Earth, Sun , Moon Cycles Study Guide
Test Date: ________________________
What causes Day and Night?
• The earth rotates on its axis and orbits the sun.
• An axis is an imaginary straight line around which the Earth rotates. It
goes from the North Pole to the South Pole.
• The earth's rotation causes day and night.
• Rotation is the spinning of an object on its axis.
• It takes the Earth one day (24 hours) to make one rotation.
North Pole
The earth’s
rotation (spinning)
on its axis,
causing DAY AND
NIGHT!
South Pole
What causes the Seasons?
• The Earth revolves around the sun.
• A revolution is the movement of one object around another.
• The tilt of the Earth on its axis causes the seasons.
• It takes the Earth 365 1/4 days to make one revolution around the sun.
SPRING
SUMMER
FALL
WINTER
Phases of the Moon
• The phases of the moon are different shapes the moon seems to have in the
night sky.
• The moon repeats these phases once every month (about 28 days!).
• The cause of these phases is the positions of the Sun, Earth, and Moon.
• The moon does not make its own light; it REFLECTS light from the Sun.
• No matter what phase the moon is in, HALF of it is ALWAYS lit by the
Sun
( The half that is facing the Sun is always lit).
• As the Moon moves in its orbit, different portions of it appear to be lit up as
we look at it from Earth. This is why we see lunar phases.
You will need to recognize the phases of the moon.
START OF THE MOON
PHASES! The side of the
moon that faces the
earth is dark. We
cannot see it during
this phase!
Only half of the
moon is lit. This
phase looks like a
BACKWARDS
letter ‘D’
Tides
• The gravitational pull of the moon on
Earth creates high and low tides.
• When the ocean moves away from
the land it is low tide.
• When the ocean moves towards the
land it is high tide.
The side of the
moon that faces
earth is completely
lit.
Only half of the
moon is lit. This
phase looks like
the letter ‘D’.