Sun/Moon/Earth Model: Quiz Review
Name________________________
Hour_____
1. In your own words, write a sentence or two describing what a scientific model is.
A scientific model is an idea that allows us to explain and make predictions about the observable universe.
2.
List at least three things a scientist looks for when she is judging the acceptability of a model. In one or two
sentences, describe each one.
a. explains the data- explains patterns in the data
b. predictive power- predicts future experimental outcomes or discoveries
c. realistic- fits existing scientific knowledge
3. List and draw each of the eight major phases of the moon in order, starting with NEW MOON.
4. What objects are necessary to explain the phases of the Moon? Sun, Moon, Earth
5. List the motions necessary to explain the phases of the Moon.
6. Explain why the Moon goes through phases.
Moon is half lit by the Sun at all times. The Moon orbits Earth once every 29.5 days. Therefore, as the Moon
orbits Earth, an observer on Earth sees a different part of the half lit section of the Moon causing them to see
the phases of the Moon.
7. Diagram the Sun/Moon/Earth showing the Moon going through all 8 major phases.
8. On the diagram, list the approximate times the eight phases can be viewed at their highest points in the sky.
9. At 6:00 pm, you see the Moon at its highest point in the sky. What phase is it in? What time did it rise?
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1 quarter, noon
10. What time is a New Moon highest in the sky? noon
11. How much of Earth and the Moon can be lit by the Sun at any given time? 1/2
12. Describe the way we would see the Moon phases change if the Moon orbited Earth three times more slowly.
The phases would progress in the same order, but we would see them take three times longer (3 months) to
go through all the phases.
13. Make sure you have a complete POM Model Sheet for “Why does the Sun rise in the east?”
14. Diagram and explain a lunar and a solar eclipse.
15. Explain why we don’t experience a solar and a lunar eclipse each month.
The Moons orbital plane is tilted approximately 5 degrees so the Sun, Moon, and Earth will line up once every
six months.
16. From which hemisphere did the graph most likely come? Northern hemisphere
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17. Explain your answer to number 16. The Sun is highest in the sky on June 21 , the first day of summer in
the northern hemisphere.
18. Explain why in Madison, Wisconsin, in summer our days are longer, the temperature is warmer and the sun is
higher in the sky as opposed to the winter when our days are shorter, the temperature is colder and the sun is
lower in the sky.
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The northern hemisphere is tilted 23.5 degrees toward the Sun on June 21 , the first day of summer, making
the Sun’s rays most direct and intense.
19. Underline the statement inside the parentheses that makes the following statement true. In Oregon, Wisconsin,
as the season changes from summer to winter, the Sun rises (earlier, later, at the same time) and the Sun
sets (earlier, later, at the same time). As the season changes from winter to summer the Sun rises (earlier,
later, at the same time) and the Sun sets (earlier, later, at the same time).