Student Exploration: Seasons in 3D

Student Exploration: Seasons in 3D Directions: Follow the instructions to go through the simulation. Respond to the questions and prompts in the orange boxes. Vocabulary: axis, equinox, latitude, Northern Hemisphere, revolve, rotate, solar energy, solar intensity, Southern Hemisphere, summer solstice, winter solstice Prior Knowledge Question (Do these BEFORE using the Gizmo.) Both New Zealand and Argentina are in the Southern Hemisphere (south of the equator). 1.​ What time of year would you plan a ski vacation in New Zealand? winter may 2.​ What time of year would you visit the beaches of Argentina? summer Gizmo Warm-upSeasons in the Southern Hemisphere are different from seasons in the Northern Hemisphere (north of the equator.) Using the Seasons in 3D Gizmo, you will discover what causes the seasons and learn why seasons are different in each hemisphere. To begin, move the Simulation speed slider all the way to the right. Click Play ( ) and observe the SIMULATION pane. 1.​ Describe Earth’s movements: its spinning on its axis while rotating around the sun ​ Earth revolves around the Sun and rotates on its axis. On the SIMULATION pane, the axis is represented by a red line. 2.​ Click Reset ( ), and then click Play again. Look at the side view of Earth at the bottom of the SIMULATION pane. A.​ What do you notice about Earth’s axis as Earth revolves around the Sun? its spinning around its axis B.​ When is the Northern Hemisphere tilted toward the Sun? around may C.​ When is the Southern Hemisphere tilted toward the Sun? around december Reproduction for educational use only. Public sharing or posting prohibited. © 2020 ExploreLearning™ All rights reserved Activity A: Height of the Sun Get the Gizmo ready: ●​ Click Reset. Question: How do seasons compare in the Northern and Southern Hemispheres? 1.​ Compare: A location’s latitude gives its distance north or south of the equator. On the DESCRIPTION pane, set the Latitude to 45.0° (45.0° N). Next, drag the slider at the bottom of the DESCRIPTION pane to set the date to June 21. A.​ Is the Northern Hemisphere tilted toward or away from the Sun? toward B.​ How much light is falling on the Northern Hemisphere compared to the Southern Hemisphere? the northern has a lot while the southern has a t=little C.​ Change the date to December 21. On this date, which hemisphere is receiving more sunlight? the southern 2.​ Observe: Move the Simulation speed slider all the way to the left. Select the 2D VIEW tab and make sure Facing south is selected. Using the date slider at the bottom of the Gizmo, set the date to June 21. Click Play. Click Pause ​ ( ) when the Sun reaches its highest point in the sky. Draw and label that position in the picture at right. Then, find the Sun’s highest point in the sky for December 21, and draw and label that position. 3.​ Analyze: On which date was the noon Sun higher in the sky? june 21 This date is the summer solstice in the Northern Hemisphere. The date on which the noon sun is lowest is the winter solstice. 4.​ Explain: How does the orientation of Earth’s axis relate to the position of the Sun in the sky? the earth rotatoes around the sun while spinning on its axxis ​Reproduction for educational use only. Public sharing or posting prohibited. © 2020 ExploreLearning™ All rights reserved 5.​ Predict: On the DESCRIPTION pane, set the Latitude to -45° (45° S). For this latitude, on which date do you expect the noon Sun to be highest? June 21​ Highlight your choice. ​ ​ ​ December 21 6.​ Observe: Select the 2D VIEW tab and select Facing north. Set the date to June 21, and click Play. Click Pause when the Sun reaches its highest point in the sky. Draw and label that position in the picture at right. Then, find the Sun’s highest point in the sky for December 21, and draw and label that position. 7.​ Analyze: On which date was the noon Sun higher in the sky? june 8.​ Explain: Why were your results for the Southern Hemisphere opposite of what you found for the Northern Hemisphere? cause the sun cant be in the same place for both 9.​ Infer: Based on the height of the Sun in the sky, at what time of year is it summer in the Southern Hemisphere? When is it winter in the Southern Hemisphere? Explain. when its summer in the northern hemisphere. ​Reproduction for educational use only. Public sharing or posting prohibited. © 2020 ExploreLearning™ All rights reserved Get the Gizmo ready: Activity B: Solar intensity ●​ Click Reset and make sure the Simulation speed slider is all the way to the left. Question: Why is it warmer in summer than in winter? 1.​ Describe: Look up the latitude of your city or town. Set the Latitude to this value. A.​ What town do you live in, and what is its latitude? corvallis oregon 44 B.​ What is the temperature of a typical summer day in your town? 80 C.​ What is the temperature of a typical winter day in your town? 40 2.​ Observe: Select the GRAPH tab. The Day graph shows solar intensity, or the amount of solar energy striking a location in an hour. Set the date to March 21, which is the spring equinox in the Northern Hemisphere. Click Play, and then Pause before 24 hours pass. A.​ At what time of day is solar intensity greatest? 12 pm B.​ What is the solar intensity at night? 0 C.​ Why do you think the solar intensity follows this pattern? cause it only facing the northern hemmishpere someti9mes 3.​ Gather data: Record the solar intensity at noon on March 21. Then record the times of sunrise (solar intensity begins to rise) and sunset (solar intensity returns to zero). Based on these times, calculate the hours of daylight. Repeat for each solstice and equinox. Date Noon solar intensity (W/m2h) Sunrise Sunset Hours of Daylight March 21 42 6 430 10 hours 30 minutews June 21 53 445 7 14 hours and 45 mnuts September 23 39 6 6 12 December 21 21 8 520 9 housrs 4.​ Analyze: Use the table to compare the hours of daylight on the equinoxes (March 21 and September 23) and solstices (June 21 and December 21). A.​ What is the longest day of the year? june 21 Shortest? december 21 ​Reproduction for educational use only. Public sharing or posting prohibited. © 2020 ExploreLearning™ All rights reserved B.​ What do you think the word equinox means? when the day and the night are the same lenght 5.​ Explain: Why is the noon solar intensity greater on the summer solstice than on the winter solstice? THe sun is higher so it makes more hotter 6.​ Observe: Click Reset and set the Simulation speed to its highest value. On the GRAPH tab, select the Year graph. Click Play. After a year has passed, sketch the resulting graphs at right. What factors are responsible for the changes you see in the Solar energy graph? position solar energy 7.​ Summarize: Seasonal changes are related to the length of a day and the height of the Sun in the sky. Describe how these two factors change throughout a year, and how this relates to the seasonal changes you observe in your home town. days are the longest when solar intensity is the hightest. 📷 8.​ On your own: Change the Latitude to the opposite of its current value, and create a year graph for this latitude. Take a screenshot ( ) of the graph, right-click the image and select Copy Image, and paste it in the space below. 📷 Describe the patterns that you see in the graph. it has a big dip in the middle and a smaller dip on the higher one Explain why the graph looks the way it does. ​Reproduction for educational use only. Public sharing or posting prohibited. © 2020 ExploreLearning™ All rights reserved cause when soler energy is loweer the daylight time is lower. ​Reproduction for educational use only. Public sharing or posting prohibited. © 2020 ExploreLearning™ All rights reserved