Scapa 6Th Grade Science Vocabulary - Earth, Moon, And Sun Interactions

Front 1

Rotation

Back 1

spinning of Earth on its imaginary axis, which takes about 24 hours to complete, and causes day and night to occur

Front 2

Revolution

Back 2

Earth's yearlong elliptical orbit around the sun

Front 3

Axis

Back 3

imaginary vertical line that cuts through the center of Earth and around which Earth spins

Front 4

Equinox

Back 4

twice-yearly time, each spring and fall, when the Sun is directly over the equator and the number of daylight and nighttime hours are equal worldwide

Front 5

Solstice

Back 5

twice-yearly point at which the Sun reaches its greatest distance north or south of the equator

Front 6

Equator

Back 6

The imaginary horizontal line around the earth's surface, that divides the earth into the Northern Hemisphere and the Southern Hemisphere.

Front 7

Tropic of Cancer

Back 7

an imaginary horizontal line that is the most northerly latitude at which the sun can shine directly overhead

Front 8

Tropic of Capricorn

Back 8

an imaginary horizontal line that is the most southerly latitude at which the sun can shine directly overhead

Front 9

Lunar phase

Back 9

a specific phase that the Moon takes in its appearance from Earth during its revolution around Earth

Front 10

Waxing crescent

Back 10

describes the phase following a new moon, as more of the Moon's lighted side becomes visible

Front 11

1st Quarter Moon

Back 11

more of the illuminated half of the Moon can be seen each night, you can see 1/2 of the moon after the waxing crescent

Front 12

Waxing Gibbous

Back 12

more of the illuminated half of the Moon can be seen each night, you can see 3/4 of the moon before the full moon and after the 1st quarter moon

Front 13

Full Moon

Back 13

phase that occurs when all of the Moon's surface facing Earth reflects light

Front 14

Waning Gibbous

Back 14

right after a full moon, you see less of its illuminated half of the moon, you can see 3/4 of the moon after the full moon and the Moon looks like it is shrinking

Front 15

3rd (or last) Quarter Moon

Back 15

after the waning gibbous, you can see only half of the lighted side of the Moon

Front 16

Waning Crescent

Back 16

after the 3rd quarter Moon, waning crescent occurs just before a new moon and you can only see a small slice of the Moon (1/4 of the lighted side)

Front 17

Lunar Cycle

Back 17

the phases of the revolution of the Moon that is seen from Earth

Front 18

Solar Eclipse

Back 18

occurs when the Moon moved directly between the Sun and Earth and casts its shadow over part of Earth

Front 19

Lunar Eclipse

Back 19

occurs when the Earth's shadow falls on the Moon

Front 20

Total Eclipse

Back 20

an eclipse in which the entire surface of the Moon or the Sun is not blocked or obscured, results in a solar ecplise or a lunar eclipse

Front 21

Partial Eclipse

Back 21

an eclipse where the sun blocks only part of the moon or the moon blocks only part of the sun, does not block completely

Front 22

Umbra

Back 22

the completely dark portion of the shadow cast by the earth, moon, or other body during an eclipse

Front 23

Penumbra

Back 23

a partial shadow, as in an eclipse, between regions of complete shadow and complete illumination

Front 24

Low Tide

Back 24

the lowest level of the tide, the time at which the tide is lowest

Front 25

High Tide

Back 25

the tide at its fullest, when the water reaches its highest level

Front 26

Neap Tide

Back 26

tide that is least extreme, they happen twice a month and the first and last quarter moon phases

Front 27

Spring Tide

Back 27

tide that is most extreme, occur twice a month at the full and new moon phases

Front 28

Gravity

Back 28

force of attraction between any two objects