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Name: _______________________________________ Block: ____________ Date: _____________
WS#____
LCPS Core Experience | Space Investigation ONE
Space
Stu de nt No tes
OBJECTIVES
Students will:
 demonstrate the effect of rotation on day and night
 demonstrate the reasons for the seasons
LINK
1. Describe characteristics of your favorite season.
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Background
The Earth moves in two different ways in space. It rotates or spins counterclockwise on its axis, which is
an imaginary line that runs in a straight line from the South Pole through the Earth to the North Pole. The
Earth’s axis is tilted 23.5 and always points towards the North Star, Polaris. It takes the Earth
approximately 24 hours or one day to complete one rotation.
At the same time that it rotates, the Earth also revolves around the Sun in an orbit. The Earth’s orbit is not
exactly circular but is slightly elliptical. It takes the Earth about 365 days or 1 year to complete 1
counterclockwise revolution around the Sun.
The combination of the tilt of the Earth and its revolution around the sun causes the sunlight to hit the Earth
at different angles at various times of the year. When the sunlight is shining directly on a hemisphere, that
hemisphere is experiencing summer. The opposite hemisphere is receiving indirect sunlight and is
experiencing winter.
The summer solstice is the first day of summer. On this day (usually around June 21st in the northern
hemisphere), the sun is farthest north of the equator and the length of time between sunrise and sunset is the
longest of the year. The sun is directly hitting the Tropic of Cancer in the Northern Hemisphere.
The winter solstice is the first day of winter. On this day (usually around December 22nd in Northern
Hemisphere), the sun is farthest south of the equator and the length of time between sunrise and sunset is
the shortest of the year. The sun is directly hitting Tropic of Capricorn in the Southern Hemisphere.
Two times of the year when night and day are about the same length, the sun is directly over the equator.
The spring equinox, known as the vernal equinox, usually occurs around March 20th in the Northern
Hemisphere. The autumn equinox, known as the autumnal equinox, usually occurs around September 22nd
in the Northern Hemisphere.
Space Investigation ONE
LCPS Core Experience | Space Investigation ONE
Polaris
2
EXPERIMENT
Lesson One: Model Night and Day on the Earth
1. Watch the globe as it rotates around its axis. Note where the globe is lit
and where it is dark.
3
SUN
SUN
1
4
2. Question: When it is day in the United States, list three countries experiencing night?
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Lesson Two: Model the Position of the Earth During the Four Seasons
Use webpage: http://astro.unl.edu/naap/motion1/animations/seasons_ecliptic.swf
Table A: Light Intensity Measured at Various Locations
~ Florida
~ South Africa
Position
Observed
Angle of Light
Sunbeam
Spread
(Narrow/
Wide)
Season
Observed
Angle of Light
Sunbeam
Spread
(Narrow/
Wide)
Season
1
2
3
4
2. Question: How did the Angle of Light (AoL) and Sunbeam Spread for Position 1 and the
reading for Position 3 compare? Give data to support your answer.
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3. Question: How did the Angle of Light (AoL) and Sunbeam Spread readings compare for the
two different locations in Position 1? Give data to support your answer.
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4. Question: Which location is receiving direct sunlight at Position 1? At Position 3?
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5. Question: Explain your conclusions of the seasons based on the data. (from ques. #3 & #4)
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Space Investigation ONE
LCPS Core Experience | Space Investigation ONE
6. Label the season and start date on the Seasons Diagram for the Northern Hemisphere.
Seasons Diagram
Polaris
Season ___________________
Start Date ________________
____ Angle of Light (AoL)
____ Angle of Light
Season ___________________
Start Date ________________
____ AoL
Season ___________________
Start Date _________________
Distance from the Sun:
152,097,701 km
____ AoL
Distance from
the Sun:
147,098,074 km
____ AoL
____ AoL
Space Investigation ONE
Season____________________
Start Date _________________
____ AoL
____ AoL
LCPS Core Experience | Space Investigation ONE
LEARNING REVIEW
1. Explain rotation. ____________________________________________________________
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2. Explain revolution.____________________________________________________________
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3. What causes day and night?
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STOP AND DISCUSS
EVALUATION
1. Identify two reasons for the seasons.
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2. Compare the effect of direct or indirect sunlight on the seasons. (in regards to temp.)
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3. Why is it cold in the winter even though we are closer to the Sun in the Northern Hemisphere?
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4.
What season is it now? What season is it in the Southern Hemisphere?
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5. You and your family are going to Bolivia in South America over the winter break. What
kind of clothes will you pack and why?
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Space Investigation ONE