Lesson 4 – Phases of the Moon 1 moon unit Lesson 4 – Phases of the Moon 1
Standard: Earth and Space Science. Students will gain an understanding of Earth and Space Science through the study of earth materials, celestial movement, and weather. Objective Observe, describe, and record patterns in the appearance and apparent motion of the moon in the night sky. Observe and describe the number, arrangement and color/brightness of stars in the night sky.
Vocabulary moon: the large round object that circles the Earth and that shines at night by reflecting light from the sun phase: the shape of the Moon we see reflect: to bounce off of Sun: the star that gives us light and heat
Why does the moon change its shape? The revolution of the Moon around the Earth causes the Moon to appear to have phases. The moon doesn’t change it’s shape, it is always a sphere shape.
Moon Phases Half of the Moon is always lit up by the sun. As the Moon orbits the Earth, we see different parts of the lighted area http://www.nasm.si.edu/apollo30th/moontheater/phasepage2.html
Moon Phases The revolution of the Moon around the Earth makes the Moon look as if it is changing shape in the sky. http://btc.montana.edu/ceres/html/birthdayphases.htm
Moon Phases This is caused by the different angles from which we see the lighted part of the Moon's surface. These are called "phases" of the Moon. http://btc.montana.edu/ceres/html/birthdayphases.htm
Moon Phases The Moon passes through four major shapes during a cycle that repeats itself every 29.5 days. The phases of the moon work in a cycle starting with the new moon. The phases always follow one another in the same order: New moon First quarter Last quarter or Third quarter Full moon
Moon Phases As the moon makes its monthly journey around the earth, the side of the moon reflecting the sunlight is viewed from different angles.
NSF North Mississippi GK-8 8 Phases of the Moon There are 8 basic phases of the moon. They are: New Moon Waxing Crescent First Quarter or Half Moon Waxing Gibbous Full Moon Waning Gibbous Last Quarter or Half Moon (third quarter) Waning Crescent NSF North Mississippi GK-8
Moon Phases Wheel Use the moon phases wheel as we learn about each phase. Color each phase as you learn about it. Don’t skip ahead. Materials: colored pencils/crayons glue scissors
Moon Phase Wheel DIRECTIONS
NSF North Mississippi GK-8 New Moon The moon is not visible from Earth. The moon is between the Sun and the Earth. The illuminated side of the Moon faces away from the Earth. This means that the Sun, Earth, and Moon are almost in a straight line, with the Moon in between the Sun and the Earth. The Moon that we see looks very dark The dark side is facing us. This phase lasts one night. NSF North Mississippi GK-8
Which phase will be next? First Quarter Waxing Gibbous Waxing Crescent Full Moon New Moon Waning Gibbous Waning Crescent Last Quarter
Waxing Crescent This Moon can be seen after the New Moon. The crescent will grow larger and larger every day, until the Moon looks like the First Quarter Moon. Waxing means that the bright side is increasing. The right side is the bright side. Less than one half of the moon is illuminated. This phase includes any visible moon from a small sliver to almost half. ("Waxing" means increasing, or growing larger.) NSF North Mississippi GK-8
Which phase will be next? First Quarter Waxing Gibbous Waxing Crescent Full Moon New Moon Waning Gibbous Waning Crescent Last Quarter
First Quarter or Half Moon The right half of the Moon appears illuminated and the left side of the Moon appears dark. During the time between the New Moon and the First Quarter Moon, the part of the Moon that appears illuminated gets larger and larger every day, and will continue to grow until the Full Moon. The moon looks like a half circle. The illuminated side is increasing. This phase only lasts one night. NSF North Mississippi GK-8
Which phase will be next? First Quarter Waxing Gibbous Waxing Crescent Full Moon New Moon Waning Gibbous Waning Crescent Last Quarter
Waxing Gibbous This Moon can be seen after the First Quarter Moon, but before the Full Moon. The amount of the Moon that we can see will grow larger and larger every day. Gibbous means that more than one half is visible, but it is not quite full. This phase includes the night after the first quarter to the night before the full moon. ("Waxing" means increasing, or growing larger.) NSF North Mississippi GK-8
Notice the Moon’s illumination increasing on the right side and decreasing on the left side. After the full moon you will see a different pattern. New Moon Waning Crescent Last Quarter First Quarter Waning Gibbous Waxing Gibbous Waxing Crescent Full Moon
Moon Phases Keep your moon phase wheel in a safe place. We will be using them for the next lesson.
Moon Phase Moon Phase animation http://www.pbslearningmedia.org/resource/ess05. sci.ess.eiu.mphase/phases-of-the-moon/
Sources Power point adapted from NSF North Mississippi GK-8 Power point adapted from Moon Phases Col, Jeananda. Enchanted Learning. Zoom Moon. Accessed 2005 July 27. <http://www.enchantedlearning.com/subjects/astronomy/moo n /Phases.shtml>. Cooley, Keith. 2001. Moon Phases. Accessed 2005 July 27. <http://home.hiwaay.net/~krcool/Astro/moon/moonphase/>. U.S. Naval Observatory. 2003 September. Astronomical Applications Accessed 2005 July 27. <http://aa.usno.navy.mil/faq/docs/moon_phases.html>.