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Mrs. Giorgianni/Physical Setting Earth Science
UNIT VI:
ASTRONOMY
Main Concepts/Ideas:
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Our solar system follows the heliocentric model: Everything revolves around the sun.
Earth rotates on its axis at 15o /hour and revolves around the sun in 365 days.
Earth’s 23 ½ o tilt is responsible for changing seasons and length of daylight hours.
The Coriolis Effect and the swing of a Foucault Pendulum are evidence of the Earth’s rotation
The planets orbit the sun in eccentric ellipses, affecting orbital velocity.
Stars are categorized based on temperature, size and luminosity.
Moon phases are the result of the relationship of the Earth and moon as they orbit the sun.
Key Questions:
 What affects shadow length?
 Explain the changing length of the path of the sun between seasons.
 How do you calculate the eccentricity of an ellipse?
 Be able to read and interpret the astronomy charts in the ESRT. (Stars, planets, Electromagnetic Spectrum)
 At what point in Earth’s orbit is its orbital velocity the greatest? The least? Why?
 What is the process that produces stars’ energy?
 How long does it take the moon to cycle through its phases? To revolve around the Earth?
Vocabulary:
Vocab #1 ~ March 10
Altitude
Azimuth
Coriolis Effect
Doppler Effect
Eccentricity
Vocab #2 ~ March 17
Eclipse
Ellipse
Foci (focus)
Foucault Pendulum
Gravitation
Vocab #3 ~ March 24
High/Low Tide
Gas Giant/Jovian Planet
Main Sequence
Moon Phases
Nuclear Fusion
Vocab #4 ~ March 31
Orbital Velocity
Red-Shift
Revolution
Rotation
Terrestrial Planet
Lab Activities:
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Sun’s Path (handout)
Earth-Sun Realtionships/Seasons (handout)
Eccentrictiy of an Ellipse 8-3
Solar System Scale 8-5
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Moon Phases (handout)
Spectral Analysis of Stars 8-7
Classification of Stars 8-8
Homework Assignments:
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Castle Learning Week #27a/Vocab #1, Due March 10
Castle Learning Week #28/Vocab #2, Due March 17
Castle Learning Week #29/Vocab #3, Due March 24
Castle Learning Week #30/Vocab #4, Due March 31
(Continued on back . . .)
Giorgianni ~ Astronomy Unit 2012/13
Quizzes/Unit Test:
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Vocab quiz will be given at the end of the unit, prior to Unit Test
Topic Quizzes may be given after each sub-unit:
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Seasons
Sun’s Path
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Eccentricity/Orbits
Planets
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Moon Phases
Stars
Astronomy Unit Test
o 25 Multiple choice questions – BRING A PENCIL
o 5 Short answer questions
ASTRONOMY REVIEW
Planetary Motion/Sun/Moon/Stars
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The Coriolis Effect and the swing of a Foucault Pendulum are evidence of the Earth’s rotation.
The Earth is closer to the sun in the winter.
Around June 21, the sun’s rays are direct on the Tropic of Cancer, 23 ½ o North and the northern
hemisphere is tilted toward the sun so we are experiencing summer.
Around December 21, the sun’s rays are direct on the Tropic of Capricorn, 23 ½ o South and the
northern hemisphere is tilted away from the sun, so we are experiencing winter.
Around September 21 and March 21 the sun’s rays are direct on the equator and the sun rises exactly
east and sets exactly west. Everywhere on Earth experiences an equinox – 12 hours of daylight and 12
hours of night.
A full moon occurs with the lineup sun – Earth – moon; the same lineup is required for a lunar eclipse.
A new moon occurs with the lineup sun – moon – Earth; the same lineup is required for a solar eclipse.
A full cycle of moon phases takes about a month; therefore there is about a week between each phase:
New – 1st quarter – full – 3rd quarter – full.
The moon waxes from New to full and wanes from full to new.
Very high spring tides occur at New and Full moon, lower neap tides occur at the 1st and 3rd quarter.
In NYS, the sun is almost always in the southern sky; therefore shadows always point north.
For anything about seasons: IT’S ALL IN THE TILT – 23 ½ o
Earth’s eccentricity is very slight, so it is not quite a circle, it’s an oblate sphere or a slightly eccentric
ellipse; BUT . . . A diagram of Earth’s orbit would be drawn as a circle!
Since the Earth is closer to the sun in the winter, it’s orbital velocity is greater at that point.
The outer, gas giant planets have a lower density than the inner, terrestrial planets. [See ESRT]
See the ESRT for all solar system data – periods of rotation/revolution, eccentricity, distance from the
sun, diameter, density, mass, etc.
Red Shift (away) and Blue Shift (toward) are evidence of the Big Bang Theory. Red Shift is proof that
the Universe is expanding; Spectral lines shifted toward the red indicate movement away from an
object.
There is an asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter.
Comets have a highly elliptical orbit. Asteroids and Meteoroids are also out there.
ESRT compares luminosity and temperature of stars – note that the star chart is backwards for temp
[temp increases from right to left]
Stars [including our sun] are powered by nuclear fusion [hydrogen + hydrogen = helium]
We live in one of the spiral arms of the Milky Way galaxy.
The electromagnetic spectrum on page 14 of the ESRT gives you all the info you will need about
wavelengths and frequency. [Wavelength increases from left to right and frequency increases from
right to left – wavelength and frequency have an inverse relationship]
The sun is a Main Sequence star.
The altitude of Polaris is always equal to latitude.
Giorgianni ~ Astronomy Unit 2012/13