Chapter 3 Flashcards
moonrise/set times
New moon – sunrise to sunset
1st quarter – noon to midnight
Full moon – sunset to sunrise
3rd quarter – midnight to noon
synchronous rotation
when an object rotates once during an orbit; this causes one side of the moon to always face away from Earth
siderial month
amount of time required for the moon to complete one full orbit of Earth with respect to the stars
27.32 days
synodic month
also known as lunar month; equal to a lunar day
time required for the moon to complete a full cycle of phases (based on sun)
29.53 days
inclination of moon’s orbit
about 5 degrees from Earth’s orbit (the ecliptic)
line of nodes
intersection of the moon and Earth’s orbital planes
eclipses can only occur when the sun and moon lie on the line of nodes
phases of eclipses
solar eclipses only occur at new moon and lunar eclipses only occur at full moon
umbra
the fully shaded inner region of a shadow cast by an opaque object, especially the area on the earth or moon experiencing the total phase of an eclipse
penumbra
the partially shaded outer region of the shadow cast by an opaque object.
classifications of lunar eclipse
penumbral, partial, total lunar eclipse
maximum length of total lunar eclipse
1 h 42 min
color of light which passes through Earth’s atmosphere
mostly red
causes the moon to appear red during an eclipse
apogee
the point in the orbit of the moon or a satellite at which it is furthest from the earth
annular solar eclipse
a solar eclipse where the moon does not completely cover the sun because it is near apogee
perigee
the point in the orbit of the moon or a satellite at which it is closest to the earth
