What is in Our Solar System?
What is in Our Solar System?
The solar system contains the Sun and everything held in orbit around it by gravity. The Sun is a star, which is a hot ball of plasma undergoing nuclear fusion in its core. It is our nearest star, which is why it looks so much larger and brighter than any other star.
Step-by-step lessons on OCR GCSE Physics 8.3 Beyond Earth, covering 8.3.1 Red-shift and the expanding universe, 8.3.2 Evidence for the Big Bang model, 8.3.3 Formation of the Sun and stellar equilibrium, 8.3.4 Radiation emitted by hot bodies, 8.3.5 The solar system and satellites, 8.3.6 Gravity and circular orbits, 8.3.7 Orbital radius and orbital speed, 8.3.8 Radiation balance and the temperature of the Earth, and 8.3.9 Seismic waves and exploring hidden structures. Each one builds up to exam-style questions. Paper 2 and Paper 4 include synoptic questions that draw on Topics P1–P4, so revisit earlier topics before final exams rather than treating each paper as self-contained.