Phases of the Moon

Patterns in Nature Science began when people noticed patterns in nature. They wanted to explain those patterns. For example, each morning the sun rises. Every evening, the sun sets and day turns into night. The next morning, the rises again and a new day begins. Long ago people tried to explain this pattern. Latter scientists discovered that day and night are caused by Earth’s rotation. Our planet rotates, or spins, around its axis. This axis is an imaginary line running through the center of the Earth from the North Pole to the South Pole. The Earth makes a complete turn or rotation every 24 hours. The side of the Earth facing the sun has day. The side of Earth facing away from the sun had night. 1 rotation = 24 hours or 1 day http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W47Wa7onrIQ&feature=related

THE APPEARANCE OF THE MOON A sequence is a pattern of events that always occurs in the same order. As you know, night always follows day. Then day follows night. This is an example of a sequence that occurs in nature. Can you think of another sequence in nature? THE MOON! If I was to track the moon every third night and draw the shape I see in the sky. My pictures would look similar to this: The different shapes are called phases of the moon. Because these changes always follow the same sequence, you can predict what will come next. Question: If waning crescent is that last event in the pattern, what phase will occur next?

WHY DOES THE MOON APPEAR TO CHANGE? Earth The moon itself does not change, only its appearance changes. Why, then, does it appear to us to change? The phases of the moon are caused by two facts: 1)The moon reflects sunlight 2)The moon orbits the Earth. The moon itself does not produce its own light. It seems bright because it reflects light from the sun. You can think of the sun as a light bulb. The moon acts as a mirror that reflects light from this light bulb. The moon orbits, or circles, the Earth every 29 ½ days. The bright portion of the moon that we see each night changes as the moon continues to orbit the Earth. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y3Y7CXjnSvQ&feature=player_embedded http://www.brainpop.com/science/space/moonphases/

New Moon During a “new moon”, the moon is between Earth and the sun. We see no portion of the moon’s lit surface. We can only see the dark side of the moon, so the moon is absent from the night sky or a dark circle.

Waxing Crescent The waxing crescent comes after the New Moon and before the First Quarter. In this phase the moon continues to grow. Starting on the right we see light! “Waxing” Imagine the Moon being a candlestick. Every time you dip a candle in the wax, it adds a layer and gets thicker.

First Quarter As the moon continues to orbit around the Earth, we begin to see a small sliver of the moon. The sliver grows each night to a crescent. Eventually, half the moon becomes lit up when the moon reaches the “first quarter”, about a week after the new moon.

Waxing Gibbous Waxing Gibbous…

This bright circle is called the Full Moon It takes about another week to become a full moon. At a full moon, the earth, moon, and sun are in line. Since the moon is on the side of the Earth opposite from the sun, the entire sunlit part of the moon is facing us. The dark side of the moon is entirely hidden from view. This bright circle is called the “full moon”.

Waning Gibbous Waning Gibbous…

Third Quarter Now the appearance of the moon starts shrinking again as it continues on its orbit. Only half the moon seems lit up in the “third quarter.” Finally, the moon becomes completely dark again as a “new moon.” Then the sequences begins all over again. Question: The sequence is starting over again, what phase will the moon be in after the New Moon?

Waning Crescent Waning Cresent

Then the Cycle starts over!!! Just like the days of the week and the Water Cycle!

Phases of the Moon Notes… The moon orbits the Earth every 29 ½ days. The moon appears to change its shape because the moon reflects sunlight The moon revolves around the Earth. Phases of the Moon. As it orbits, we see different portions of the moon reflecting the sun’s light. Common phases of the moon include: New Moon Full Moon Third Quarter First Quarter

(calendar) Go to http://www.farmersalmanac.com/calendar/moon-phases/2011/12/ Ask the kids to interpret the information. (White board or input into e-instruction) On the Dec. 19 what phase was the moon in? During the month of December how many days was the moon in its ____ phase (discuss with a partner) Did the sequence ever start over in the month of December? If the moon is in the New moon phase, where is the moon positioned? For the moon to complete its sequences, how many days will it take? How many phases does the moon have? What does the moon rotate around?

Additional Websites http://starchild.gsfc.nasa.gov/docs/StarChild/solar_system_level2/moonlight.html http://www.lpi.usra.edu/education/skytellers/moon_phases/index.shtml