Lesson 21 — Activity 2: The Effect of the Moon and the Sun on the Earth
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Lesson 21 — Activity 2:
The Effect of the Moon and the Sun on Earth
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From our perspective, the three objects that have the greatest impact on our lives are the Earth, the sun, and the moon. The Earth, of course, is the planet beneath our feet. Without it, well, we wouldn’t have anything at all. The sun warms our planet and with the moon, creates the tides. The sun and the moon are very important to us. In this activity, you will learn how the sun and the moon affect the Earth.
The moon's gravitational pull on the Earth is the main cause of the rise and fall of ocean tides. The moon's gravitational pull causes two bulges of water on the Earth's oceans — one where ocean waters face the moon and the pull is strongest and one where ocean waters face away from the moon and the pull is weakest. Both bulges cause high tides. As the Earth rotates, the bulges move around it, one always facing the moon and the other directly opposite. The combined forces of gravity, the Earth's rotation, and other factors usually cause two high tides and two low tides each day.
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Click on the Play button below to watch a video that further explains how tides work.
Click on the Play button below to watch a video that further explains how tides work.
Digging Deeper
Click here to go to the Study Jams! website to watch a video. When you have
finished watching the video, click on the "close" button in the upper
right-hand corner to exit the video. Then, click on the "Test Yourself"
button to see how much you know about tides.
The sun also affects the Earth in many ways. It gives us the light that plants need to undergo photosynthesis, which creates the carbohydrates that are the start of all of the food chains on the planet. It also allows plants to produce the oxygen we breathe.
While sunlight enables and sustains life, the sun also produces streams of high-energy particles and radiation that can affect life. Everyone is familiar with changes in the weather on Earth. But "weather" also occurs in space. Just as it drives weather on Earth, the sun is responsible for disturbances in our space environment.
Besides
emitting a continuous stream of plasma called the solar wind, the sun
also releases billions of tons of matter. These immense clouds of
material, when directed towards Earth, can cause large magnetic storms
in the upper atmosphere.
Besides
emitting a continuous stream of plasma called the solar wind, the sun
also releases billions of tons of matter. These immense clouds of
material, when directed towards Earth, can cause large magnetic storms
in the upper atmosphere.
These magnetic storms produce many noticeable effects on and near Earth:
- aurora borealis, the northern lights, and aurora australis, the southern lights
- communication disruptions
- radiation hazards to orbiting astronauts and spacecraft
- current surges in power lines
- corrosion in oil pipelines
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