Eight Things Revolving the Sun

Eight Things Revolving the Sun

        The earth is a member of the sun’s family. The sun’s family is called solar system. The earth is a planet. There are other planets in the solar system. The solar system is made up of the sun and all the objects that move around it.

        There are eight known planets which circle around the sun in elliptical orbits. They are group into two: the inner planets and the outer planets. The period of the revolution around the sun varies with each planet: the nearer the planets having the shorter periods. The planets also rotate there axes, as does the earth.

  The Eight Planets

*The Inner Planets:

Mercury

        The closest to the sun and the fastest of the eight planets to revolve around the sun.  It can travel 46km/sec. that is why the planet is named after a messenger of the Roman God who had wings on its feet. It spins on its axis once in every 59 days and revolves around the sun in 88 days.

Venus          

        Known as the “Pressure Cooker Planet” because of its very high atmospheric temperature. It is the brightest celestial body in our sky after the moon and the sun. It has an atmosphere made up of mainly carbon dioxide and sulfuric acid gas with a very small amount of oxygen.

Earth  

        The only planet known that life is existent. The planets where living things dwell- the animals and the humans. The atmosphere has enough oxygen sustainable to life on earth. It rotates to its axis in every 24 hours and revolves around the sun in every 365 and ¼ days. It has only one satellite or moon that orbits around the earth.

Mars 

        It is a lifeless dessert dry planet. Its thin atmosphere of mostly carbon dioxide is over 100 times drier than the earth. Aside from earth, it is the only planet which has snow. It is made up of chiefly carbon dioxide and has no ozone in its atmosphere to react from radiation. Also known as the “Red Planet” because of iron oxide present in the soil.

*The Outer Planets: 

Jupiter

        The largest planet in the solar system. It rotates 9hrs. and 50mins., making it as the fastest rotating planet. It has 16 satellites, which the two are roughly equal to the size of the earth’s moon. The rings are so thin which make them essentially transparent. Its ice and ammonia atmosphere contains one of the Jupiter’s mysteries: “The Red Spot”.

Saturn 

        The second largest planet, consist of a solid core surrounded by an icy layer and thick atmosphere of gases, the rings is composed of billions small particles of grain of sand. It has magnificent system of rings made up of countless ice-coated particles.

Uranus

        A greenish-blue gas planet. Has a series of rings around it but is believe to be relatively young. There are 11 rings in various sizes and densities. It has 15 moons, which its gravitational force helps maintain the rings of the planet.

Neptune

        A bluish planet, which gives off more energy that it receives from the sun. It is named after the Roman God of the sea. Neptune and Uranus are like twins, being similar in size; they both appear as pale green due to it has two tremendous amount of methane gas stretch all around its surface. Neptune possesses a barely detachable system of four rings of very dark matter. The outer ring is clumped into ring of different densities.

Why does Universe exist?

Why does Universe exist?

        The most stunning fact that man had discovered is the place that cannot be reach and measured. A creation that projects His immeasurable wisdom and power is the universe. 

        The universe consists of all matter, including energy and radiation, which man has discovered, as well as everything else that man knows or believes to be present in space.

        It is the cosmos creation, all the objects in space, the totality of all space and time and that is, has been, and will be.

        The universe is immeasurable and its limit is unknown.

        Man tries to give answers about the mystery behind the origin of the universe; they continue studying and formulate theories to explain this astounding reality that man had discovered. And this has been explained in several theories.

        Most astronomers accept the expanding universe hypothesis known as the Big Bang Theory. According to this theory, the universe started as one very hot and dense concentration of matter. The dense concentration of matter exploded with its fragments moving outward and away from one another at different speeds. Hydrogen and helium nuclei were formed from the very hot concentration of matter. According to this theory, the universe continues to expand.

        Another theory explaining the origin of the universe is the Big Crunch Theory. Some astronomers believe that the universe began from the Big Bang explosion of a dense globe of hydrogen. However, because of the force of gravity, the billions of galaxies moved towards one another.

        Some astronomers believe that the universe is expanding but its expansion is similar to its original state and will not change anymore. This theory is called the Steady State Theory.

                         

        Another theory that explains the origin of the universe is the Nebular or Dust Cloud Theory. According to this theory, planets, stars, and other heavenly bodies came from dust of clouds. The materials combined together as they spun in space. They later moved around a central body and cooled off. The big spinning materials formed the heavenly bodies.

