Make sure you watch for the skies this week specifically on Monday, February 27! The Moon is at its phase of Apogee. Apogee is when the moon is at its farthest point from the Earth during its orbit, which is when it is at 251,570 miles (404,862) away. Because the orbit around earth is not circular the Apogee always changes by 13 percent.
One fact that i found very interesting is that the moons maximum distance from the Earth will occur on February 3, 215 which will be 252, 724 miles ( 406, 720 ) from the earth. Now that's a long distance. What amazed me the most is that people are able to give a exact date and the distance!
"Have you ever noticed that when you write on a black sheet of paper with a black marker you so not see the marker?" -(Copy right of Sofia Infante.)
Well the phases of the moon are exhibiting the same thing.
Alex and I were making observation with a flashlight as the sun, a small ball as the moon and a different ball 4 times bigger than the small ball as earth. What alex and i made sure that we did, is the we mark where we are on earth. From our testing i observed that when the moon is aligned with the sun and the earth (the moon in between the sun and earth) you cannot see the moon or you can only see a very little bit ,a crescent because the sun is shining on the front face of the moon that isn't facing the earth, only the side that is black is facing earth but its a black moon in a black solar system. Black on black in unseen! But when the earth is in-between the earth and the moon you can see the moon because the sun is shining on the part of the moon facing you. A white chalk on a black piece of paper is seen!!
These are some of the pictures that we took of our testings:
As you can see the sun is shining on the face the moon that is not facing you, only the dark side is facing you.
But here the sun is shiny on the earth and the moon the bright side of the moon is facing you giving you a full moon.
Analyze and conclude: Question Review p.29 chapter 1
Book: Astronomy
Prentice Hall Science Explorer
In our model, a flashlight represents the sun, a mini ball represents the moon and a larger ball represents the earth.
When the sun was facing the flashlight and the moon was behind the earth i could see the moon.
4. After each turn you see 1/2 of the moon more or less. It always increases then decreases, from this drawing. But if you include the wanning and waxing gibbous and the wanning and waxing crescents the moon increases or decreases by 1/4. 5. Since the moon rotates with one side/ 1/2 of the moon always facing the sun, its just the way the moon rotates.The darkness of the moon is not caused by an eclipse.
6. This model did help me understand the phases of the moon but not in every way that it should have. I did have to research a bit after i made the diagram because some parts just didn't make sense. The advantages of having a model is that you have a visual but the disadvantage is that there are no word to explain it. I think model are a good thing to use but for me they aren't help full if they aren't backed up with words.
Hypothesis: I think it effect the way the sun hits earth, I believe that it prevents the earth being hit with sun filling half of the earth
During this whole lab I had made 3 tests withe the earth and the flashlight as my sun. I used grid squares as on test, I tested shadows and i tested how the earths tilt on its axis makes a difference to earths seasons.
When we were testing the suns rays on the earth using the flashlight and the grid squares i cam to a few observations:
In summer the grid squares are keeping their square shape on the equator, there for the equator never has winters because most of the suns heat is directed to the equator
In summer the grid squares were in rectangular shape because they were spread out in the north pole that’s why the north pole has approximately 4 hours of night while the south pole is all dark and receives almost no sun light
In winter the grid squares were in rectangular shape because they were spread out in the south pole that’s why the south pole has approximately 4 hours of night while the south pole is all dark and receives almost no sun light
From these few observations i was able to analyze that in:
Summer = north pole more light
= They don’t receive equal amount of light because the earth is on a tilt
·Winter= south pole more light
(This is the anylaztion made from the observations while using the Grid Squares)
When I stuck the tooth pick into the sttrafoam earth and i shine the flashlight on it:
I was able to see a shadow from the tooth picks show on the earth
· In summer our shadows are larger because there is more direct light on the object
WOn the other hand during winter the shadows of objects are smaller because there is less direct on the object
For example, this picture is taken during summer in the Sahara desert: See how the camels shadows are extremely large. This is because there is so much direct light on them from the sun. The more direct light the larger the shadow
· One thing that i found very interesting about earths tilt is
If the earth was not on a tilt we would only have dry season and wet seasons. This is becasue if it didnt have its tilt there would be 12 hours of hot suns rays pointing at the earth except for the poles, (the equator is the place where the suns rays would be hitting the most) therefore giving us only dry and wet seasons, acknowledging that the tilt of earths axis is the main reason for our seasons.
Answer 7 questions chapter 1 p J 15 in th ebook of astronomy, prentice hall science explorer
1: When the northern hemisphere is facing the sun it is summer in the northern hemisphere but when it is facing away from the sun it is winter.
2. In summer the grid squares are keeping their square shape on the equator, there for the equator never has winters because most of the suns heat is directed to the equator. Also in summer the grid squares were in rectangular shape because they were spread out in the north pole that’s why the north pole has approximately 4 hours of night while the south pole is all dark and receives almost no sun light.
3. From what i noticed the more square shaped the square/ rectangle was the more bright it looked. So i can tell that the more rectangular shaped the rectangle was the less heat/light it received from the sun.
4. The equator is always the warmest because it receives the most direct sunlight, and this is because since the earth is on a tilt and the sun shows straight at the middle of the earth which just happens to be the equator. The poles are the places that receive the least sun light, during summer the sun is shining a very little bit on the north pole and and not at all on the south pole and the exact opposite during winter.
5. In summer our shadows are larger because there is more direct light on the object
WOn the other hand during winter the shadows of objects are smaller because there is less direct on the object.
6 6. If the suns rays are straight/ directly pointing at the grid then there is more heat, which is obviously stating that there is more light. But if the suns rays are at an angle the heat.light is not direct it is more spread out because it has to cover more space which means that there is less heat/light.
7. All of my observations:
·In summer our shadows are larger because there is more direct light on the object
·In summer the grid squares are keeping their square shape on the equator, there for the equator never has winters because most of the suns heat is directed to the equator
·In summer the grid squares were in rectangular shape because they were spread out in the north pole that’s why the north pole has approximately 4 hours of night while the south pole is all dark and receives almost no sun light
·Summer = north pole more light
= They don’t receive equal amount of light because the earth is on a tilt
·Winter= south pole more light
·If the earth was not on a tilt we would only have dry season and wet seasons
I From my observations i am not able to know why seasons happen. But from my internet research and reading chapters in my book i know that seasons are caused by earths axis's tilt. The tilt is what points a hemisphere away from the sun allowing the other hemisphere to have summer.
This movie helped me understand the concept much better
Have any of you been looking out you room window thinking "wow thats an oddly bright star right there"!
Well ladies and guys that is no star, actually its Venus! Last weeks january 27th all the way through the 4th of february venus will be shining at a -4.1 magnitude, which means it is the brightest light in the night sky, even brighter than the moon! The moon of course seems brighter but that is simply because it is larger and much closer than Venus, in fact its 100 times closer than Venus. You will be able to see it some night susually all night and sometimes very early in the morning.
Photo by David Reese
Some of my peers have been saying it jupiter, they may be wrong or just talking about a planet becasue the article that i read does say south west in probably in the U.S.
Article summary off http://www.astronomy.com/en/News-Observing/Sky%20this%20Week/2012/01/STW%20JAN27-FEB05.aspx
