Earth's Place in the Universe

 Mrs. McGaughy's class was investigating the brightness of stars, and completed a two-part investigation. For the first investigation, two students held two identical flashlights at equal distances. For the second investigation, two students held two identical flashlights at two different distances.

Read the data chart and then choose the correct statement below.
   

• The closer a star is to Earth, the dimmer it will appear.

• The further a star is from the Earth, the brighter it will appear.

• The closer a star is to Earth, the brighter it will appear.

• The investigation tells us nothing.

Tags

NGSS.5-ESS1-1

NGSS.5-ESS1-2

Which statement about the Sun is correct?

• The Sun is the farthest star to Earth.

• The Sun has the same surface temperature as Neptune.

• The Sun is made of rocks, ice, and minerals.

• The Sun is the closest star to Earth.

 Four students made claims about stars and their apparent brightness.

Their teacher shares the following information from NASA: “Of course, the star that
appears the brightest to all of us on Earth is the Sun. Although it is a rather typical star,
not all that different from many of the ones you see at night, we live so close to it that it
outshines everything else. Even the next closest star is more than a quarter of a million
times farther away from the Earth, so it is not surprising that the light from the Sun
overwhelms that from other stars.”

Gentry: “The star that appears brightest to us is the Sun because it is the largest in the galaxy.”

Genesis: “The Sun appears to be the brightest star because it is the closest to Earth.”

Cadence: “The Sun is the brightest star when looking from Earth because it is the hottest.”

Gio: “I have seen brighter stars than the Sun; it isn’t that bright.”

Which student’s claim is supported by the teacher’s research?

• Genesis

• Gio

• Cadence

• Gentry

The image shows a homemade sundial. Sundials were used in the past as a way of telling time using shadows.What happened to the length of the shadow between 10:00 and 12:00?

• 2. The shadow’s length stayed the same.

• 1. The shadow got shorter in length.

• 1. The shadow got longer in length.

Tags

NGSS.MS-ESS1-1

 At what time are shadows the shortest?

• 1. During the night

• 1. 9:00 AM

• 1. 12:00 PM

• 1. 6:00 PM

Tags

NGSS.5-ESS1-2

When the Sun is low in the sky, shadows are ___________

• longer

• shorter

Tags

NGSS.MS-ESS1-1

When the sun is high in the sky, shadows are _____________.

• Longer

• Shorter

Tags

NGSS.5-ESS1-2

If you look at the night sky different times of the year you see different constellations
(star formations). How can you explain what happens?

• 1. This change is due to the Sun's orbit around the Earth. 

• 1. This is because the moon is constantly blocking the view between the sun and the Earth.

• 1. This change is due to the motion of the Earth in its orbit around the Sun. Each day a few stars are visible in the east that were not visible the night before.

Tags

NGSS.MS-ESS1-1

The image shows the path of the Sun across the sky during different seasons when
viewed from the Earth.

Which season does each path represent?

• 1=summer, 2=spring and fall, 3 = winter

• 1=winter, 2=summer, 3=spring and fall

• 1=summer, 2=winter, 3=spring and fall

• 1=winter, 2=spring and fall, 3=summer

Tags

NGSS.MS-ESS1-1

 These two photographs of the same dog were taken in the two different seasons.
Which photograph, A or B, was taken during winter? 

• A

• B