Night Sky Watching (Basics). Stars Pivot around a Point.

Slides:



Advertisements
Similar presentations
Constellations By Jaclyn Schmitz.
Advertisements

Motions of the Earth and Sky
7.2 The Constellation Homework: Page 282 # 1,4,6,7.
Apparent/Actual Motions Summary
Chapter 2 The Sky.
A100 Solar System The Sun Today Today’s APOD Monday, Sept. 8
ASTRONOMY CHAPTER 2: THE NIGHT SKY. THE NIGHT SKY IS THE REST OF THE UNIVERSE AS SEEN FROM OUR PLANET. Beyond our atmosphere is empty space. Our planet.
Star Finders: The Big Dipper Science 6 Mrs. DeForge.
Observing the Night Sky
The Night Sky What are constellations? Why do we see some in winter, some in summer and some all year long? Why do they move? How are they useful?
The Night Sky. A constellation is a grouping of stars that has a name and forms a pattern.  The word constellation can also mean the region of the sky.
Source Constellations Source
Motions of the Celestial Sphere. Constellations Sky looks like a dome with the star painted on the inside. 88 constellations such as Ursa Major, Orion,
Constellations. Astronomy The scientific study of the universe beyond the Earth The scientific study of the universe beyond the Earth Tells us about the.
Grab your text book Chapter 1 Astronomy Today 7th Edition
UNIT 4 SPACE EXPLORATION. Chapter 10 – The Universe Text page 350 ASTRONOMY – branch of physics which studies celestial bodies and the universe Any natural.
Orientation of the Night Sky
The Cycles of the Sun Astro Pages18-22 Earth and Space Science.
Constellation Quiz Workshop Learn the data on the Constellation Quiz Data Sheet: - constellation shapes and names - star names and position in constellation.
Discovering The Universe for Yourself
Stars and galaxies. Constellations  Ancient Greeks, Romans and other cultures saw patterns of stars in the sky called constellations  They imagined.
Constellations. What is a constellation? Using stars, it is an imaginary picture in the sky that represents a person, animal, or object.
Constellations.
AST 112 Motion of Objects in the Sky. The Celestial Sphere Imagine you’re where Earth is, but there’s no Earth. What do you see? Keep in mind: – Nearest.
Daytime Observing: Sun, Noon, South. Sun Measurement - 01 We measured at 10:35 am on Aug 27, 2014 Length of the shadow of a meter stick was 1.25m Trigonometry:
Discovering the Universe for Yourself
Alta High Astronomy Intro: Astronomy A stellar course to be in!
Another Complication: Axis Tilt! The Earth’s rotation axis is tilted 23½ degrees with respect to the plane of its orbit around the sun (the ecliptic) It.
Motions of the Earth and Sky I. Outline for Today History: flat vs. spherical earth Map of the sky Constellations Diurnal and Yearly Motion The seasons.
Constellations.
Investigating Astronomy Timothy F. Slater, Roger A. Freeman Chapter 1 Predicting the Motions of the Stars, Sun, and Moon.
Discussion Questions Is the North Star the brightest star in the night sky? Do astronomers regard the familiar patterns of stars in the sky as constellations?
Astronomy 105 ä Student Information Sheet ä Class Syllabus ä Lab Syllabus ä Course Supplies ä Text ä Lab Manual ä Scantron 882-ES ä Flashlight with red.
Constellations pg. 617 # of stars? Patterns Definition of ConstellationUses? How many Constellations?NamesAsterisms.
Mastering Astronomy.
Constellations. I. Constellations A. A constellation is typically thought of as a collection of ____________ named after _______________, ______________.
Please grab your clicker again! Bell Work How does Astrology differ from Astronomy?
Grab your clicker from the back of the room Bell Work Why do astronomers often use AU’s instead of miles.
1 Lines in the Sky In order to use the sky to measure time you need to measure the location of objects in the sky. We will look at two methods of measuring.
Seasonal Motion & Ecliptic. “Motion” Debriefing Stars circle NCP counterclockwise –For circumpolar stars: E  W if above Polaris, but W  E if below Polaris.
CONSTELLATIONS.
Star Pictures in the Sky
Some Basic Facts 12 Constellations of the Zodiac: groups of stars
Unit 1 (Unit 4 in textbook)
Chapter 1 Charting the Heavens: The Foundations of Astronomy.
Survey of the Universe Tom Burbine
The Daily Motion As the Earth rotates, the sky appears to us to rotate in the opposite direction. The sky appears to rotate around the N (or S) celestial.
The sky Our place in space ConstellationsMeasurement Celestial Sphere Polaris and precession $ 200 $ 200$200 $ 200 $ 200 $400 $ 400$400 $ 400$400.
Constellations. Patterns in the Sky Stars which are “close” to each other (in angle) form patterns called constellations. –Not really close together Constellations.
The Sky Constellations In ancient times, constellations only referred to the brightest stars that appeared to form groups.
Observing Basics What is there to see in the night sky?
Constellations come, and climb the heavens, and go, And thou dost see them rise, Star of the Pole! and thou dost see them set, Alone,
Constellations pg. 65. Constellation section of the sky with a recognizable star pattern. 88 listed 48 from Ptolemy.
Unit 1: Space 1. Section 10-1 Notes 2 Celestial Bodies Celestial bodies are natural objects out in space including planets, stars, moons, asteroids and.
ASTRONOMICAL OBSERVATIONS Astronomical Observations.
Observational Astronomy Mapping the Heavens Coordinate Systems We have two different ways to locate objects in the sky: Celestial equatorial system -Right.
The Nighttime Sky. Visible stars on a clear night Unaided human eye – ______ stars At any one time – ______ stars – ___above horizon, ___ below horizon.
The Compass Rose and Azimuth Write the direction and degrees in the boxes provided. 0 (360) E W S 180.
Daytime Observing: Sun, Noon, South. Why are Polaris and the Sun in opposite directions? They are not exactly, because “the north direction” and “the.
The Night Sky.
The Night Sky…last time, The Horizon System
Constellations pg. 71.
Motions in the sky: The celestial sphere
Bell Ringer What does a protostar form from?
The Night Sky What are constellations?
Finding Your Way Around the Night Sky
Viewing the Night Sky.
Notes Observing space.
Night Sky Watching (Basics)
The sky at night.
Presentation transcript:

