Oxford Physics Book Unit 16: Space c) Its position relative to Earth changes the way it appears to us as different

c) Its position relative to Earth changes the way it appears to us as different parts of it are
illuminated by the Sun. This causes the changes called the phases of the Moon.
Cambridge Syllabus 6: Space Physics
d) As the Moon orbits the Earth, the half of the Moon that faces the Sun will be lit up by the
Cambridge Syllabus 6.1: Earth and Solar System Sun. As the Moon moves, the shape of the light part, which can be seen from the Earth,
1. The Earth changes. The outer circle of Moon diagrams shows how the Moon looks to an observer on
Earth.
I) Day and night
e) The Moon always faces the same side to Earth because the Moon’s rotation and orbital
a) The Earth spinning on its axis, which is tilted. periods are equal.
b) The Earth turns one round in approximately 24 hours.
c) As light (from Sun) travels in straight lines, only half the Earth receives sunlight at any one
time.
d) At sunrise, the Sun is visible on the eastern horizon.
e) As the Earth turns, the spot moves into the full glare of the Sun, so the Sun appears directly
overhead at midday.
f) As the Earth continues to turn, the spot moves out of the direct sunlight until, at sunset, the
sun appears at the western horizon.

II) Years

a) The Earth orbits the Sun

b) It takes 365 days to complete one orbit.
c) The four seasons occur because of the tilt of the Earth’s axis

In northern hemisphere (the half of the Earth

north of the Equator), due to the tilt of the
Earth, it is tipped away from the Sun and the
energy from the Sun’s rays is more spread
out, making it colder. That area receives
fewer hours of sunlight. These countries are
experiencing winter.

Countries at the Equator do not experience

seasons because the Sun’s rays always hit
them at the same angle. The seasonal
differences are more apparent, the further
from the Equator you are.

In the far north or south, seasons are so

extreme that, in winter, the Sun is hardly seen
and, in summer, it can be sunny at midnight.

III) Months

a) Moon reflects light from the Sun.

b) The Moon orbits Earth every 27.5 days.

2. The Solar System 4. Distance and times in the Solar System

I) The solar system containing:

a) One star - The Sun

b) Eight Planets (order from the Sun, from nearest to far):

Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune.

c) Minor planets that orbit the Sun: dwarf planets such as Pluto.

d) Moons that orbit the planets and dwarf planets.

e) Millions of asteroids and meteoroids: these are rocky objects which are smaller than
planets. Most asteroids are found in the asteroid belt between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter.

f) Smaller Solar System bodies: comets and natural satellites

g) Comets: which are often described as giant snowballs, orbit the Sun in very irregular orbits.
When they are furthest from the Sun, they are frozen balls of gas, rock and dust. As they
get nearer to the Sun they heat up and leave a trail of dust and gases behind them.

3. Solar System Formation

The Sun The Planet

- As gravity pulled - formed from the
Interstellar clouds of dust this mass together, materials of the
the centre formed a nebula which are not
Nebula and gas star, the Sun. pulled into the Sun.
- The solar system - Most of the gas was hydrogen,
began as a nebula, other elements formed by fusion
which is a huge in other starts which had exploded
swirling ball of dust at the end of their life cycle, Accretion Disc
and gas. sending their contents out into the
clouds of interstellar gas. - the spinning motion
of the dust and gas
formed a flat, spinning
disc known as an
accretion disc.

Accretion - inner planet

Outer planet
- The process of the dust and gas being pulled together by gravity.
- The intense heat forced some of the lighter
materials further away and these formed the - Gravity pulled dust and gas together so they joined to make
outer planets - the gas giants. rocks which then join to make larger rock.

- These planets (huge balls of gases) are much - it led to the formation of the inner, rocky planets.
bigger than the inner planets.
4 inner planets: Mercury, Venus, Earth and Mars
4 outer planet: Jupiter, Saturn,
Uranus and Neptune After Mars there is the asteroid belt - made up of
left-over pieces of rock
 V. The planet moves closer to, and further away, from the Sun during each orbit. The Sun’s
gravity pulls the object in, speeds it up and then the speed carries it on to the furthest
5. Planetary Data
part of the orbit.

VI. The object’s orbital speed is therefore greatest when it is nearest to the Sun and slowest
when it is furthest from the Sun.

VII. Comets, which have the most elliptical orbits of any body in the Solar System accelerate
greatly as they approach the Sun and are slung back at high speed to the far reaches of their
orbits.

