73 questions and answers in this section

Natural Sciences » Astronomy

Explain why does the Earth rotate on itself?

Explain why does the Earth rotate on itself?

About 4.6 billion years ago, our solar system formed from a massive cloud of gas and dust. Under the influence of gravity, this material began...

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Explain why the gravity of planets influences their orbit.

Explain why the gravity of planets influences their orbit.

The universal law of gravitation, stated by Isaac Newton, explains why objects in the Universe are attracted to each other. Essentially, the more massive the...

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Explain why solar and lunar eclipses occur periodically?

Explain why solar and lunar eclipses occur periodically?

The Moon orbits around the Earth, and our planet in turn orbits around the Sun. The journey of the Earth around the Sun lasts about...

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Explain why do stars shine at night?

Explain why do stars shine at night?

Stars, like our Sun, are gigantic balls of gas composed mainly of hydrogen. At their core, the pressure and temperature are so enormous that reactions...

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Explain why the Moon appears larger on the horizon?

Explain why the Moon appears larger on the horizon?

The Moon often appears much larger when it touches the horizon than when it is high in the sky. However, its actual size does not...

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Explain why comets have an elliptical trajectory?

Explain why comets have an elliptical trajectory?

Comets resemble sort of dirty snowballs, primarily made of water ice, dust, frozen gases like carbon dioxide and ammonia, as well as small rocky pieces. These icy...

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Explain why do the stars twinkle at night?

Explain why do the stars twinkle at night?

When the light from the stars reaches Earth, it must pass through our atmosphere, made up of several layers of air with varying temperatures and...

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Explain why the sun rises in the east?

Explain why the sun rises in the east?

Our planet rotates around an imaginary axis connecting the two poles, somewhat like a top. This movement, called Earth's rotation, takes about 24 hours to...

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Explain why does the moon not fall onto Earth due to gravity?

Explain why does the moon not fall onto Earth due to gravity?

Earth's gravity acts on the Moon much like an invisible string that keeps an object revolving around itself when you spin it with your arm. This attractive...

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Explain why Galileo was condemned by the Inquisition for his astronomical discoveries?

Explain why Galileo was condemned by the Inquisition for his astronomical discoveries?

At the time of Galileo, the Catholic Church adopted a literal interpretation of certain biblical passages. For it, texts like the one where Joshua stops...

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