Name: ____nicholas gladden_______________ Class Period ___2___________ Date

____________9-11-14________
SEASONS WEBQUEST
Click on the following link to answer the following questions:
http://www.astronomy.org/programs/seasons/
1. During which season is the earth closest to the sun, summer or winter?
___winter___________ Scroll down to the Direct Energy vs. Indirect Energy picture of the
flashlights.
2. Direct energy always produces _______concentrated________ shadows while indirect
energy creates _______tilted____________ shadows.
3. Why is this important to how warm we feel?
_the way the sun strikes the earth reflects the difference in the amount of energy we
recieve_____________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________
Click on the following link to answer more questions.
http://vortex.plymouth.edu/sun/sun.html
Click on Why are there seasons?
1. Explain the difference between an equinox and a solstice:
_an equinox is when times are equal around the world and a solstice is when either the day
or
night
is
longer.
_______________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________ .
2. How many of each do we have each year? _____________
Name them:
Solstices:
Equinoxes:
a. summer
a. autumnal
b. winter
b. vernal
Click on Rotation
1.
In
which
direction
does
the
Earth
spin
on
its
axis?
__________counterclockwise________________ Click on Solstices
2. In which direction is the Northern Hemispere tilted during mid-Spring and summer?
________toward the sun________________________________________
3. How does this effect the amount of daylight we have during this time?
__________________longer daylight hours_____________________________
4. During what time of year does the North Pole experience 24 hours of sunlight?

____________summer solstice_______
South pole? ________winter solstice___________________________

Click on Our Orbit

5. Draw and label the Earths position in relation to the sun during each of the 4 seasons:

Click on Temperatures
1. During what season does the Northern Hemisphere receive more concentrated energy
from the sun? (look at the flashlight example for a clue)
_________________________summer_________________________________________
_____.
2. During what season (time of year) does the Sun have to travel through more atmosphere?
____________winter_______________________________________
If you were having to explain the reasons for the seasons to a 5 th grader who is convinced that
seasons come from being closer or further away from the Sun explain how you would do it
below: (Include at least 3 things you learned from these sites!)
__________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________ .

Number 5