Astronomy Vocab

3. The galaxy containing our solar system.
6. A small icy body that, when close to the sun, has a visible coma or tail.
7. A unit of distance used in astronomy, equal to about 3.26 light-years.
10. The band of colors produced when light is separated by a prism or grating.
12. The distance light travels in one year, about 5.88 trillion miles.
13. The bending of light as it passes through a medium like glass or water.
17. A cloud of gas and dust in space, often the birthplace of stars.
19. Type of electromagnetic radiation that allows us to see.
20. A streak of light produced by a meteoroid burning up in Earth’s atmosphere.
21. A planet that orbits a star outside our solar system.
22. A large system of stars, gas, dust, and dark matter held together by gravity.

1. Measurement of space between two points, important in astronomy.
2. A measure of a star’s brightness.
4. Relating to the sun.
5. Excessive artificial brightness that hinders night sky observations.
8. Luminous sphere of plasma held together by gravity.
9. A particle of light.
11. Instrument used to observe distant celestial objects.
14. Phenomena occurring on or related to Earth.
15. The path of a celestial body around a star or planet.
16. A celestial body orbiting a star, such as Earth.
18. A natural light display near the polar regions caused by charged particles interacting with Earth’s atmosphere.