Subject: Junior Cycle Science

Teacher: Mrs O Sullivan

Week: Lesson 20
Lesson: Earth, Moon and Sun

20.0 Learning Intentions

22
• Understand the relationship between the Earth, Moon and Sun
• Investigate what causes night and day
• Explain how the seasons, lunar phases occur
• How to make a model of the Earth, Sun, Moon system
• Explain eclipses of the Sun and Moon

20.1 Revision Notes

22

20.2 Earth, Moon and Sun

1) The Earth
The Earth is the third planet from the Sun and the only one so far that is inhabited by living things
It is the only world in the solar system with liquid water on the surface
Earth’s atmosphere is 78% nitrogen, 21% oxygen and 1% other ingredients.
Our atmosphere protects us from incoming meteoroids, most of which break up before they strike Earth.

2) The Sun
The Sun is a yellow dwarf star- hot ball of glowing gas.
Its gravity holds the solar system together, keeping everything in orbit.
Electric currents in the Sun generate a magnetic field that is carried out through the solar system by a solar wind.
Without the Suns intense energy there would be no life on Earth
The connection and interactions between the Sun and Earth drive the seasons, ocean currents, weather, climate, radiation
belts and aurorae.

3)The moon
The moon is Earths only natural satellite.
The moons presence helps stabilize our planets wobble, which helps stabilize our climate.
The moon causes tides, creating a rhythm that has guided humans for thousands of years.
The moon is a rocky, solid surface with its surface cratered and pitted from impacts
Apollo astronauts brought back a total of 382kg of lunar rocks that are still being studied today

20.3 Day and Night

• Daytime is when you can see the sun from where you are, and its light and heat can reach you. Nighttime is when
the sun is on the other side of the Earth from you, and its light and heat don’t get to you.

• We get day and night because the Earth spins (or rotates) on an imaginary line called its axis and different parts
of the planet are facing towards the Sun or away from it.

• It takes 24 hours for the world to turn all the way around, and we call this a day. Over a year, the length of the
daytime in the part of the Earth where you live changes. Days are longer in the summer and shorter in the winter.

1
20.4 Seasons

Earth-Sun Relationships

It’s the earth’s relationship to the sun, and the amount of light it receives, that is responsible for the seasons and
biodiversity on Earth.

The amount of sun a region receives depends on the tilt of the earth’s axis and not its distance from the sun.

The northern hemisphere experiences summer during the months of June, July, and August because it is tilted
toward the sun and receives the most direct sunlight.
Inversely, summer for the southern hemisphere takes place during the months of December, January, and
February because that is when it receives the most direct sunlight.

We know that the earth orbits the Sun and that it takes full year to orbit. Earth also rotates but is tilted at a 23.5%
angle.
Earth remains tilted in the same direction all year round as it moves around the Sun.
That means that sunlight shines differently on Earth at different times of the Year.

Link to video explanation https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WgHmqv_-UbQ

20.5 How to Make A Model of The Earth, Sun and Moon

link for instructions: https://www.enchantedlearning.com/crafts/astronomy/sunearthmoon/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tdCvlQ-zUbs- solar and lunar eclipse
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wz01pTvuMa0- phases of the moon

2
3
20.6 Lunar Phases

The Moon's ever-changing shapes are called "lunar phases.“

A lunar phase is simply the shape of the sunlit part of the Moon, as seen from Earth.

The Moon's shape changes for the following reasons:

• The Moon orbits Earth.

• Both Earth and the Moon orbit the Sun.
• The Moon's orbit is the same length as the time it spins on its axis (about 28 Earth days), which means
that we see the same part of the lunar surface all month.
• The Sun illuminates both Earth and the Moon.

New Moon: During New Moon, the side of the Moon facing us is not illuminated by the Sun. At this time, the
Moon is not up at night, but it is up during the day. We just can't see it. Solar eclipses can occur during the New
Moon, depending on how the Sun, Earth, and Moon line up in their orbits.

Waxing Crescent: As the Moon waxes (grows) into its crescent phase, it begins to show up low in the sky right
after sunset. The side facing the sunset direction will be lit up.

First Quarter: Seven days after New Moon, the Moon is in first quarter. Only half of it is visible for the first half
of the evening, and then it sets.

4
Waxing Gibbous: After First Quarter, the Moon appears to grow into a gibbous shape. Most of it is visible, except for
a dark sliver that shrinks over the next seven nights. Look for the Moon at this time during the afternoon, too.