Night Sky Watching (Basics)

Stars Pivot around a Point

The North Celestial Pole (NCP)  Special spot on the sky that the Earth’s rotation axis points to  Why special? During the night the stars appear to rotate around this spot  Also special (and useful) in other ways …

Watching Stars from the North Pole

Constellations are Big

Big Dipper: Points to Polaris  PRING/URSAS.HTM PRING/URSAS.HTM PRING/URSAS.HTM

Finding Polaris

Lucky Breaks!  The star Polaris is amazing close to NCP (now)  The “pointer stars” in the Big Dipper line up directly with Polaris!!!!  Big Dipper is circumpolar constellation –See it all night and all year  Polaris also called Pole Star, North Star

Big Dipper

Why care about finding Polaris?  The direction of Polaris is due North  The angle between Polaris and the horizon is YOUR LATITUDE  How can I measure angles?

Big Dipper as Star Guide

Constellations

Astronomy Picture of the Day (APOD) l l  Summer Triangle   Winter Hexagon 

Summer Triangle

Winter Hexagon

Constellation Facts  Group of stars all in roughly the same direction from Earth, BUT …. Each has its own different distance from the Earth –Therefore, NOT grouped together is space  From Greek astronomers have inherited the names of the constellations: mythological figures or animals  Different cultures on Earth each have different names for the constellations

Constellation Stars at Different Distances from Earth

Visible Constellations change over a year  May have heard … –“Orion is a winter constellation” –“You can see Cygnus most of the summer”  Above comments arise because you cannot see the Constellations near where the Sun is in the sky –Sun so bright it washes out rest of stars  Since Sun moves along the Ecliptic over a year the constellations “away” from the Sun change over a year.

Constellations on opposite side of Sun (Opposition)

The Zodiac  Band of constellations closest to the Ecliptic (Sun’s yearly path across the sky)  Correspond to Horoscope “Signs” –Astrology used to make predictions (not science!)  Useful for backyard astronomy: Planets and the Moon can always be found in the Zodiac  Width of the Zodiac belt ~ 18°

Mercury Mars Saturn

Naming Stars Brightest star in constellation Taurus Greek name: α Taurus Arabic name: Aldebaran “Al Debarren” “The Follower” (of the Pleiades)

Feedback: Privacy Policy Feedback
Do Not Sell My Personal Information
About project: SlidePlayer Terms of Service

© 2025 SlidePlayer.com. Inc. All rights reserved.