Across
- 4. A steep slope or cliff on a planet’s surface, often formed by tectonic activity or erosion.
- 6. A system that uses radio waves to detect, map, and measure the distance, speed, or surface features of objects like planets or asteroids.
- 7. Large gas or ice giant planets with thick atmospheres and no solid surface; Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune.
- 9. The smaller and more distant moon of Mars, with a smoother shape than Phobos.
- 12. The four largest moons of Jupiter: Io, Europa, Ganymede, and Callisto, discovered by Galileo.
- 13. The minimum distance a moon can orbit a planet without being torn apart by tidal forces.
- 15. A huge impact crater on Mercury formed by a massive asteroid collision.
- 16. A large highland region on Venus containing mountains and plateaus, similar in size to Australia.
- 17. The larger and closer of Mars’s two moons; it is irregularly shaped and slowly spiraling toward Mars.
- 18. Collections of ice, rock, and dust particles that orbit a planet; most famously found around Saturn.
Down
- 1. A massive canyon system on Mars, over 2,500 miles long, caused by tectonic forces rather than erosion.
- 2. Rocky planets with solid surfaces; Mercury, Venus, Earth, and Mars.
- 3. Saturn’s largest moon, known for its thick atmosphere and lakes of liquid methane and ethane.
- 5. A chemical process where sunlight breaks molecules into smaller parts, common in planetary atmospheres.
- 8. The largest moon in the solar system, orbiting Jupiter; it is even larger than the planet Mercury.
- 10. The largest volcano in the solar system, located on Mars; it is about three times taller than Mount Everest.
- 11. Fast-moving bands of wind in a planet’s atmosphere that influence weather patterns.
- 14. Neptune’s largest moon, notable for its retrograde orbit and icy surface with geysers.