiter while the
smallest planet is Mercury. Saturn has icy rings around it while Uranus too has a
thin set of rings around it. All of these planets have diverse environments and
temperatures. Some of these planets have nicknames as well. For example Mars is
known as the red planet, Venus is known as the morning star/evening star while the
Earth is known as the Blue planet due to its magnificent oceans and seas. The
planets before the asteroid belt are known as the inner planets. (Mercury, Venus,
Earth, Mars) While the planets after the asteroid belt are known as the outer
planets. (Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune)
 ROTATION AND REVOLUTION
 ROTATION
When a planet rotates around its own axis, it is known
as ROTATION. The curved path which a planet moves
around is known as its ORBIT. With respect to the Sun,
Earth’s rotation period is 24 hours. But, with due
respect to other distant stars the rotation period of
Earth is 23 hours, 56 minutes and 4 seconds.
 REVOLUTION
When a planet rotates around the
Sun’s axis it is known as
. The revolution period
of Earth is 365 days or 366 days.
When planets revolve around the
sun, a force is applied by the Sun
towards the planets. This force is
known as .
 RESULTS OF ROTATION
 OCCURRENCE OF DAY AND NIGHT
 half of the Earth will
While rotating,
receive sunlight while the other half
won’t, making Day and Night occur.

 STANDARD TIME

The Earth has been divided

into 24 time zones. When the
Earth rotates around its own
axis, it moves 3600 during 24
hours. It takes 4 minutes to
travel between 2 longitudes.
The main reason for this is
the Earth’s rotation.
 RESULTS OF REVOLUTION
 OCCURRENCE OF SEASONAL CHANGES
Due to the Earth rotating at
a 23.50 inclination, the Sun
comes directly over
longitudes during particular
periods of time. Therefore
Seasonal changes occur.

 Phases of the Moon


This occurs due to
revolution. Half of the
moon is always
illuminated by the light of
the Sun. But, that half can
be completely seen from
Earth, only on a full moon
day.
OUR SOLAR SYSTEM
As we know there are 8 planets in the solar system:
Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus
and Neptune. In the following table there is some
information about the planets of the solar system.
Planet Distance Diameter Rotational Revolutional Tilt to the No. of
from the (km) time Time orbit plane sub
Sun (Earth (Earth years) planets
(million days) (Moons)
km)
Mercury 57.9 4879 58.8 0.24 0.034 0
Venus 108.2 12 104 244 0.62 177.4 0
Earth 149.6 12 756 1.00 1.00 23.5 1
Mars 227.9 6792 1.03 1.88 25.2 2
Jupiter 778.6 142 984 0.41 11.9 3.1 67
Saturn 1433.5 120 536 0.44 29.4 26.7 62
Uranus 2872.5 51 118 0.72 83.7 97.8 27
Neptune 4495.1 49 528 0.67 163.7 28.3 14
DWARF PLANETS
Small planets which do not have a fixed orbit are
known as DWARF PLANETS. There are 5 dwarf planets
in our Solar System. They are, Pluto, Eris, Makemake,
Ceres and Haumea. Pluto, Eris and Makemake are the
dwarf planets with natural satellites/moons.

Eris Ceres

Makemake Haumea
Space Exploration
Space Exploration is the human effort of travelling
somewhere further than Earth to explore outer space.
Due to space exploration, countless technological
inventions with realistic appliances on Earth had
been invented. Below are some facts about Space
Exploration.
1. Yuri Gagarin was the 1st cosmonaut to orbit
around the Earth on the 12th of April, 1961.

2. jjjThe first man on the

moon was Neil
Armstrong, when he
stepped on the moon
he declared
 3. The Soviet Union's Sputnik 1 was the first
spacecraft to orbit Earth on October 4, 1957.

4. Russian Cosmonaut and Engineer, Valentina

Tereshkova was the first woman to travel to
space on June 16, 1963.

5. The Hubble Space Telescope has provided

breathtaking images of distant galaxies, nebulae,
and other celestial objects.

Hubble Space Telescope Valentina Tereshkova

Sputnik 1
SOLAR AND LUNAR ECLIPSES
 SOLAR ECLIPSE
A solar eclipse occurs
when the moon passes
between the sun and the
earth, blocking all or
part of the sun's light.

 LUNAR ECLIPSE
A lunar eclipse occurs
when the Earth
passes between the
sun and the moon,
causing the Earth's
shadow to be cast on
the moon.
CONSTELLATIONS
A constellation AKA star patterns, is a group of stars
that form a recognizable pattern in the night sky.
Ancient civilians used these constellations to
navigate and for storytelling. These constellations are
often names after mythological people and animals.

Fun Fact: The star that never changes its position is the POLARIS.
 Below are a few constellations.

AQUILA
The meaning of this constellation is EAGLE. This
constellation was a symbol or the Greeks
representing Zeus, the king of the gods and the
symbol of Power.
ORION
Orion is the easiest
constellation to find in the
night sky. This constellation
symbolizes the Greek
hunter Orion. This
constellation was found by
Ptolemy.

PERSEUS
This constellation is named after the Greek hero
Perseus, who is famous for slaying the Gorgon
Medusa. This constellation was also found by Ptolemy.
ZODIAC SIGNS AND ZODIAC CONSTELLATIONS
There are 12 zodiac signs as well as constellations in
total.
1. Aries
2. Taurus
3. Gemini
4. Cancer
5. Leo
6. Virgo
7. Libra
8. Scorpio
9. Sagittarius
10. Capricorn
11. Aquarius
12. Pisces
THE ZODIAC CONSTELLATIONS

Our ancestors used Zodiac signs to supposedly

influence their life and surroundings. They also
used them for Astrology, Astronomy, Planet
finding, Calendar making and many more.