Moon Phases

Elevation

The vertical distance or height that something on Earth's surface is above sea level

Altitude

The distance above Earth's surface

Latitude

The angular distance north or south from Earth's equator

Longitude

The distance measured on Earth's surface east or west of the prime meridian

Axis

An imaginary axle that a planet spins on

Orbit

The path and length of time one object takes to travel around another object

Revolution

Traveling around something

Rotation

Spinning on an axis

North Star

The reference star pointed to by Earth's North Pole

Beam Spreading

The way a light beam covers a larger area when it hits a surface at an angle

Solar Angle

The angle at which light passes through the atmosphere; measured from Earth's surface

Season

A period of the year identified by changes in hours of daylight and weather

Solstice

A day of the year when Earth's North Pole is leaning either toward the Sun or away from the Sun

Equinox

A day of the year when Earth's axis points neither toward or away from the Sun. Every location on Earth experiences 12 hours of daylight on the two equinoxes (March 21 and September 21).

Phase

Each different shape of the Moon

Full Moon

The phase of the Moon that occurs when the Moon is opposite the Sun as seen from Earth

New Moon

The phase of the Moon that occurs when the Moon is in the direction of the Sun as seen from Earth

First-Quarter Moon

The phase that occurs halfway between the new and full Moon

Third-Quarter Moon

The phase that occurs halfway between the full and new Moon

Crescent

The shape of the Moon just after and just before the new Moon phase

Gibbous

A Moon shape that is larger than a first or third quarter Moon but smaller than a full Moon

Waning

Getting smaller

Waxing

Getting bigger

Solar Eclipse

When the Moon passes exactly between Earth and the Sun

Lunar Eclipse

When Earth is exactly between the Moon and the Sun, and the Moon passes through Earth's shadow

Day and Night

The Earth rotates on its axis, each rotation taking 24 hours; the side of the Earth in the sunlight is in daytime, the side facing away from the sun is in nighttime

Summer Solstice

The day with the most hours of daylight all year (June 21 in the Northern Hemisphere)

Winter Solstice

The day with the least hours of daylight all year (December 21 in the Northern Hemisphere)

Earth's Orbit

The Earth orbits the sun once every 365.25 days

Earth's Tilt

The Earth is tilted 23.5⁰ on its axis, with the north pole always pointed toward the North Star