Topic: Effects of the Earth’s revolution around the Sun

Target group

First‑grade student of high school or technical school (basic programme and extended programme)

Core curriculum (basic programme)

General requirements

II. Skills and application of knowledge in practice.

1. Using plans, physico‑geographic and socio‑economic maps, photographs, aerial and satellite photographs, drawings, charts, statistical data, source texts, information and communication technologies and geoinformation in order to acquire, process and present geographic information.

Specific requirements

II. Earth in the Universe: Earth as a planet, consequences of Earth's movements, celestial bodies, Solar System, construction of the Universe.

Student:

2 ) gives the characteristics of the Earth's movements and characterizes their consequences, taking into account the Coriolis force.

Core curriculum (extended programme)

II. Astronomical observations and contemporary studies of the Universe: the altitude of the Sun's towering, determining the geographic coordinates, the phase of the Moon, solar and lunar eclipses, research achievements in the exploration of the Universe.

Student:

1) calculates the altitude of the Sun's elevation at any latitude on the equinoxes and solstices in order to show the relationship between the inclination of the Earth's axis in the circulation and the inflow of solar energy to its surface;

2) determines the geographical coordinates of any point on the surface of the Earth based on the altitude of the Sun's elevation on the days of equinoxes and solstices and the calculation of the difference in solar time;

General aim of education

The student will learn the most important consequences of the movement of the Earth around the Sun.

Key competences

• communication in foreign languages;

• digital competence;

• learning to learn.

Criteria for success
The student will learn:

• you will explain the consequences of the Earth's circular motion;

• you will distinguish the two most important calendars on Earth;

• you will list the consequences of differences in Earth's lighting by the Sun during the year;

• you will describe the course and range of polar and polar night phenomena;

• you will explain the causes and course of solar and lunar eclipses.

Methods/techniques

• expository

  • talk.

• activating

  • discussion.

• exposing

  • exposition.

• programmed

  • with computer;

  • with e‑textbook.

• practical

  • exercices concerned.

Forms of work

• individual activity;

• activity in pairs;

• activity in groups;

• collective activity.

Teaching aids

• e‑textbook;

• interactive whiteboard, tablets/computers;

• multimedia resources contained in the lesson „The consequences of the Earth's circulation” in the e‑manual;

• globe, tellurium (preferably a few pieces per class).

Lesson plan overview

Before classes

• Before classes, the instructor recommends students to read at home with all the material from the lesson „The consequences of the Earth's circulation” in the e‑textbook.

Introduction

• In class, the teacher determines the purpose of the lesson, informing students about its planned course.

• Then he writes the topic of classes on the blackboard or interactive whiteboard. Students write it in notebooks.

Realization

• The teacher divides the students into groups. Each of them, based on abstract and other available materials, develops other issues:
  Group I - Julian and Gregorian calendar - reasons for introduction, similarities and differences;
  Group II - the occurrence of the phenomenon of the day and the polar night;
  Group III - the formation of solar eclipses;
  Group IV - the formation of lunar eclipses.

• Group leaders refer to assigned issues. After completing the students' statements, the teacher initiates a discussion devoted to the observable consequences of the Earth's circular motion. During the discussion students using a globe or tellurium demonstrate the discussed phenomena and explain each other their course.

• Students, working in pairs, search for information about solar or lunar eclipses predicted in the near future and the possibility of observing them from Poland.

• The class together analyzes the reasons why not all eclipses are observed from our country and not all of these eclipses are total eclipses.

• Working individually, students perform an interactive exercise from the abstract.

Summary

• The teacher goes on to summarize the lesson, during which the students can discuss any unclear issues and complete the notes.

