Collin County Community College Motion and Phases of the Moon Lab Report

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wrnaxvz2000

Science

Collin County Community College

Description

You will be required to complete 4 lab worksheets

labs can be tedious (you do not have to get the equipment (telescope or compass) to get the data. Just look up reasonable data that would fit the lab to complete the assignment)

labs will be sent in word docs and the discussions will be sent in through here and will need to be sent back in a word doc

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Explanation & Answer

Attached.

ONLINE PHYSICAL SCIENCE II

Name:

Lab Activity

” The Sun’s Motion in our Sky”
Equipment
For this activity you will need:
A level
Three rulers
A yardstick or a tape measure
A pencil
Tape
A half piece of posterboard
Scissors
A smartphone with a compass application (or an actual compass)

Learning Outcomes
After this activity you will be able to:
1. Identify how the altitude of the sun in the sky is changing with each day.
2. Identify the relationship between the sun’s altitude and the time of year.
3. Identify the heading (direction) to the rising or setting sun.
4. Identify the relationship between the heading of the rising (or setting) sun, and the time of year.
5. Identify the relationship between the sun’s altitude and the level of insolation (i.e. the degree to
which the sun’s energy is spread out across the ground).

Introduction
Tracking the movements of the sun in the sky is one of
the oldest astronomical activities. Some of the earliest
monuments built by humans (such as Stonehenge,
Carnac, or Newgrange in the British Isles) have
astronomical significance and mark the locations of the
sun along the horizon at key times of the year (such as
the summer solstice, or the spring equinox). Others
capitalize on knowledge of the sun’s path through the
sky to create spectacular optical effects (such as the
“snake” that slithers down the main staircase of the
pyramid at Chichen Itza on the spring equinox).

.

In this activity, you will track the motions of the sun in the sky over the course of several weeks, and use
the data you collect to make and test predictions about how the sun’s position in our sky changes, along
with the relationship between the sun’s altitude in the sky, and how efficiently it heats the ground.

Getting Started
Before you can begin gathering your data, you will need to make sure you’ve gathered all of your
supplies, done a few “start-up” activities (to get your equipment ready), and practiced how you will take
your measurements. A few notes:
1. It is highly recommended that you dedicate a day or two to getting everything set up and ready
to go (and to practice taking measurements) before you actually begin taking data.
2. Likewise, once you’ve started taking data, you will need to commit to taking data regularly for
the next four weeks. Failing to do so will affect your results and could potentially affect your
grade. You should carefully check your schedule, and make sure you can reasonably fit in these
activities for the next four weeks. (Remember, once you are practiced in taking these
measurements, it should take you less than ten minutes each day to gather your data.)
3. Several of these activities will go a lot more smoothly if you have a partner to help you – a friend,
spouse, co-worker, child, etc. As part of your preparation, you should carefully read through the
entire activity so that you know exactly what to expect and can explain to a partner (if any) how
they can help you with your measurements (i.e. what they need to hold, what they need to help
you measure, and so forth).
4. For one day (and one day only) you’ll be making several measurements at regular intervals. A
weekend (or a day you don’t have to be at work) will work best here, and you should check the
weather report before setting the day – it will need to be a clear, sunny day.
A typical piece of poster board is about 20” by 30” (often they are 22” by 28”). To make your half piece,
cut parallel to the short side of the board, so your half piece should be about 20” by 15.” In the center
of your half piece of poster board, use a ruler to measure out a 10 cm by 10 cm square, and cut out the
square. This half piece of poster board with the square cut out of it is what you’ll use to measure how
direct the sun’s rays are. Let’s call it your Insolation Tool (or IT for short).
Once IT is ready, your next preparation task will be figuring out a time when you can (consistently)
measure the sun’s altitude in the sky every other day for the next four weeks. It is best to choose a time
that is as close to noon as possible – if you’ve got a consistent lunch break, that will work well. Try to
choose a time between 10 am and 2 pm in the early spring, winter or late fall, or between 10 am and 4
pm in the summer, fall, or late spring. Be sure you can set aside around three to five minutes each day
at your chosen time to make your measurement. As part of your preparation, you might want to
consider setting an alarm or reminder to go off a few minutes before you need to make your
measurement each day.

The start or end of Daylight Saving Time can really mess up your results. For this reason, you should
try very hard to schedule this activity so it can be entirely done either before or after Daylight Saving
Time starts (or ends). In other words, make sure a Daylight Saving Time change doesn’t occur during the
four weeks you are making measurements. If you have no choice and have to conduct measurement
both before and after a Daylight Saving Time change, there are instructions as to what to do later in the
activity – but it is best to avoid this if possible.
You will also need to choose either sunrise or sunset to make a measurement (in addition to the one you
make at the same time every other day). You need to choose one or the other: if you choose sunrise,
you’ll need to do a measurement at sunrise every other day. If you choose sunset, you’ll need to always
do a measurement at sunset. Choose whichever one you can consistently measure.
For the sunrise/sunset measurement you’ll need
take your smart phone (or whatever portable
device your compass application is on), and tape a
pencil (or something else that will act as a pointer)
to the back of the device so that it points in
whatever direction the smart phone is pointing.
The idea is you want to be able to point the pencil
and have the compass heading be whatever
direction the pencil is pointing. Obviously you’re
not expect to go around all day with a pencil taped
to your phone – you can “set up” your pointer
shortly before each time you need to make your
measurement.

How to Make Measurements (Procedures for the Activity)
Here’s how you will make your measurements.
The Sun’s Altitude: At the time you’ve decided on, go to
flat, level ground (use the l...


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