VIII. A planet orbiting in space does not experience any friction or air resistance, so its energy
remains the same throughout its orbit. It has two types of energy:

• kinetic energy

• gravitational potential energy.

gravitational kinetic energy Sun’s gravitational

potential energy (orbital speed of planet) field

Nearest to Sun ↓ ↑ ↑

Furthest from Sun ↑ ↓ ↓

6. Gravitational field

I) The strength of the gravitational field at the surface of a planet depends on the mass of the planet.
(mass ↑, g ↑)

II) The strength of the gravitational field around a planet decrease as the distance from the planet
increases (g ↓, h ↑)

7. Orbits of the planets

I) The Sun contains most of the mass of the Solar System and this explains why the planets
orbit the Sun. The force that keeps an object in orbit around the Sun is the gravitational
attraction of the Sun. 9. Orbital Speed
II) The orbits of the planets are not completely circular. Their shape is that of a slightly squashed I) Orbital speed, v - The speed of a planet in orbit round a start (the Sun).
circle, called an ellipse. The orbits are described as elliptical. The amount the orbit is squashed
is called its eccentricity. II) Orbital radius, r - distance between planet and the Sun.

8. Why are orbits Elliptical III) Orbital period, T - the time for the planet to orbit the Sun.

I. An object moving past the Sun at high speed, carried along by its own momentum from the IV) Distance = the circumference of its orbit =
explosive start of the universe.

II. As it passes near the Sun the gravitational force of the Sun starts to act on the object and to
pull it towards the Sun.

III. This force also causes it to accelerate. This means the mass speeds up and its kinetic
energy carries it slightly further out to the furthest point of the orbit. The object slows down
and is pulled in again towards the Sun.

IV. The Sun is not quite at the centre of a planet’s elliptical orbit. There is a point close to the
centre of an ellipse called the focus. The Sun is at the focus of the elliptical path of each of the
planets.
Cambridge Syllabus 6.2: Stars and the Universe
10. The Sun as a star

I) The Sun is a star of medium size, consisting mostly of hydrogen 75% and helium 24%. The
rest (about 1%) is made up of other elements, such as oxygen and carbon.

II) The glowing hydrogen at the surface of the Sun radiates energy. It radiates most of its energy in
the infrared, visible and ultraviolet regions of the electromagnetic spectrum.

Sun Radiates Energy Percentage

Visible light 40%

Infrared radiation 50%

Ultraviolet 10%

III) Stars are powered by nuclear reactions that release energy.

IV) In stable stars (like our Sun) the nuclear reactions involve the fusion of hydrogen into helium.

V) It is so hot inside the Sun that matter exists as plasma (positive ions and electrons).

VI) The Sun’s core temperature is about 15000000K.

VII) The temperature at Sun’s surface is about 5800K.

VIII) The Sun has a mass of 2 x 1030 kg, referred to as the solar mass.

IX) The Sun contains over 99.86% of the mass of the Solar system, so it exerts a big gravitational
force on the planets and causes them to follow nearly circular orbits.
11. Stars and galaxies 12. The Universe

I) Galaxies are each made up of many billions of stars I) The Universe --> many galaxies --> our galaxy: The Milky Way --> Solar system and Sun

II) The sun is a star in the galaxy known as the Milky Way. II) The force of gravity pulls stars together in groups called galaxies.

III) Other stars that make up the Milky Way are much further away from the Earth than the Sun is III) The Milky Way
form the Earth. a) The Milky Way is one of many billions of galaxies making up the Universe
IV) Astronomical distances can be measured in light-years, where one light-year is the distance b) There might be 200 billion (2 x 1011) stars in the Milky Way.
travelled in (the vacuum of) space by light in one year.
c) The Milky Way is a spiral galaxy with a central bulge. It has a diameter of approximately 100
Light travel speed (in vacuum) 3 x 108 m/s 000 light-years and the disc is about 2000 light-years thick.
One light-year Distance = speed x time d) Our Solar System is located about 30000 light-years from the galactic centre.
8
= light travels in one year = 3x10 m/s x 365.25 days x 24 hours x 3600 seconds e) The Milky Way is spinning. It takes our Solar System about 225 milion years to travel once
around the galaxy.
= 9.5 x 1015 m

V) Hence, the light that you see from the stars has been travelling for many years.

VI) Sunlight only takes 8 minutes to reach us because the Sun is much closer to us.
 15. The life cycle of a less massive star like our Sun

13. A protostar - how a star in born I) The Sun begins life as a protostar before entering a stable period.

I) A protostar is the first step in star formation. II) Once the star starts running out of hydrogen, nuclear reactions slow down.

