Click on the speaker icon to hear the words Mr. Harper’s science mini lesson with audio // Click on the speaker icon to hear the words The Moon

Some planets in our solar system have moons that orbit around them. Mercury and Venus don’t have a moon. Earth has 1 moon. Mars has 2 moons. Jupiter has more than 60. Saturn also has more than 60 moons. Uranus has 27. Neptune has 13. Mars is orbited by 2 moons Jupiter with it’s 4 biggest moons.

Earth has many man-made satellites in orbit around it Earth has many man-made satellites in orbit around it. Some relay TV and telephone signals. Some send pictures of Earth’s weather. //

The science term for a moon is “natural satellite The science term for a moon is “natural satellite.” But most people call them moons so we will too. // //

Earth’s moon is made of the same kinds of materials as Earth Earth’s moon is made of the same kinds of materials as Earth. It is rocky. But the moon has little or no atmosphere or water. There is probably no life there at all. //

Astronauts from Earth first traveled to the moon in 1969 Astronauts from Earth first traveled to the moon in 1969. In all, 12 people have walked on the moon. The last one was in 1972. Earth

Astronauts had to wear pressurized space suits to be able to breathe, because there is no air on the moon. Even with the sun shining, the sky is black because there is no atmosphere.

The moon has much less mass (it’s smaller and weighs less) than Earth The moon has much less mass (it’s smaller and weighs less) than Earth. That makes moon’s gravitational attraction much less than Earth’s. A person on the moon would weigh about 1/6th of their Earth weight.

The moon orbits at about 220,000 miles from Earth The moon orbits at about 220,000 miles from Earth. That’s about 9 times Earth’s circumference. (Circumference is the distance all the way around the Earth’s equator). 25,000 miles circumference

On Earth, we can only see the part of the moon that is illuminated by sunlight. As the moon orbits Earth during a month we see the light change. These different looks are called “phases of the moon.” //

The moon completes a phase cycle every 28 days because that’s how long it take the moon to orbit Earth. //

If you are on the moon, Earth has phases too If you are on the moon, Earth has phases too. These are real photos of Earth taken from the moon.

The periods of the moon’s rotation (spinning on axis), and its orbit and are the same, about 28 days. The rotation is also in the same direction as as its orbit. What this means is that the same side of the moon is always facing Earth. // If you were on the moon you would see Earth turn every 24 hours.

Only astronauts have seen the far side of the moon Only astronauts have seen the far side of the moon. It is often called the “dark side” of the moon but it’s only dark half the time just like any planet or moon. //

Sometimes the moon passes directly between Earth and the sun Sometimes the moon passes directly between Earth and the sun. This makes a shadow on parts of Earth called a solar eclipse. Many people damage their eyes looking directly at the sun during a solar eclipse. Most sunglasses can’t protect you. Earth’s’s shadow Moon’s shadow Partial eclipse Total solar eclipse

A lunar eclipse is when Earth is between the sun and moon A lunar eclipse is when Earth is between the sun and moon. It takes a few hours for the Earth’s shadow to pass over the moon. //

The moon can help us see on a dark night The moon can help us see on a dark night. The moon doesn’t make light, but it reflects the sun’s light. //

Another interesting effect of the moon is the changing tides that happen every day along the coast between land and sea. //

The moon stays in orbit around Earth because of Earth’s gravity The moon stays in orbit around Earth because of Earth’s gravity. But the moon’s gravity pulls on Earth, too. The liquid ocean changes shape and bulges a few feet toward the moon during high tide. // high tide low tide

Moon Moon Solar system Tides Brainpop cartoons To learn more, check out these Brainpop cartoons Moon Tides on brainpop.com Moon Solar system on brainpopjr.com