The Sun-Earth-Moon System Sunny Hills High School Earth Science

Discovery Lab Choose a Partner Read the Discovery Lab on pg. 747 « Make a Scale Model » Collect Materials: Compass Meterstick 2 Pair of Scissors Present Your Scale Model

Tools of Astronomy Sunny Hills High School Earth Science

Radiation Objects in space emit radiation in all portions of the electromagnetic spectrum.

Tools of Astronomy Astronomers gain most of their data from observations Many of the interesting objects in the universe require tools for humans to be able to observe them…Telescopes

Advantages of Telescopes 1. Telescope brings much more light to a focus than the human eye can. 2. They allow astronomers to use specialized equipment. 3. Telescopes can be used to make time exposures with the aid of cameras or other imaging devices. The ability to attach different detectors to telescopes to observe all wavelengths, especially those the human eye cannot see.

Telescopes Astronomers are able to see distant objects by using a telescope 2 Types of Telescopes: Refracting - Focus light using lenses (1600) Reflecting – Focus light using mirrors (1668)

Telescopes

Radio Telescopes Radio telescopes collect radio waves instead of light rays. Reflects radio waves to a focus above the dish There, a receiver converts the radio waves into electrical signals that can be stored in a computer for analysis.

Space Telescopes Some telescopes are located in orbit around Earth for observing very distant objects. Hubble space telescope (below) has taken the photographs of the most distant objects.

Summary How would humans’ lives and our perceptions of the universe be different without space- based technology and exploration?

The Moon Sunny Hills High School Earth Science

Agenda Properties of the Moon Lunar Surface Composition (What it’s made of) Lunar History

Warm-Up What Do You Know About The Moon? – Write A Paragraph (At Least 3 Sentences) Detailing What You Know About The Moon – Rely On Prior Knowledge & Video

Lunar Properties Earth’s moon is unique … – It is the largest moon in relation to the size of the planet it orbits. – The orbit of the moon is relatively farther from earth than most moons are from the planets they orbit. (~250,000 miles away)

Surface of the Moon Features of the moon: 1.Highlands – light in color, mountainous, & heavily covered in craters. 2.Maria (singular: mare) – dark, smooth plains (~3km lower in elevation than the highlands) 3.Impact Craters – formed when objects from space crashed into the lunar surface. 4.Ejecta – material that falls back to the lunar surface after being blasted out from an impact. 5.Rays – light colored streaks, long trail of ejecta that radiates outward from a Moon crater. 6.Rilles – meandering, valley-like structures, across some regions of the Moon’s maria.

Critical Thinking Why does the Moon have many craters, while Earth has few? *hint: what does Earth have that the moon does not?

Critical Thinking Answer: Early in the formation of the Solar System, Earth was bombarded just as heavily as the moon, but erosion on Earth has eliminated all traces of all but the youngest craters. On the moon, craters are preserved until one impact covers another.

Surface Of The Moon Moon’s Gravitational Pull Is Only 1/6 th That Of Earth’s! - Therefore, It Is Not Sufficient To Hold In Gases & Maintain An Atmosphere Moon Is Riddled With Craters From Cosmic Debris (Meteors) Some Meteors Were So Large, They Caused Cracks In The Moon’s Crust Allowing Magma To Seep Through Creating Maria – over time, the magma cooled and solidified, thus ending volcanism on the moon.

Surface Of The Moon Right: Maria (Dark Spaces) Below: Close-Up View Of The Moon’s Surface (Cratering)

Surface Of The Moon p8wY&edufilter=CPhKmRWIMeFn2PCPAsDuN g p8wY&edufilter=CPhKmRWIMeFn2PCPAsDuN g The moon's surface is covered with dead volcanoes, impact craters, and lava flows, some visible to the unaided stargazer.

Interior of the Moon Seismometer data infers that the moon, like Earth, has a layered structure. – Crust, upper mantle, lower mantle, and core Crust is thickest on the “far side” of the moon Scientists theorize the moon is NOT tectonically active – No active volcanoes – No significant magnetic field

Interior Of The Moon

Lunar Origins Moon Is Believed To Have Occurred 4.5 Billion Yrs Ago Several Mechanisms Have Been Suggested For The Moon’s Formation – Fission Hypothesis – Capture Hypothesis – Co-Formation Hypothesis – Giant Impact Hypothesis

Lunar Origins 1. Fission Hypothesis – Earliest Theory Proposed That The Moon Broke Off From The Earth Due To Centrifugal Forces – A Basin Was Left (Pacific Ocean) As A Scar – Moon’s Orbit, However, Doesn’t Follow The Equatorial Plane Of Earth 2. Capture Hypothesis – Moon Was Formed Elsewhere & Was Captured By Earth’s Gravitational Pull – Earth’s Atmosphere, However, Would Have Been Larger To Slow The Passing Moon For Capture

Lunar Origins 3. Co-Formation Hypothesis – Earth & Moon Were Formed At The Same Time From The Same Material – Moon Would Have Formed From Material Surrounding The Proto-Earth – Fails To Account For The Depletion Of Iron In The Moon’s Core

Lunar Origins 4. Giant Impact Hypothesis – Mars-Sized Object Named “Theia” Impacted The Earth, Blasting Off Sufficient Material to Form A Moon

Formation Of The Moon Giant Impact Hypothesis – Mars-Sized Object Collides With The Earth – Debris Begins To Revolve Around Earth – Material Joins To Form The Moon