Full Moon: During the Full Moon, the Sun lights up the entire surface of the Moon that faces Earth. This is the
brightest phase of the Moon

Waning Gibbous: After the glorious appearance of Full Moon, the lunar shape starts to wane, meaning it gets smaller.
It's visible later at night and into the early morning, and we see a steadily shrinking shape of the lunar surface that's
being lit up. During this phase, look for the Moon during the day—it should be in the sky in the morning.

Last Quarter: At Last Quarter, we see exactly half the sunlit surface of the Moon. It can be seen in the early morning
and daytime sky.

Waning Crescent: The last phase of the Moon before returning to New Moon is called Waning Crescent, and it is
exactly what it says: a steadily-shrinking crescent phase. We can see only a small sliver from Earth. That brings us
back to New Moon to start the new cycle.

20.7 Lunar and Solar Eclipse

Lunar eclipses occur when Earth's shadow blocks the sun's light, which otherwise reflects off the moon.
A lunar eclipse can occur only at full moon. A total lunar eclipse can happen only when the sun, Earth and moon are
perfectly lined up — anything less than perfection creates a partial lunar eclipse or no eclipse at all.

Solar Eclipse- An eclipse of the Sun happens when the New Moon moves between the Sun and Earth, blocking out the Sun's rays
and casting a shadow on parts of Earth.
Solar eclipses are only visible from within the area on Earth where the Moon's shadow falls, and the closer you are to the centre of
the shadow's path, the bigger the eclipse looks.
For a solar eclipse to take place, the Sun, the Moon, and Earth must be aligned in a perfect or near perfect straight line. This
happens around New Moon every lunar month.

5
20.8 Tides

High tides and low tides are caused mainly by the moon but also the sun. The Moon's gravitational pull generates
something called the tidal force. The tidal force causes Earth—and its water—to bulge out on the side closest to the Moon
and the side farthest from the Moon. These bulges of water are high tides.

As the Earth rotates, your region of Earth passes through both of these bulges each day. When you're in one of the bulges,
you experience a high tide. When you're not in one of the bulges, you experience a low tide. This cycle of two high tides
and two low tides occurs most days on most of the coastlines of the world.

20.9 Homework Task

1) Explain (using your model) how night and day happens.

2) Explain the phases of the moon using an illustration.
3) Illustrate using a diagram the difference between a Lunar and Solar eclipse

6
 20.10 Homework Correction

1) Research information about the planets of our solar system. – the NASA and the European Space Agency websites are a
great place to start.- Information gathered and written into notes copy. Remember to check validity of source of information
and keep reference list

2) Explain the difference between asteroids and comets.

The main difference between asteroids and comets is their composition. Asteroids are made up of metals and rocky material
and comets are made up of ice dust and rocky material.

3) Outline the main events of the Big Bang.

The Big Bang

10-43 seconds
The universe begins with a cataclysm that generates space and time, as well as all the matter and energy the universe will
ever hold. For an incomprehensibly small fraction of a second, the universe is an infinitely dense, hot fireball. The
prevailing theory describes a peculiar form of energy that can suddenly push out the fabric of space. A process called
"Inflation" causes an expansion of space filled with this energy. The inflationary period is stopped only when this energy is
transformed into matter and energy as we know it.

The Universe Takes Shape

10-6 seconds
After inflation, one millionth of a second after the Big Bang, the universe continues to expand but not nearly so quickly. As
it expands, it becomes less dense and cools. The most basic forces in nature become distinct: first gravity, then the strong
force, which holds nuclei of atoms together, followed by the weak and electromagnetic forces. By the first second, the
universe is made up of fundamental particles and energy: quarks, electrons, photons, neutrinos and less familiar types.
These particles smash together to form protons and neutrons.

Formation of Basic Elements

3 seconds
Protons and neutrons come together to form the nuclei of simple elements: hydrogen, helium and lithium. It will take
another 300,000 years for electrons to be captured into orbits around these nuclei to form stable atoms.

The Radiation Era

10,000 years
The first major era in the history of the universe is one in which most of the energy is in the form of radiation -- different
wavelengths of light, X rays, radio waves and ultraviolet rays. This energy is the remnant of the primordial fireball, and as
the universe expands, the waves of radiation are stretched and diluted until today, they make up the faint glow of
microwaves which bathe the entire universe.

Beginning the Era of Matter Domination

300,000 years
At this moment, the energy in matter and the energy in radiation are equal. But as the relentless expansion continues, the
waves of light are stretched to lower and lower energy, while the matter travels onward largely unaffected. At about this
time, neutral atoms are formed as electrons link up with hydrogen and helium nuclei. The microwave background radiation
hails from this moment, and thus gives us a direct picture of how matter was distributed at this early time.

7
8
9
10
11