II) Stars form from interstellar clouds of gas and dust that contain hydrogen called molecular III) This reduces the radiation pressure so the star contracts.
clouds, which are both cold and dense enough for star formation. IV) This turns some gravitational potential energy into thermal energy, which raises the temperature
III) The collapse of a clump of molecular cloud due to gravitational attraction starts a series of energy of both the core of the star and the outer shell of hydrogen. The core becomes hot enough for the fusion
transfers. of helium. Helium needs a higher temperature to fuse because there is a bigger electrostatic repulsion
between the helium nuclei. This is because each helium nucleus has a charge of +2 (instead of +1 for
IV) As the force of gravity pulls the hydrogen gas molecules closer together, their gravitational potential hydrogen).
energy is transferred to kinetic energy.
V) Heating the outer shell causes it to expand and then cool (turning it red). Therefore, the star becomes
V) As the molecules collide, their kinetic energy is transferred into thermal energy. a red giant, which is a bigger star with a cooler surface.
VI) The clump contracts into a spinning sphere of super-hot gas known as a protostar. VI) Our Sun is 4.6 billion years old and is half-way through its time as a stable main sequence star. It will
VII) A protostar continues to grow by pulling in more material from the molecular cloud. Its final mass become a red giant in about 5 billion years from now when it will expand beyond Earth’s orbit.
determines what happens to it. VII) Eventually, the core collapses into a white dwarf star. A white dwarf cannot exceed a mass of
VIII) A protostar becomes stable when the inward force of gravitational attraction is balanced by an about 1.4 solar masses and typically has a radius of 1000 km.
outward force due to the high temperature of a star caused by nuclear fusion. VIII) When the Sun becomes a white dwarf, its radius will be about 1% of its present radius, which
means it will shrink to about the size of the Earth.

IX) Though it has a white hot surface (hence the colour), it is not hot enough inside to fuse heavier
14. Stable Stars (Main Sequence Star)
elements, so it will cool to become a black dwarf.
I) Hot bodies radiate heat and this radiation exerts a force called radiation pressure.
X) Radiation pressure blows away its outer shell to create a planetary nebula like the Cat’s Eye Nebula
II) The hotter the object is, the higher the radiation pressure. (Figure 25.7).

III) The very high temperature of a star leads to a radiation pressure that acts outwards, making the star
expand.

IV) This acts in the opposite direction to the force of gravity pulling the star inwards, making the star
contract.

V) When these forces are balanced, the star is stable and stays the same size.

16. The life cycle of a star exceeding eight solar masses

I) Like all stars, it begins life as a protostar before a entering a stable period.

II) The core of more massive stars gets so hot that the nuclei of heavier elements can fuse.
VI) An increase in the core temperature of a star increases the radiation pressure and the star increases
in size. III) The star is hot enough for the fusion of lighter elements to continue in shells further from the core,
as shown in Figure 25.8.
VII) A star shrinks when its core temperature falls.
IV) The outer shell expands into a red supergiant.

V) However, it is not possible to make elements heavier than iron by nuclear fusion so a star with at least
eight times the mass of the Sun ends its cycle of nuclear reactions with iron at its core surrounded by
shells of progressively lighter elements.

VI) Once all the fuel has run out, the star collapses one final time and then explodes as a supernova.

VII) This provides the energy required to create elements heavier than iron and push them into space as
a nebula, along with lighter elements (including hydrogen).

VIII) The nebula provides the building blocks for possible future stars and solar systems. 17. Life cycle of stars (Summary - refer to Figure 25.10)

IX) A supernova will briefly outshine its galaxy. I) a star is formed from interstellar clouds of gas and dust that contain hydrogen, called molecular
cloud.
X) The Crab Nebula (Figure 25.9) is what remains of a supernova observed by Chinese astronomers in
1054. II) a protostar is an interstellar cloud collapsing and increasing in temperature as a result of its
internal gravitational attraction

VII) a protostar becomes a stable star when the inward force of gravitational attraction is balanced
by an outward force due to the high temperature in the centre of the star

VIII) all stars eventually run out of hydrogen as fuel for the nuclear reaction

IX) most stars expand to form red giants and more massive stars expand to form red supergiants
when most of the hydrogen in the centre of the star has been converted to helium

X) a red giant from a less massive star forms a planetary nebula with a white dwarf star at its
centre

XI) a red supergiant explodes as a supernova, forming a nebula containing hydrogen and new
heavier elements, leaving behind a neutron star or a black hole at its centre

XII) the nebula from a supernova may form new stars with orbiting planets

XI) What happens after a supernova depends on the mass of the core that remains. If the core is less
than about three solar masses, a neutron star forms. The force of gravity is so strong that electrons
and protons are forced together to create neutrons.

