Constellations
How many constellations do astronomers recognize?
88
How long does it take the Earth to spin around once?
1 day or 24 hours
What is the horizon?
The edge of the sky; the line at which the Earth's surface and the sky appears to meet. This line is perpendicular to your zenith.
Circumpolar Stars (ex. the North Star, Polaris)
The Sun rises in the sky in the ______ direction.
East
What is the Ecliptic?
The path the Sun takes through the sky, against the background stars.
How long does it take the Earth to orbit around the Sun?
1 year or 365 days.
Where can you find the ZENITH when looking at the sky?
It's the point directly above your head.
Zodiac constellations follow the line of the _______________.
Ecliptic
The Sun sets in the sky in the _____ direction.
West
What is the Celestial Sphere?
An imaginary sphere of infinite radius around Earth, which the objects of the sky appear to be projected on.
The two locations where the celestial equator and the ecliptic cross are called ... ?
The Equinoxes - Spring and Fall.
Where can you find the Celestial Equator?
Directly above Earth's Equator.
approximately 12 am or Midnight
Stars appear to move from _____ to _____ in the sky.
East to West
NO - zodiac horoscopes do NOT match with position of zodiac constellations. Remember there are 13 zodiac constellations!
When the Sun is FARTHEST from the equator it is called a ...
Solstice - Summer or Winter
Where can you find the Celestial Poles?
If you are standing outside at 12pm, where should the Sun be in the sky? (approximately)
Towards the center of the sky / halfway between East and West.
Stars appear to move in the sky but really it's __________ that is moving.
The Earth - daily motion AND yearly motion
What is the TOTAL number of constellations that lie on the ecliptic? (hint: zodiac)
13! In ABC order: Aries, Aquarius, Libra, Virgo, Gemini, Sagittarius, Taurus, Cancer, Capricorn, Leo, Scorpius, Ophiuchus (also known as #13), and Pisces.
How does the Earth's location influence the seasons? (Hint: think about the flashlight)
Summer - Earth tilted TOWARD Sun; Winter - Earth tilted AWAY from Sun
Where can you find the MERIDIAN on the Celestial Sphere?
an imaginary line drawn from North to South. This divides the sky into Eastern and Western halves.
How can you find the North Star (Polaris) in the sky based on your latitude location? Ex. Philly is ~40 degrees latitude
By looking North and counting the number of degrees above the horizon. The number of degrees above the horizon is EQUAL to the number of degrees for your latitude location. For example, from Philly (40 degrees latitude) Polaris would be ~40 degress above the horizon.
Approximately how long can you see a zodiac constellation in the sky during a single year?
1 season OR about 3 months each