The Sun, Earth, and Moon
Measuring Temperatures
By Audrey Ammon
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Earth is the third planet from the sun.
Earth is often called the "Water Planet"
because it is the only planet in our
solar system which has liquid water on
its surface. About 70% of the surface of
Earth is covered by water! The other
part of Earth is made up of continents
and islands which we live on. Because
Earth has so much water, plants and
animals can live on Earth.
Earth is the only planet in our solar
system which has all the conditions
that are needed for us to live on it.
There is plenty of water, air, and land.
Different parts of Earth have different
temperatures, but plants, animals, and
humans can live in almost all areas of
Earth.
Earth spins very quickly compared to other planets.
It only takes Earth 24 hours to spin around its axis
one time. One Earth day is 24 hours long! Earth
orbits the sun in 365 days! This makes one Earth
year 365 days long!
Words
You
• Axis- the center around which something rotates
Should
• Orbit- the (usually elliptical) path described by one celestial body in its
Recognize
revolution about another
• Celestial- of or relating to the sky
Data Collected on Earth from NASA
Scientists
Earth Data
Earth Data
Mean distance from Sun:
1.000 AU = 1.496x108 km
Maximum distance from Sun:
1.017 AU=1.521x108 km
Minimum distance from Sun:
0.983 AU=1.471x108 km
Mean orbital velocity:
Sidereal period:
Rotation period:
Diameter(equatorial):
Mass:
Mean density
29.8 km/s
365.256 days
23.9345 hours
12,756 km
5.976x1024 kg
5500 kg/m3
Mean surface temperature
20°C=68°F=293K
Surface temperature:max
60°C=140°F=333K
Surface temperature:min
-90°C=-130°F=183K
Mean diameter of Sun from Earth
0°32'
Moon
Earth has one moon which we call "The
Moon". Its surface has many craters on it
from where meteorites have hit it. It has
many volcanoes on it which do not erupt
anymore. We can see the moon at night
without using a telescope. It is the closest
space object to our planet.
The moon is the earth’s only natural
satellite, which means it orbits the
earth. Its average distance from the
earth is 384,403 km. The moon
always keeps one side turned
toward the earth and the other side
turned away from the earth. This
type of motion is called synchronous
rotation. The side turned away from
the earth is called the moon’s dark
side, even though it is lit half of the
time.
The moon is not always the same
distance from the earth. It is not
ecliptic. The moon has a noticeable
effect on the earth in the form of
tides, but it also affects the motion
and orbit of the earth.
Sun
The sun is very, very big. More than
one million planet earths could fit
inside of the sun! Earth seems very big
to us. Imagine how big the sun must
be! Our sun is called a yellow dwarf
star. This means it is only a mediumsized star!
The sun is made of gases called hydrogen
and helium. It is always burning and is
very hot. The outside of the sun is 11,000
degrees Fahrenheit. An extremely hot
day on earth is only 100 degrees
Fahrenheit. The sun's surface is about
100 times as hot as the hottest day on
earth! Our sun is very important to us. It
gives us light and heat. Without light and
heat we would not be able to live.
Distances
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The average distance
between the sun and
the earth is 149
million kilometers
(93 million miles).
The average distance
from Earth to Moon
is 384,403 km
(238,857 miles).
The closest point
that the Moon can
actually get to the
Sun is 146,692,378
km
(236,078,498.470202
7 miles! Lets round
that to 236 million
miles!)
Distance
Moon
Earth
Average Distance from the Sun in
Million Miles
0
50
100
150
200
250
Temperatures By Season
Do our temperatures on earth
change with each season? Usually
they do! Here are some average
temperatures for Russell, KY.
Average Temperature Ranges:
• Spring 55 to 80 degrees (68)
• Summer 80 to 95
(87)
• Fall 40 to 70
(50)
• Winters 15 to 40
(28)