XII) An even more massive core will continue collapsing until it becomes so dense that not even light
can escape and the star becomes a black hole.
 III) Hubble’s Law

18. The Expanding Universe a) Astronomers use the Doppler effect to work out how fast galaxies are moving away from us (or
towards us).
I) Spectroscopy - the scientific study of spectra. Learning about stars from their starlight.
b) Findings: The light from distant galaxies was red-shifted. The further a galaxy is from Earth, the
Red-Shift Blue-Shift bigger its red-shift is. (the evidence for the expanding universe)
The star or galaxy is moving away from you The star or galaxy is moving towards you c) Conclusion: The distant galaxies are moving away from Earth. The greater the distance a
galaxy is from Earth, the greater the speed at which it is moving away from Earth. The distant
The light waves are stretched out The light waves are squashed together
galaxies moving away from each other. The whole universe is expanding.
The wavelength of the waves is increased The wavelength of the waves is reduced
d) Hubble’s law: The speed of the galaxies is directly proportional to the amount of redshift.
The spectrum of light is shifted towards the red part The spectrum of light is shifted towards the
of the spectrum. (Shift to longer wavelengths of the blue part of the spectrum
light)

The bigger the shift, the more the waves are The bigger the shift, the more the waves
stretched out. The faster the star (or galaxy) are squashed together. The faster the star
moving away from you. (or galaxy) moving towards you.

e) The speed, v, at which a galaxy is moving away from the Earth can be found from the change in
wavelength of the galaxy’s starlight due to redshift.

f) The distance, d, of a far galaxy can be determined using the brightness of a supernova in that
galaxy.

g) The Hubble constant, H0, as the ratio of the speed at which the galaxy is moving away from the
II) Redshift:
Earth to its distance from the Earth
a) Shifted towards the red end of the spectrum.

b) Redshift as an increase in the observed wavelength of electromagnetic radiation emitted from

receding stars and galaxies

c) The light emitted from distant galaxies appears redshifted in comparison with light emitted on
the Earth

d) Redshift in the light from distant galaxies is evidence that the Universe is expanding and
supports the Big Bang Theory

e) Big Bang Theory - the idea that the Universe (space, time, matter, energy) was created at a
single point billion years ago and has been expanding and cooling ever since.
h) The current estimate for H0 is 2.2 × 10–18 per second

i) represents an estimate for the age of the Universe and that this is evidence for the idea that all
the matter in the Universe was present at a single point

j) The Universe began at a single point (called a singularity) about 14.5 billion years ago.

k) The further away a distant galaxy is from you, the greater its red-shift is. The distant galaxies
are all moving away from you because the universe is expanding.
 l) Hubble time - the reciprocal (inverse) of the Hubble constant

19. The Beginning and Future of the Universe

I) Why distant galaxies are moving apart?

II) Big Bang theory states: the universe is expanding after exploding suddenly (the Big Bang) from a
very small and extremely hot and dense region. Space, time and matter were created in the Big Bang.

III) Just after the Big Bang, Cosmic microwave background radiation was created as high-energy
gamma radiation.

IV) It has been travelling through space since then.

V) As the universe has expanded, it has stretched out to longer and longer wavelengths and is now
microwave radiation.

20. Cosmic Microwave Background Radiation (CMBR)

I) The Universe began as a hot big bang from a tiny point smaller than a pinhead (called a singularity)
about 13.8 billion years ago. The Universe was unimaginably hot and dense but it has been expanding
and cooling ever since. The early Universe was so hot that neutral atoms could not form. They would
instantly ionise.

II) Light was continuously scattered off the charged particles (ions and electrons).

III) Once the Universe was about 379 000 years old, and about the size of the Milky Way, the
temperature dropped to 3000 K and neutral atoms formed.

IV) Light was no longer scattered and the Universe became transparent. It was like the fog suddenly
lifted (disappeared) and the air became clear.

V) However, the continued expansion of the Universe has caused the wavelength of this light to redshift
over time.

VI) Microwave radiation of a specific frequency is observed at all points in space around us and is known
as cosmic microwave background radiation (CMBR)

IV) The CMBR was produced shortly after the Universe was formed and that this radiation has been
expanded into the microwave region of the electromagnetic spectrum as the Universe expanded