Physical Science Summer
Assignment
2015-2016
This year we will be covering a range of topics that will allow you to
understand and apply scientific concepts that apply to our physical
setting. Your summer assignment will focus on the concept that Earth
can be described by principles of relative motion and perspective.
By the end of this assignment, you should be able to explain seasonal
changes on the Earth.
Directions: For your summer assignment read the
provided article. Then, complete ONE of the two
assignments. Be prepared to submit this assignment on
the first day of class.
NOTE: FOR BOTH ASSIGNMENTS you are required to read the article
in its entirety. It is suggested that you highlight and annotate the
information you choose to use for your assignment. Your assignment
will be graded with a rubric. This will be provided below so you are
aware of your expectations. Both rubrics will be attached. Please read
them carefully, as each assignment has a different rubric.
Assignment Option A
Read the article “Learn the scientific reasons behind Earth’s seasons.”
Then create an informational brochure about seasons. Feel free to be as
creative as you want. This can be created on the computer or on
construction paper.
In this brochure include:
- Why do we experience seasons?
- How are the seasons marked?
- When do the seasons occur?
- What are the scientific names when the seasons begin?
- What occurs at the onset of each season? (What happens to the
Earth?)
- Give at least one example of seasonal variation in the Northern
and Southern hemisphere. (When it is summer in one hemisphere,
what season is the other hemisphere experiencing?)
** Provide any additional information you think is necessary.
Assignment Option B
Read the article “Learn the scientific reasons behind Earth’s seasons.”
Then write a short response discussing why we experience seasons on
Earth. This response should be about 1 – 1 ½ pages. It should not be
longer than 2 pages.
In this response please include:
- Why do we experience seasons?
- How are the seasons marked?
- When do the seasons occur?
- What are the scientific names when theseasons begin?
- What occursat the onset of each season? (What happens to the
Earth?)
- Give at least one example of seasonal variation in the Northern
and Southern hemisphere. (When it is summer in one hemisphere,
what season is the other hemisphere experiencing?)
** Provide any additional information you think is necessary.
Learn the scientific reasons
behind Earth's seasons
By Paige Williams msnbc.com
updated 6/20/2014 8:38:31 PM ET
The seasons are a powerful force in our lives. They affect the activities we do, the foods
we crave, the clothes we wear — and quite often, the moods we are in. The seasons
officially change once again on Saturday, with summer beginning in the Northern
Hemisphere and winter starting in the south.
What is it that causes the change in seasons?
The ability to predict the seasons — by tracking the rising and setting points of the sun
throughout the year — was key to survival in ancient times. The Babylonians, the Maya
and other cultures developed complex systems for monitoring seasonal shifts. But it took
centuries more to unravel the science behind the seasons.
Earth's tilt affects seasons. In this graphic, distances and sizes are not to scale.
Nicolai Copernicus (1473-1543) radically changed our understanding of astronomy when he
proposed that the sun, not Earth, was the center of the solar system. This led to our modern
understanding of the relationship between the sun and Earth.
We now know that Earth orbits the sun elliptically and, at the same time, spins on an axis
that is tilted relative to its plane of orbit. This means that different hemispheres are
exposed to different amounts of sunlight throughout the year. Because the sun is our
source of light, energy and heat, the changing intensity and concentration of its rays give
rise to the seasons of winter, spring, summer and fall.
Solstices and equinoxes
The seasons are marked by solstices and equinoxes — astronomical terms that relate to
Earth’s tilt.
The solstices mark the points at which the poles are tilted at their maximum toward or
away from the sun. This is when the difference between the daylight hours and the
nighttime hours is most acute. The solstices occur each year on June 20 or 21 and Dec. 21
or 22, and represent the official start of the summer and winter seasons.
The vernal equinox and autumnal equinox herald the beginning of spring and fall,
respectively. At these times of the year, the sun appears to be directly over Earth’s
equator, and the lengths of the day and the night are equal over most of the planet.
On March 20 or 21 of each year, the Northern Hemisphere reaches the vernal equinox
and enjoys the signs of spring. At the same time, the winds turn colder in the Southern
Hemisphere as the autumnal equinox sets in.
The year's other equinox occurs on Sept. 22 or 23, when summer fades to fall in the
north, and winter’s chill starts giving way to spring in the south.
From year to year, there is always some variability in the equinoxes and solstices because
of the way Earth's changing tilt matches up with its orbit around the sun. This time, the
precise moment of the solstice comes at 6:51 a.m. ET June 21. That's the moment when
Earth's north pole is tipped precisely toward the sun.
Saturday is thus the longest day of the year for the Northern Hemisphere's residents, and
the longest night of the year south of the equator.
Effect on climate
Here’s how the seasonal change affects the weather: Around the time of the June solstice,
the North Pole is tilted toward the sun and the Northern Hemisphere is starting to enjoy
summer. The density of the solar radiation is higher because it's coming from directly
overhead — in other words, the sun's rays are concentrated over a smaller surface area.