The following terms and recordings will be used during this lesson

Terms

Texts and recordings

Effects of the Earth’s revolution around the Sun

In the year currently referred to as 45 BC, a new calendar named after Caesar – Julian was introduced. Its main objectives were: establishing 1 January as the beginning of the year; setting length of the month at 30 or 31 days - except for February, which counted only 28 days; introducing every 4 years a leap year – which was one day longer, i.e. it had 29 February. It was then assumed that the year was 365 days and 6 hours. But it is actually around 11 minutes shorter. This error accumulated for hundreds of years, until it grew to around 10 days in 1582. The beginnings of the seasons no longer coincided with the calendar. Pope Gregory XIII introduced a reform that is still in force today. Firstly, he decided that once 4 October was followed by 15 October, which removed the excess days. Secondly, it assumed that an ordinary year has 365 days, that every 4 years there is a leap year, and that 29 February is added then, but that every 100 years there is a year that is supposed to be a leap year, but that it is an ordinary one and it has 365 days. However, every 400 years, despite a full hundred years, there is a leap year. This calendar is called Gregorian and dominates the world, although there are a few other equally important calendars.

Why do polar day and night occur? A year's movement around the Sun results in the creation of five illumination zones on Earth. Their limits are determined by the tropics and polar circles. The most illuminated zone is the tropics. It stretches between the Tropic of Cancer in the north and the Tropic of Capricorn in the south. The Equator runs through its centre. Only in this zone we can observe the Sun culminating at the zenith. Every 24 hours there is both day and night. On the Equator their length is almost identical and amounts to approximately 12 hours each, and in the vicinity of the tropics the difference between day and night is at maximum 2 hours. Two moderate zones are located between the tropics and the polar circles – the Tropic of Cancer and the Arctic Circle in the north, as well as the Tropic of Capricorn and the Antarctic Circle in the south, which makes them less illuminated. In these zones the Sun never culminates at the zenith, but every day there is both day and night. The altitude of the Sun at its upper culmination varies significantly. It can range from approx. 43° to almost 90° close to the tropics and from approx. 0° to max. 43° close to the polar circles. There is also a very large variation in the length of day and night during the year. The areas the least illuminated by the Sun are the polar zones, located between the polar circles and the poles.

At least twice a year (and up to four or five times a year), there is an astronomical phenomenon in which the Moon stands on a line between the Earth and the Sun and obscures the sunlight. This phenomenon is called a solar eclipse. In the scale of the entire Earth it occurs quite frequently, but it is always visible on a relatively small area, in a belt less than 300 km wide and several thousand kilometres long. As a result, only once in several years we have a chance to see a partial solar eclipse from Poland, and a total eclipse occurs on our territory every several hundred years. The nearest total eclipse of the Sun will be visible from Poland on 7 October 2135.

When the Earth is in line between the Sun and the Moon, the phenomenon of a lunar eclipse can take place. The shadow or partial shadow cast by the Earth obscures the sunlight, which is observed as a dark circle obscuring part or all of the Moon's illuminated disc.

In the last two topics, various phenomena resulting from the Earth’s revolving around the Sun have been discussed many times. Some of them are of great importance, while others are of little importance to humans.

The phenomenon of the year, which is one of the basic measures of time and for people means the necessity of using a calendar.

Variation in the Sun's altitude at noon during the year.

Change of the location of sunrise and sunset on the horizon line during the year.

Polar day and night, which significantly hamper people’s functioning outside the polar circles.

Emergence of 5 illumination zones, which offer very varied living and farming conditions.

The emergence of climate zones, which are the diverse illumination of the Earth and, in addition, have a strong impact on the zonal distribution of plants and soils.

The volatility of the seasons has an impact mainly on agriculture but also on other sectors of the economy.

• The Earth’s revolution around the Sun has numerous consequences for the natural environment and human beings.

• Several different calendars are used on Earth at the same time.

• Currently the most commonly used calendar on Earth is the Gregorian calendar.

• Earth’s revolution around the Sun in conjunction with the inclination of the Earth's axis to the plane of the ecliptic causes the following phenomena: changes of the Sun’s altitude at culmination as well of the place of sunrise and sunset during the year, astronomical seasons, polar day and night, the differentiation of Earth’s illumination zones, which leads to the climate, plant and soil zones.

• The movement of our star, planet and the only natural satellite with respect to each other cause the phenomena of solar and lunar eclipses.