The Earth, the Moon, and the Sun
How do the Sun and the Moon affect the Earth? Without the Sun, the Earth would be a big ball of frozen mud, just another asteroid, drifting in space with no gravity to anchor it here and nothing to give us heat and light. We could not be here without the Sun.
The Moon is another story. The Moon could not be here without the Earth. Most scientists now believe that the Moon was ripped from the Earth by a massive impact billions of years ago. Our Moon is very much like our Earth-- except that it has no atmosphere. There may be some water frozen at the poles, left over from an earlier time. There also seem to have been volcanoes there once. You can find old lava flows on the Moon. Just look for the dark spots.
What happens on the Sun and the Moon can change what we see and feel here on Earth. Solar flares can mess up TV and radio, and the Moon's gravity affects the tides. How will we affect the Moon? We have visited the Moon, and sometime in the future, there could be a Moon colony. Scientists are already working out the details for that.
Learn more about the Earth, the Moon and the Sun on the Web and in the library.
We have a special science resource to help you with your reports--The New Book of Popular Science. Need more magazine articles? We have those, too! Search Info Trac Kids Edition. Want general encyclopedia-style articles? Look at Grolier Kids and Kids InfoBits. You can connect to these from home. All you need is your CRRL Library Card.
Materials to check out from the library:
Blue Planet: An Imax Space Film-- About Earth.
The video Blue Planet dramatically reveals the forces affecting the Earth's fragile ecological balance: hurricanes, volcanoes, earthquakes and, ultimately, humankind.
Boy, Were We Wrong about the Solar System!
Looks at how scientific theories have changed over time concerning the solar system.
Catch a Sunbeam: a Book of Solar Study and Experiments. Adams, Florence.
Includes instructions for 16 solar experiments that reveal a variety of facts about the sun and the uses of solar energy.
Extreme Planets! Q & A. Smithsonian.
Has answers to questions such as: What makes up a planet? Why is Earth the only known world where life exists? How can a planet's day actually be longer than its year? So buckle up as you blast off for an extreme voyage through the solar system, from Mercury to Neptune and beyond!
The Moon. Simon, Seymour.
A basic introduction to Earth's closest neighbor, its composition, and man's missions to it. Illustrated with photographs of the moon taken in space.
Moonshot: The Flight of Apollo 11. Floca, Brian.
Here is the story of the Apollo 11 mission to the Moon -- a story of leaving and returning during the summer of 1969, and a story of home, seen whole, from far away by steady astronauts in their great machines.
The Nature and Science of Sunlight. Burton, Jane.
Examines the energy and light produced by the sun and their importance to life on Earth.
Our Solar System. Simon, Seymour.
Describes the origins, characteristics, and future of the sun, planets, moons, asteroids, meteoroids, and comets.
Planet Earth and the Universe. Brewer, Duncan.
Examines the physical characteristics and conditions of the Earth, describing its position in relation to the sun and other planets and surveying humanity's attempts to penetrate its mysteries.
The Sun. Chrismer, Melanie.
An introduction to the Sun for beginning readers.
On the Web
Factmonster: The Sun
http://www.factmonster.com/ipka/A0875446.html
What's the Sun made of, and how does it work? Gives answers to these questions and a list of terms to know. Link out to more information about the formation of the solar system and the Moon.
Facts About the Moon for Kids
http://www.woodlands-junior.kent.sch.uk/time/moon/facts.htm
Just the facts: how fast, how far, how big, nicknames, a moon calendar, and more.
Planet Earth Information
http://science.nationalgeographic.com/science/space/solar-system/earth.html
The National Geographic Society lays out important facts about our planet.
The Sun from HAO Education
http://www.enchantedlearning.com/subjects/astronomy/sun/
This is a slightly easier introduction to the Sun. Answers basic questions and briefly discusses aurorae and eclipses. Includes Web links for further study.
Sun Music, Moon Mirrors, and More
http://www.aip.org/radio/category8.html
"We see the sun all the time. . . but listen to it? The sun actually makes sound, and it's teaching astronomers something about its composition." Short and fascinating transcripts of radio spots. You can read the scripts or listen to them as recordings.
