Earth's Rotation

Which of these cycles is a direct result of Earth's rotation? (5.8C)

• Day and night

• Moon phases

• Rainfall and evaporation

• Seasons

On which side of a house in Texas should a window be placed so that the people inside the house can see the sunrise each day through the window? (5.8C)

• North

• South

• East

• West

Some students used a globe to model the rotation of Earth. They shaded in Texas on the globe, as shown in the picture. They rotate the globe and observed that Texas was in exactly the same place after each rotation. The students could rotate the globe quickly or slowly. If the globe could rotate only at the rate that Earth actually rotates, about how long would each complete rotation take? (5.8C)

• 30 days

• 60 minutes

• 24 hours

• 365 days

Shadows cast by objects change throughout the day. The picture shows the shadow cast by a tree at 3 pm. Which picture shows how the tree's shadow most likely looked at 9 am? (5.8C)

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A student draws diagrams of her house and the location of the sun in the sky. Which diagram does not correctly represent the location of the sun at the time indicated? (5.8C)

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A student is looking for evidence that Earth is always rotating on its axis. Which of the following would provide the best evidence? (5.8C)

• The different amount of rain that falls each day

• The appearance of shadows changing throughout the day

• The presence of other planets in the night sky

• The different phases of the moon in a month

A student draws a model showing the movements of Earth, the moon, and the sun. Which arrow shows the movement that causes day and night on Earth? (5.8C)

• Arrow 1, because it shows the rotation of the sun

• Arrow 2, because it shows the orbit of Earth around the sun

• Arrow 3, because it shows the orbit of the moon around Earth

• Arrow 4, because it shows the rotation of Earth

Which of these best explains why the sun appears to move across the sky each day? (5.8C)

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A student builds a model of the solar system that includes a sphere representing Earth. The sphere turns in a full circle on its axis. By using a model of Earth that spins on its axis, the student can best demonstrate--- (5.8C)

• the cycle of the four seasons

• the aging of a star

• the passing of a year

• the cycle of day and night

A teacher asks students to explain what they see in this picture. Four student explanations are shown in the box. Which of the students gave a correct explanation? (5.8C)

• Student 1 only

• Students 2 and 4 only

• Student 2 only

• Students 1 and 3 only