1. Earth in Space

2. But first…Vocabulary!
Axis- the imaginary line that passes through Earth’s center and the North and South poles
Rotation- the spinning of Earth on it’s axis
Revolution- the movement of one object around another
Orbit- Earth’s path
Calendar- system of organizing time
Solstice- When the sun appears farthest north and farthest south of the equator
Equinox- when neither hemisphere is tilted toward the sun and the noon sun is directly over the equator
*How is this definition different from what ‘revolution’ might mean in History?*

3. How does Earth move? Earth moves in space in Rotation and Revolution
Earth simultaneously rotates on its axis while completing a revolution around the sun
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Rotation…
Causes day and night
One rotation takes about 24 hours
Rotates to the East
Revolution…
Earth orbits around the sun in a slightly elongated circle
One orbit around the sun is one year
Earth orbit the sun counter-clockwise

4. What causes seasons?
Earth has seasons because its axis is tilted as it revolves around the sun
It is always tilted at an angle of 23.5˚

5. Solstices and Equinoxes
When the Earth appears farthest north and farthest south of the equator
When the sun appears farthest north it is the Summer Solstice in the northern hemisphere and farthest south it is the winter solstice in the southern hemisphere
Longest day of the year (June 21st)
Opposite happens around December 21st
Equinox
Neither hemisphere is tilted toward the sun
Noon sun is directly overhead at the equator
Means “equal night” (day and night are each about 12 hours)
March 21st and September 22nd

6. Now, use the word bank at the bottom of the paper to fill in the blanks of the worksheet shown below: