The Moon: Lecture 4

These flashcards cover key terms and definitions related to the moon, its phases, eclipses, tidal effects, and related astronomical concepts.

Lunar Eclipse

An event that occurs when the Earth passes between the Sun and the Moon, causing the Earth's shadow to fall on the Moon.

Solar Eclipse

An event that occurs when the Moon passes between the Sun and the Earth, covering the Sun partially or completely.

Phases of the Moon

The different appearances of the Moon as seen from Earth caused by the relative positions of the Moon, Earth, and Sun.

Tidal Locking

The phenomenon where the Moon rotates on its axis in the same time it takes to orbit the Earth, resulting in the same side always facing Earth.

Sidereal Month

The time taken for the Moon to complete one revolution around the Earth with respect to the background stars, approximately 27.3 days.

Solar Month

The time taken for the Moon to complete one cycle regarding its phases from new moon to new moon, approximately 29.5 days.

Neap Tide

The tide that occurs when the Moon is at the first or third quarter, resulting in the lowest difference between high and low tide.

Spring Tide

The tide that occurs when the Sun, Moon, and Earth are aligned, leading to the highest difference between high and low tide.

Perigean Tide

A tide that results from the Moon being at its closest point to Earth, resulting in stronger tides.

Apogean Tide

A tide that results from the Moon being at its furthest point from Earth, resulting in weaker tides.

Eclipse

An astronomical event where one celestial body passes through the shadow of another, causing one to obscure the other.

Syzygy

The alignment of three celestial bodies in a straight line, such as the Earth, Moon, and Sun during an eclipse.

Rayleigh Scattering

The scattering of light by particles much smaller than the wavelength of light, which explains why the sky is blue.

Atmospheric Refraction

The bending of light as it passes through different densities in the Earth's atmosphere, affecting how we perceive colors of celestial objects.

Synchronous Rotation

The state in which an astronomical body’s rotation period matches its orbital period around another body, causing it to show the same face to the latter.

Lunar Tides

The deformation of seawater on Earth caused by the gravitational pull of the Moon.

Conceptual Quiz

A type of assessment that focuses on understanding the underlying concepts rather than just factual recall.