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Independent Variable (IDV)
The cause variable that the experimenter is choosing to change. Only 1 per experiment.
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Dependent Variable (DV)
The effect variable that is measured or observed during an experiment. Can be more than 1 per experiment.
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Controlled Variable (CV)
The variables that are not allowed to change (remain constant) so that the experiment is fair.
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Celestial Object
Any existent object in space. e.g. planet, star, moon.
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Astronomer
A scientist who studies astronomy which is the night sky.
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Revolution
The time it takes for an object to orbit around another object.
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Rotation
The turning of an object around an imaginary axis running through it.
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Constellation
A group of stars that seem to make a distinctive pattern in the sky.
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Light-Year
The distance that light travels in one year, about 9.5 x 10^12 km.
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Apparent Magnitude
The brightness of stars as seen on Earth.
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Asterism
A smaller group of stars that form patterns within a constellation.
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Latitude
The location above or below the equator.
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Pointer Stars
Bright or easy to find stars that can be used to find other stars or constellations.
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Zenith
Directly overhead in the sky.
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Circumpolar
Constellations close to Polaris that can be seen all year round in the northern hemisphere.
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Tide
The rising and falling of ocean waters as a result of the Moon's gravity and Earth's gravity.
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Gravitational Force
The force of attraction between all masses in the universe.
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Ellipse
A curve that is generally referred to as an oval or the shape of an egg.
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Phases of the Moon
The monthly progression of changes in the appearance of the moon, resulting different portions of the moon's sunlit side being visible from Earth.
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Lunar Eclipse
The full moon passes through the umbra portion of the Earth's shadow. moon earth sun
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Solar Eclipse
The shadow of the new moon falls on the Earth's surface. earth moon sun
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Planet
An object that orbits one or more stars (and is not a star itself), is spherical and does not share its orbit with another object.
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Solar System
A group of planets that circle one or more stars.
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Retrograde Motion
The movement of an object in the sky, usually a planet, from east to west, rather than in its normal motion from west to east.
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Astronomical Unit (AU)
The average distance between Earth and the sun, about 150 x  km.
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Orbital Radius
The average distance between the sun and any object that is orbiting the sun.
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Comet
An object composed of rocky material, ice and gas that comes from the Kuiper Belt or Oort Cloud.
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Kuiper Belt
A disc-shaped group of millions of small objects orbiting the sun beyond Neptune. Believed to be left over from formation of a solar system.
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Oort Cloud
A spherical cloud of small icy fragments of debris at the furthest reaches of the sun's gravitational influence.
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Asteroid
A small object that ranges in size from a tiny speck, like a grain of sand, to 500 km wide, most originate from in the asteroid belt located between Mars and Jupiter.
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Meteoroid
A piece of rock moving through space that has broken off of asteroids, comets and planets. Trapped by Earth's gravity.
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Meteor
A meteoroid that hits Earth's atmosphere and burns up due to atmospheric friction. Known as a shooting star.
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Meteorite
A meteoroid that is large enough to pass through Earth's atmosphere and reach the ground without being totally burned up.
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