Year 11 - Science
The changing universe
Gravity in space
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This pupil-friendly study guide includes a unit summary, clear notes, common mistakes, and quick questions with answers.
Unit Summary
This unit covers the solar system's features, including planets, moons, and satellites. It explains gravity's effect on orbits, the sun's formation from dust and gas, and fusion equilibrium. It also explores red-shift, evidence of an expanding universe, and the link to the Big Bang model.
Lesson Summary
You will learn to describe the Big Bang Theory and evidence that supports it.
Key Notes
- Light from nearly all galaxies is redshifted, showing they're moving away, with distant galaxies receding faster.
- Evidence shows that galaxies were all in the same place about 14 billion years ago, showing their movement apart since.
- The Big Bang Theory suggests that the universe began from a very small region that was extremely hot and dense.
- A scientific theory is our best understanding based on all evidence and is subject to rigorous testing.
- We do not fully understand dark matter or dark energy.
Vocabulary To Learn
- redshift: the increase in the wavelength of light (and decrease in its frequency) caused by the movement of a star or galaxy away from us
- Big Bang Theory: the theory that the our whole universe started in a hot, dense state, then expanded and cooled over fourteen billion years
- CMBR: cosmic microwave background radiation is electromagnetic radiation produced in the hot early universe which has since been 'stretched' to the microwave part of the spectrum.
Common Mistakes To Avoid
- The Big Bang was an explosion in which existing matter blew up.
3 Quick Questions (With Answers)
1. Explain the scientific idea in this lesson using two key points.
Light from nearly all galaxies is redshifted, showing they're moving away, with distant galaxies receding faster. Evidence shows that galaxies were all in the same place about 14 billion years ago, showing their movement apart since.
2. Define this scientific word and use it in context. 'redshift'
the increase in the wavelength of light (and decrease in its frequency) caused by the movement of a star or galaxy away from us. Include the word in a full scientific explanation, not as a single label.
3. Correct this common scientific misunderstanding.
Mistake: The Big Bang was an explosion in which existing matter blew up. Correction: Describe the Big Bang as an expansion of space combined with the creation of all matter in the universe.
More Lessons In This Unit
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