Moon Phases Simulation, Study notes of Astronomy

Download Moon Phases Simulation and more Study notes Astronomy in PDF only on Docsity! B.G. 1. Once you opened the simulation, what are the current phase and the current observer's time as displayed? a. Observer’s current time: 12:00 PM b. Current phase: new moon 2. Where is the Sun at the time? (Rising, setting, high up in the sky (zenith)) a. The sun is at the zenith at this time. 3. Click on the advance a day button (>> 1 Day) about 3 times. Is it illuminated to the right or the left? What is this moon phase called? What can you say about the positions of the moon and the sun in the sky as you advanced time? a. It is illuminated to the left and this moon phase is called the waxing crescent. The moon is to the left of the sun and moves to the right as time advances. The sun is to the right and also continues to move to the right as time advances. 4. Advance the day such that the moon's phase is 1st quarter. Now advance the hour (> 1 Hour) such that the first quarter moon is high up in the sky? What time is that? Where is the Sun at that time? a. The moon is at the zenith at 6 PM and the sun is at the western horizon at this time. 5. You can play the simulation or rotate the Earth counterclockwise. Pause it when you have the full moon and advance or reduce the hours such that the full moon rises in the east (is on the horizon). Which direction is the Sun when the full moon is rising from the east? Is the sun rising or setting? What is the time? a. The sun is out of view when the full moon rises to the zenith from the east as it is setting. It remains to the right of the moon though the distance between the two increases as time passes. It is 10:50 PM when the full moon reaches the zenith. 6. Continue to play the simulation. As the moon revolves, and as the phase changes from the full moon to the third quarter, which side of the moon is illuminated (left or right)? What is the phase in between a full moon and third quarter called? a. The left side of the moon is illuminated beyond the third quarter. The phase between a full moon and third quarter is called waning gibbous. 7. Around what time is the third quarter high up in the sky? Where is the Sun at that time? Is it rising/setting? a. The third quarter moon reaches the zenith at 6:50 AM and the sun is shortly behind it to the left. The sun is rising at this time. 8. Continue to play the simulation so that the phase of the moon is back to the new moon phase. How many days did it take for the moon to get from one new moon phase to the next? Is that a sidereal month or a synodic month? a. It took 29 days and 12 hours to get from one new moon phase to the next. This is a synodic month, since it takes 29 days and not 27. 9. Why does the purple lunar landmark always face the Earth as the moon moves along its orbit? a. The purple lunar landmark always faces the Earth as the moon moves along its orbit because the moon is tidally locked to earth. One rotation results in one full revolution for the moon, meaning that the same side of the moon is always facing the Earth. 10. Pause the simulation and position the moon approximately between sunrise and noon. You can also manually move the moon or the Earth too. Make sure the stick figure is positioned/aligned along the line connecting the moon at that specified time too. That is the time when this phase