Climate and Weather in the Philippines

If anything exist amid the diversities of modern life in w/c most people have a common interest, it is weather. This natural phenomenon affects many of our activities and a great part of our well-being. We are all aware of the hazards of hurricanes, thunders, blizzards and untimely frosts. Most of us rejoice at the bright sunny days and cool, comfortable nights. Man cannot control the weather, but a great deal is being done to understand it and forecast it.

          Weather refers to specific atmospheric conditions at a particular time and place. Climate refers to the average weather conditions in a particular area over a long period of time- months & years.

          The climate of the Phil. is tropical and maritime. It is characterized by relatively high temperature, high humidity and abundant rainfall. It is similar in many aspects to the climate of our countries of Central America. Temperature, humidity and rainfall are the most important elements of the country’s weather and climate.

          Altitude varies from sea level to 2.815m (9,606ft) at Mt.Pulong on Luzon and 2,954m (9,492ft) at the highest point, Mt. Apo on Mindanao. At higher altitude it is always cooler. As further north from the equator a place is located as a cooler it is in the months of November to February. However, in April & May, northern portions of the Country often experience high temperatures than southern parts.

It is often a little cooler outside the big cities as Manila or Cebu because concrete, asphalt and the lack of trees combine to soak in retain and reflect the heat.

          Four types of tropical and maritime climates are found; a dry and a rainy season; no dry season; not very pronounced season; and an even distribution of rain throughout the year. The tropical climate in the Philippines has three distinct seasons. From June to September, the country experience a rainy season brought by the southwestern monsoon; typhoons are common during this time. From October to February, the northeastern monsoon brings cold winds from the north, creating cool and dry weather. From March to May, the Phil. experiences hot summers. Coastal areas next to the Pacific Oceans experience, year-round rainfall.

External Geologic Processes

                                                                    EARTHQUAKE
     

            Earthquakes are shakings of the earth's crust due to disturbances within the earth's interior. The shaking may be gentle and perceptible only to delicate instruments, or it may be violent and cause great disasters.
          The principal explanation of earthquakes lies in the yielding of the earth's crust to some strain from beneath, resulting in a displacement of the surface along an existing fault line, or the breaking of the crust, forming a new fracture.
    
       Causes of an Earthquake:
1. Tectonic Earthquake- the shifting or movement of the crustal plates
2. Volcanic Earthquakes- when magma moves along a fissure, they cause the Earth's crust to tremble. The magma may reach the surface and when this happens, a volcanic eruption occurs.
          When an earthquake occurs, some places experience stronger tremors than others. Areas where stronger vibrations are felt are usually near the epicenter of the earthquake.
           An epicenter is the point on the surface of the Earth located directly above the center of an earthquake's origin. The center or source of the earthquake is called focus.

MEASUREMENT
   
     Intensity- it is the extent of damage caused by an earthquake. When the crust shakes, such tremor causes damages to people, buildings, bridges, roads and vegetation.
     Magnitude- is the amount of energy released by an earthquake. An American scientists named Charles F. Richter developed a scale to indicate the magnitude of an earthquake. This scale is popularly known as the Richter Magnitude Scale that uses numbers from 1 to 10. The stronger the earthquake is the higher number on the scale. The more feeble or weaker the earthquake is, the lower is the number.
           Scientists have invented a device that measures the movement of the Earth's crust. It is called seismograph. A seismograph can detect and record the vibrations on the Earth's surface.
          
                   
                          VOLCANISM                      

                                                                     



           Volcanism is the movement of liquid rock inside or outside the Earth's crust.
           A volcano is a mountain or hill with a vent extending from the top down to the Earth's interior.

           The molten material in a volcano is called magma. When an eruption takes place the magma expels volcanic gases and the molten mass which flows out is known as lava. The flowing lava is at white heat when eruption takes place, but it cools comparatively quickly when it is exposed to the air, and in cooling it solidifies, forming igneous rock.
           Volcanoes may either be active or inactive. Active volcanoes are those that have erupted or shown signs of activity for the past 600 years. Examples of this type are Mt. Pinatubo, Mt. Mayon and Taal Volcano. Volcanoes that have not erupted for 600 years or more are considered inactive. Mt. Apo, Mt. Arayat and Mt. Makiling are some of the inactive volcanoes in the Philippines.

                          MOUNTAIN            
                                         
                                       

                                                                             

            Mountains- a large mass of earth and rock, rising above the common level of the earth and adjacent land; earth and rock forming an isolated peck or a ridge; an eminence higher than a hill.
           When faulting occurs, as we have already seen, two areas formerly in the same horizontal plane are forced out of alignment, one being raised, the other lowered. When this occurs on a large scale and involves several nearly parallel fractures, mountains and valleys may be formed as blocks are raised and lowered.