Notes for Earth and Space


Indicator: Describe how night and day are caused by Earth's rotation.

Day (light) and night (dark) are caused by Earth's spin on its axis. Earth turns or rotates one time every 24 hours. The part of Earth that is facing the Sun experiences day, and the part facing away from the Sun experiences night. Earth spins counterclockwise, so daylight moves across the globe from east to west.

Indicator: Explain that Earth is one of several planets to orbit the sun, and that the moon orbits Earth.

What is our Solar System?





The mass of the sun is so great that its gravity is able to hold the planets in an orbit around it.

·         The planets orbit the sun.

·         The Earth is the 3rd planet from the sun.

·         The Earth takes 365 days (1 year) to orbit the sun.

·         The Earth rotates (spins) on its axis one time every 24 hours as it goes around the sun.

 The mass of the Earth is so great that its gravity is able to hold the moon in an orbit around it! It takes about 28 days for the moon to orbit the Earth.


Graphic

 

therefore...

The moon orbits the Earth as the Earth orbits the Sun.



Indicator: Describe the characteristics of Earth and its orbit about the sun (e.g., three-fourths of Earth's surface is covered by a layer of water [some of it frozen], the entire planet surrounded by a thin blanket of air, elliptical orbit, tilted axis and spherical planet.

What are the characteristics of Earth?

Earth: It's JUST RIGHT for living things!

·         75% of Earth's surface is covered with water

·         Earth has a blanket of breathable air

NASA - "As seen from space, one of the most unique features of our home planet is the water, in both liquid and frozen forms, that covers approximately 75% of the Earth's surface. Believed to have initially arrived on the surface through the emissions of ancient volcanoes, geologic evidence suggests that large amounts of water have likely flowed on Earth for the past 3.8 billion years, most of its existence. As a vital substance that sets the Earth apart from the rest of the planets in our solar system, water is a necessary ingredient for the development and nourishment of life."

 Other characteristics:

·         Earth is spherical

·         Earth is tilted on its axis by 23.5 degrees

Earth has a tilted axis. Because of this tilt, the different hemispheres sometimes get direct rays (more energy: summer) and sometimes get indirect rays (less energy: winter). Close to the equator, the Earth gets direct rays year-round. The tilt causing the direct/indirect rays is the reason for the seasons!

 

Indicator: Explain that stars are like the sun, some being smaller and some larger, but so far away that they look like points of light.

The pinpoints of light that we see in the night sky are stars. Stars are giant balls of gas in space that shine through the darkness. Our ability to see the stars depends on how bright they are, their size, and also how far away they are from our solar system. We can only see the stars at night because our own star, the sun, is so bright during the day when our half of the Earth is facing it.

The Sun is the only star in our solar system. It is an average star. Earth and all the planets in our solar system orbit it.

Our star, the sun ("Sol"), shines brightly as the only star in our solar system, preventing us from seeing other stars during the day. It is relatively close to Earth compared to the other stars of the universe.

Most of the universe is empty space: SPACE! To get a look at the vast distance of space see the video above.

Indicator: Explain how the supply of many non-renewable resources is limited and can be extended through reducing, reusing and recycling but cannot be extended indefinitely

Non-renewable resources (for example fossil fuels and minerals) are formed over millions of years! We need to protect these resources by reducing what we use (use only what we need), and reuse the things we can, and recycle what we don’t need anymore.

 Reduce, Reuse, Recycle!

Indicator: Investigate ways Earth's renewable resources (e.g., fresh water, air, wildlife and trees) can be maintained.

Some resources like fresh water, air, wildlife, and trees rely upon us to use them wisely. If we do, they will be available for our use. If we don’t use them wisely, we are in danger of limiting their supply.

• The amount of water on Earth never changes, but we might change the amount that we can use in a certain area. We might pollute it to the point that we can’t use it, or pump too much out of a large underground reservoir that took thousands of years to build up that supply.
• The air in our atmosphere must be protected from pollution that harms living things.
• Wildlife can be impacted by our choices. If an animal species is over-hunted or if its habitat is destroyed, its population may decline or it may become extinct. It is our responsibility to make wise decisions on how to protect animals and their habitats.

• Thermal Energy Test
  
  There will be a thermal energy test on November 16th.  Students need to study the information below.
  Define temperature as the measure of thermal energy and describe the way it is measured
  
   
  
  Thermal energy, or heat, is the energy of moving particles in an object.
  
  Temperature is the measure of thermal energy. It measures how fast particles are moving in matter.
  
  Know the difference:
  - heat is energy
  - temperature is a measure of thermal energy
  
  The more heat, the faster the particles move. Cold things have slow-moving molecules, while hot things have fast-moving molecules.
  
  The most common tool for measuring thermal energy (heat) is a thermometer.
  
  
• When the colored liquid inside the thermometer heats up, the particles of the liquid move faster and move farther apart. That causes the liquid to take up more space. The colored liquid rises in the tube, and thermometer shows a higher temperature.
• When the air is cooler than the liquid in the thermometer, the particles of the liquid move more slowly and get closer together causing the liquid to take up less space. The colored liquid moves down the tube and shows a lower temperature.

 Trace how thermal energy can transfer from one object to another by conduction

 

Heat always flows from a warmer object to a cooler one.  When things that are at different temperatures touch each other, heat energy moves from the hotter thing to the colder thing.

Conduction is when thermal energy is transferred from one solid object to another solid object through direct touching. An example is the heat in a cookie sheet moving up through the pan into the cookies.

Be able to provide examples of insulators and conductors.

There will be a thermal energy test on November 16th. Students need to study the information below.