Phases of the Moon and Solar System Overview

Phases of the Moon

• New Moon: The moon is not visible from Earth.
• Waxing: The lit part is growing, light appears on the right.
• Waning: The lit part is shrinking, light appears on the left.
• Waxing Crescent: A small sliver of light on the right.
• First Quarter: The moon is 1/4 through its cycle.
• Waxing Gibbous: More than half is lit on the right side.
• Full Moon: The entire face of the moon is lit.
• Waning Gibbous: Light starts to shrink from the left side.
• Last Quarter (or Third Quarter): Shows the left half of the moon lit.
• Waning Crescent: Small sliver of light on the left side.

Key Concepts

• The moon's phases are a result of its orbit around Earth and how sunlight hits it.

Solar System Overview

Inner Planets

• Planets: Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars
• Composition: Rock and metal

Outer Planets

• Planets: Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune
• Composition: Mainly gas (hydrogen, helium, etc.)

Notable Features

• Largest Planet: Jupiter
• Planet with Most Visible Rings: Saturn

Additional Solar System Components

• Asteroid Belt: Located between Mars and Jupiter.
• Largest Object in the Asteroid Belt: Ceres, also a dwarf planet.

Dwarf Planets

• Characteristics: Round, orbit the Sun, but haven't cleared their orbital path.
• Examples: Pluto, Eris, Ceres, Haumea, Makemake

Other Regions

• Kuiper Belt: A region beyond Neptune with icy bodies and dwarf planets.
• Oort Cloud: A distant shell of icy objects, source of long-period comets.

Other Astronomical Objects

• Comets: Composed of ice, dust, and rock, develop tails near the Sun.
• Meteoroid: A space rock traveling in space.
• Meteor: A meteoroid that burns in Earth's atmosphere (shooting star).
• Meteorite: A meteor that lands on Earth.
• Exoplanet: A planet orbiting a star outside our solar system.

Rotational and Orbital Dynamics

• Rotation: A planet spinning on its axis, causing day and night.
• Revolution: A planet orbiting around the Sun, causing years.
• Uranus: Notable for spinning on its side.

Central Element

• Center of the Solar System: The Sun.