The days are longer, too, meaning that more radiation is absorbed in northern climes
during the 24-hour cycle. Another factor that may come into play is that the radiation
takes a somewhat shorter path through the energy-absorbing atmosphere before striking
Earth.
At the same time that the Northern Hemisphere is entering summer, the South Pole is
tilted away from the sun, and the Southern Hemisphere is starting to feel the cold of
winter. The sun’s glancing rays are spread over a greater surface area and must travel
through more of the atmosphere before reaching the earth. There are also fewer hours of
daylight in a 24-hour period.
The situations are reversed in December, when it’s the Southern Hemisphere that basks in
the most direct rays of the sun, while the Northern Hemisphere receives less dense solar
radiation for shorter periods of time.
Although the solstices represent the pinnacles of summer and winter with respect to the
intensity of the sun’s rays, they do not usually represent the year's warmest or coldest
days. This is because temperature depends not only on the amount of heat the atmosphere
receives from the sun, but also on the amount of heat it loses due to the absorption of this
heat by the ground and ocean.
It is not until the ground and oceans absorb enough heat to reach equilibrium with the
temperature of the atmosphere that we feel the coldest days of winter or hottest days of
summer.
This is an updated version of an article originally published in March 1999.
© 2013 msnbc.com Reprints 517
NAS
These views of Earth from the Spinning Enhanced Visible and Infrared I EUMETSAT's Meteosat-9
satellite shows the terminator line on Dec. 21, left), March 20, 2011 (upper right), June 21, 2011 (lower
left) and Sept. 2 (lower right). The sequence illustrates how Earth's northern half receive sunlight in
June, while the southern half gets more light in December.
Making A Brochure: Summer Assignment Option A
Student Name:
CATEGORY
Content Accuracy
Spelling &
Proofreading
Writing Grammar
Writing Mechanics
Attractiveness
&
Organization
Knowledge
Gained
5
_______________________________________
4
All questions are
4-5 questions are
answered accurately accurately
in the brochure.
answered in the
brochure.
3
2
At least 3 of the
questions are
accurately answered
in the brochure.
Less than half
of the
questions
areaccurately
answered in the
brochure.
No spelling errors
No more than 1 No more than 3
Several
are present.
spelling error
spelling errors
spelling errors
present.
present.
in the
brochure.
There are no
There are 1-2
There are 3-4
There are
grammatical
grammatical
grammatical
several
mistakes in the
mistakes in the
mistakes in the
grammatical
brochure.
brochure.
brochure.
mistakes in the
brochure.
Capitalization and
There are 1-2
There are 3-4
There are
punctuation are
capitalization
capitalization and/or several
correct throughout
and/or
punctuation errors
capitalization
the brochure.
punctuation
in the brochure.
or punctuation
errors in the
errors in the
brochure.
brochure.
The brochure has
The brochure has The brochure has
The brochure's
exceptionally
attractive
well-organized
formatting and
attractive formatting formatting and
information.
organization of
and well-organized well-organized
material are
information.
information.
confusing to
the reader.
Student can
Student can
Student struggles to Student
accurately answer
accurately
accurately answer
appears to have
all questions related answer most
most questions
little
to facts in the
questions related related to facts in
knowledge
brochure and to the to the facts and
the brochure and to about the facts
processes used to
the process used technical processes or the process
create the brochure. to create the
used to create the
used to create
brochure.
brochure.
the brochure.
Written Response: Summer Assignment Option B
Student Name:
CATEGORY
Content Accuracy
_______________________________________
5
4
3
All questions are
answered
accurately in the
response.
4-5 questions are
accurately
answered within
the response.
At least 3 of the
Less than half
questions are
of the
accurately answered. questions
areaccurately
answered.
No more than 3
Several
spelling errors
spelling errors
present.
within the
response.
There are 3-4
There are
grammatical
several
mistakes.
grammatical
mistakes.
A few grammatical
Many
spelling, or
grammatical,
punctuation errors.
spelling, or
punctuation
errors.
Paragraphs included Paragraphing
related information
structure was
but were typically
not clear and
not constructed well. sentences
were not
typically
related within
the
paragraphs.
Demonstrates
Sentence
minimal sentence
fluency is
fluency.
lacking.
Spelling &
No spelling errors No more than 1
Proofreading remain present.
spelling error
present.
Grammar
Mechanics
There are no
grammatical
mistakes.
There are 1-2
grammatical
mistakes.
No grammatical,
spelling or
punctuation
errors.
Almost no
grammatical,
spelling or
punctuation errors.
All paragraphs
Paragraph
include
Construction introductory
sentence,
explanations or
details, and
concluding
sentence.
Sentence
Fluency
Most paragraphs
include
introductory
sentence,
explanations or
details, and
concluding
sentence.
Demonstrates
Demonstrates
skillful sentence
reasonable
fluency (varies
sentence fluency.
length, good flow
rhythm, and
varied structure).
2