FBS STEAM EXPLORER
Topic: Solar Eclipse
Student Name:_________________________
Grade:_________________________
Welcome STEAM EXPLORER! You are a junior astronomer who will first investigate how the
moon’s shadow allows us to view a solar eclipse. You can watch videos and explore websites
to learn more about the 2017 solar eclipse that will take place in the United States on Monday,
August 21st, 2017. You can complete a crossword puzzle that uses words connected to a solar
eclipse. You will become an expert on solar eclipses, especially the upcoming one this
summer. Have fun exploring!
ACTIVITY I: HOW CAN THE MOON CAUSE A SOLAR ECLIPSE WHEN IT IS MUCH SMALLER THAN
THE SUN?
Did you ever notice that sometimes when we see the faint image of the moon in the bright
blue sky during the day, the sun and moon can look like they are close in size? The reason for
this is that even though the sun’s size across its middle (the diameter) is 400 times bigger than
the moon’s middle (or diameter,) the sun is also 400 times farther away from the Earth. This
special relationship allows a solar eclipse to happen once every 12 to 18 months. During a
solar eclipse, the moon can completely cover our view of the sun. When the moon completely
covers the sun, called totality, we can see the corona of the sun, the surface of the sun. Here
are two videos you can watch that explains how a solar eclipse happens.
1. http://nj.pbslearningmedia.org/resource/ess05.sci.ess.eiu.totaleclipse/total-solareclipse-animation/
2. http://nj.pbslearningmedia.org/resource/ess05.sci.ess.eiu.eclipse/solar-eclipses/
This activity will help you understand how a solar eclipse works. (Website: kidseclipse.com)
Materials Needed:
 One grape (for the moon)
 One orange (for the Earth)
 One toothpick
 Some play dough or modeling clay
 A ruler
 Adult or older sibling with a flashlight
Step 1: Place the play dough on a table. Stick the toothpick in the modeling clay so that it can
stand up right. Then place the grape (or moon) on top of the toothpick so that it is 2 inches
high from the table.
Step 2: Place the orange (or Earth) on the table about 3 inches behind the grape (or moon.)
Step 3: Now have the adult or older sibling stand about 1 foot away on the other side of the
grape (or moon.) Have them shine the flashlight (or sun) at the grape (or moon.) You should
be able to see the shadow the moon casts on the Earth. There is a darker middle shadow and
a lighter outside shadow. The darker shadow is the umbra and the lighter shadow is the
penumbra. People on Earth in the umbra region will be able to see a total solar eclipse while
people in the penumbra region will see a partial solar eclipse.
If you are interested in building another model that allows you to investigate the relationship of the sun,
Earth, and moon in more detail, see this website on “Creating Eclipses in the Classroom,”
http://www.unawe.org/activity/eu-unawe1302/ .
Now that you have a better understanding of how a solar eclipse happens, here are two
websites that show you the path of the 2017 summer eclipse.
Path of the 2017 eclipse seen from the moon:
http://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/details.cgi?aid=4321
Path of the 2017 eclipse in the United States:
http://www.space.com/35065-2017-total-solar-eclipse-visible-in-united-states-find-outwhere-video.html
This third interactive website below allows you to investigate the type of eclipse you will see at
each location in the country, the start and end of the eclipse, and the length of the eclipse. It
also shows the path of totality. All people located on this path will get to see a total solar
eclipse while most of the continental United States will see only a partial eclipse.
Interactive map:
https://eclipse.gsfc.nasa.gov/SEgoogle/SEgoogle2001/SE2017Aug21Tgoogle.html
This last interactive website allows you to see what the eclipse will look like from different
locations in the United States. You will need some help from an adult to download and launch
the NASA’s Eyes App on to your computer.
Simulations of the eclipse from your location: http://eyes.jpl.nasa.gov/eyes-on-eclipse.html
To experience what it is like to see a real total solar eclipse, watch this beautiful video of the
2009 solar eclipse in Varanasi, India.
http://www.watchknowlearn.org/Video.aspx?VideoID=27559&CategoryID=2825
ACTIVITY 2: ECLIPSE CROSSWORD
(Source: www.aaq.org.au Astronomical Association Queensland)
Use the words and clues connected to a solar eclipse to complete the crossword on the next
page.
WRITING ACTIVITY:
Now that you have conducted an experiment, investigated websites, or completed the
crossword, write a few sentences to tell us what you have learned about solar eclipses during
your explorations.
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