Our Solar system and beyond

Science, Grade 4

Our Solar system and beyond

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Study Guide Our Solar system and beyond Science, Grade 4

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OUR SOLAR SYSTEM AND BEYOND What Can Be Found in the Solar System? Planets A planet is a large body that revolves around the Sun. All planets rotate and revolve around the Sun. Asteroids, Comets, and Meteors oh my! Asteroids, comets and meteors are made of pieces of rock and ice. Asteroids are small pieces of rock which orbit around the Sun. Comets are made of ice and rock and also appear to have tails. The “tail” of a comet is made of vaporized gases, dust, and fragments that flow behind them as they fly through space…at a VERY fast pace! Meteors, also made of rock and ice, are often referred to as shooting stars. Lesson Checkpoint: What are asteroids, comets, and meteors made of? © Copyright NewPath Learning. All Rights Reserved. Permission is granted for the purchaser to print copies for non-commercial educational purposes only. Visit us at www.NewPathLearning.com.
Speaking of Stars… A star is a hot ball of gas. The Sun is a star that provides energy, heat, and light to living organisms on Earth. A group of stars that make a pattern in sky are known as constellations. A galaxy is a system of dust, gas, and millions of stars held together by gravity. We live in the Milky Way galaxy. Lesson Checkpoint: Is the SUN a star? Earth: Home Sweet Home The Earth’s rotation is one turning of the Earth around very slowly every 24 hours which results in day and night on Earth. The Earth spins on its own axis, which is an imaginary straight line running through the center of the Earth, from the North Pole to the South Pole, on which the Earth rotates. © Copyright NewPath Learning. All Rights Reserved. Permission is granted for the purchaser to print copies for non-commercial educational purposes only. Visit us at www.NewPathLearning.com.
A revolution is the Earth moving in a path around the Sun, which results in one year on Earth. It takes the Earth about 365 days to complete one revolution. The path that the Earth follows as it revolves around the Sun is called its orbit. The Earth revolves around the Sun, which is why we have day and night on Earth. Lesson Checkpoint: What is a revolution of the Earth? The Moon Like the Earth, the Moon turns on its axis. Gravity between the Moon and Earth keeps the Moon in its orbit. All of the Moon shapes that are visible on Earth are called the Moon phases. As the Moon orbits the Earth, the same side of Moon always faces the Earth. © Copyright NewPath Learning. All Rights Reserved. Permission is granted for the purchaser to print copies for non-commercial educational purposes only. Visit us at www.NewPathLearning.com.
Moon phases When the Moon is between the Earth and the Sun, the Moon looks dark. This phase is called the new Moon, which begins a new set of Moon phases. After the new Moon, the Moon begins to appear in its waxing crescent phase. The Moon looks like a sliver in the sky during this phase. The first quarter phase of the Moon occurs when the side of the Moon visible to us on Earth Moon appears to be half full on its right side. This is a picture of the Moon in its waxing gibbous phase. Waxing means growing, meaning we see more of the Moon’s surface as it begins to reach its full Moon phase. © Copyright NewPath Learning. All Rights Reserved. Permission is granted for the purchaser to print copies for non-commercial educational purposes only. Visit us at www.NewPathLearning.com.
When the Sun and Moon are on opposite sides of the Earth, the Moon appears full, because the Sun is reflecting its light completely on the half of the Moon visible to us on Earth. This is a picture of the Moon in its waning gibbous phase. Waning means to get smaller, meaning we start to see LESS of the Moon’s surface as it begins to reach its new Moon phase once again. Lesson Checkpoint: What is the difference between a WAXING and a WANING Moon? More exciting things you can see in the sky: A lunar eclipse occurs when the Moon and Sun are on exactly opposite sides of the Earth. The Moon passes through Earth’s shadow so there is no Moonlight or reflection of the Sun on the Moon that night. © Copyright NewPath Learning. All Rights Reserved. Permission is granted for the purchaser to print copies for non-commercial educational purposes only. Visit us at www.NewPathLearning.com.
A solar eclipse occurs in the sky when the Moon passes between the Sun and the Earth and casts its shadow on Earth. The daytime sky is dark for a few minutes when the Moon blocks the Sunlight. These don’t happen very often. Don’t look at a solar eclipse directly or without special glasses or the light can hurt your eyes. Do events in the solar system cause our seasons here on Earth?….YES! Seasons occur on Earth because of the tilt of the Earth's axis and where the Earth is in relation to the Sun. So, when it is winter in the Northern Hemisphere, the Northern Hemisphere is pointing away from the Sun on the Earth’s axis. The Sun's rays are not as strong or as direct during the winter, which is why it is colder in the winter. Lesson Checkpoint: What are two important reasons for the seasons on Earth? © Copyright NewPath Learning. All Rights Reserved. Permission is granted for the purchaser to print copies for non-commercial educational purposes only. Visit us at www.NewPathLearning.com.