The Magic School Bus Takes A Moonwalk

Vocabulary Term SATELLITE An object that moves around another object in space. EXAMPLE: The moon is a natural satellite of Earth because the moon moves around Earth.

Vocabulary Term: ORBIT The moon moves around Earth in a certain pattern or orbit. Fact: It takes about 28 days for the moon to complete its orbit.

Vocabulary Word: PHASES The moon has different shapes, or phases, as it moves through its orbit.

WAXING MOON At this moon phase, the Earth, moon and sun are located nearly on a line in space. Right Side: appears completely round and smooth Left Side: Starts as a crescent and then looks jagged.

Looks like the letter D

WANING MOON Left Side: round Right Side: blurry as it is no longer reflecting sunlight

Looks like the letter C

Vocabulary Term: revolution The movement of Earth around the sun is called its revolution. Earth is a satellite of the sun. It takes one year (365 days) to complete a revolution.

Vocabulary Term: axis imaginary line As Earth revolves around the sun, it is also spinning around an imaginary line. The imaginary line, or axis, runs through the center of Earth from the North Pole to the South Pole. It takes 24 hours, or one day, to complete one rotation on its axis.

Vocabulary Term: rotation The time it takes the Earth to make one day.

Seasons Earth’s axis is slightly tilted. This tilt, along with the constant movement of Earth around the sun, causes seasons.

SUMMER The northern hemisphere tilts toward the sun and the Earth receives more direct sunlight.

WINTER Winter occurs when the the Northern hemisphere tilts away from the sun, therefore, receives less direct sunlight.

Vocabulary Term: lunar eclipse Occurs when the moon passes behind the Earth so that the Earth blocks the sun’s rays from striking the moon. The sun, Earth, and moon have to be aligned exactly. Can last for a few hours. Can only occur the night of a full moon.

Vocabulary Term: solar eclipse Occurs when the moon passes between the sun and the Earth, and the moon fully or partially blocks the sun. This can only happen during a new moon. Lasts only a few hours. Only a small area of the world can see a solar eclipse.

Physical Features of the Moon

Vocabulary Term: craters A hole or pit formed by the impact of a meteoroid.

Vocabulary Term: plains A level area of land.

mountains

Moon Facts The moon is smaller than Earth, and Earth is much smaller than the sun. The moon looks as large as the sun because it is much closer to Earth.

Name this person.

Neil Armstrong First man to walk on the moon on July 21, 1969.

Moon Facts The moon does not give off its own light. Light from the sun bounces off the moon.