Solar Eclipse Model

Standards:
MS-ESS1-1. Develop and use a model of the Earth-Sun-moon system to describe the cyclic
patterns of lunar phases, eclipses of the Sun and moon, and seasons.
HS-ESS1-7. Construct an explanation using evidence to support the claim that the phases of the
moon, eclipses, tides and seasons change cyclically.
HS-ESS1-4. Use mathematical or computational representations to predict the motion of orbiting
objects in the solar system.

Materials:

- 6 in. diameter hard styrofoam ball

- 2 in. diameter hard styrofoam ball
- .5 in. diameter hard styrofoam ball
- circular wood platform ~60cm radius
- Wood plank 100cm x 6 cm
- 2 wooden skewers 1/12in diameter
- Wooden rod ⅝ in diameter 18cm tall
- Wooden rod ⅛ in diameter 18cm tall
- Plastic pinning stick
- Paper
- Black Chalkboard Spray paint
- Chalk
- Small Flashlight (skywolfeye tly-650)

Procedure to build model:

Platform
- Find the midpoint of your platform and drill a ⅝ hole there.
- Spray paint the board black preferably using chalkboard spray paint.
- Using a protractor segment your board into 12 sections by drawing equidistant lines 30
degrees apart.
- Label each segment with the different months of the year.
Earth
- Use the 2 in diameter ball to represent Earth.
- Drill 1 hole all the way through the Earth at a 0 degree angle and drill another hole all the
way through at a 5 degree angle. This will create a 5 degree plane around the Earth at
which the moon can orbit.
 - Skewer the Earth using the two 1/12th in diameter skewers.
- Pin the plastic pinner at a 23.5 degree angle to emulate the Earth's tilt on its axis, attach a
star to the end of it labeled polaris for a reference point.
- Using paper, cut out a circular orbit ~.5 in wide to show the entire lunar orbit.
Sun
- Drill a ⅝ in. in the bottom to mount on the board.
- Drill a hole big enough to house the flashlight.

Plank
- Cut down a plank to ~1m long.
- Drill a ⅝ inch hole on one end and a ⅛ inch hole on the other side to mount the wooden
dowels with the sun and the moon on them.
- The sun dowel does not need to be glued in place, we left it so it can be taken apart and
stored more easily.

What it represents:
- The relationships between the sun, moon and earth in the solar system.
- The mathematical relationships between the sun moon and the earth relative to the
ecliptic plane.
- The moon's 5 degree orbital plane and how at different times it will be either above or
below the ecliptic plane preventing there from being an eclipse.
- The earth’s 23.5 degree tilt relative to the ecliptic plane.
- Why eclipses don't happen every month and the conditions needed for an eclipse to
occur.
- How Earth's 23.5 degree tilt on its axis causes seasons the seasons occur.
- How the moon's orientation can lead to partial and total solar eclipses in different areas.

Teaching Procedure
Step 1: Inquire about students’ prior knowledge on eclipses.
Step 2: Ask students if they think eclipses occur every month.
Step 3: Explain why eclipses don’t happen every month by drawing a scaled down image of the
sun and planets resting on the ecliptic plane.
Step 4: Show NASA’s website to explain moon, earth, sun relationships
Step 5: Use the lunar model to allow for students to discover that the moon's orbital plane is on
an inclination of 5 degrees relative to the ecliptic plane
Step 6: Use model to show the earths tilt and the existence of seasons
Step 7: Have a few students manipulate the model as formative assessment to check for
understanding.
Step 8: Show a brief video informing students about eclipses to differentiate the lesson.
Step 9: Have students take out a sheet of paper and prompt them with three questions and have
them turn them in for summative assessment: A) What is a solar eclipse and what conditions
need to exist for one to occur? B) About how often do eclipses happen? C) What is the Earths tilt
relative to the ecliptic plane and the moons inclination/declination relative to the Earth?

Model Assessment:
- The model fits well with other 2D and 3D representations of our target and can be
worked together with them to create a more complete understanding of the topic. Other
models are listed below.
- The models target was to explain why eclipses occur when they do and the reasons as to
why. By shining a flashlight at the Earth and moon at different times it is very visible
when eclipses do and don't occur and that the reason is because of the moon's orbital
plane being tilted. The model explains the target well.
- Assumptions to be made about the model is that it is at a smaller scale than the actual solar
system.
- The model shows very clearly why there is an eclipse and why there is not and explains
it by allowing the students to see the 5 degree tilt of the moon’s orbital axis.
- The models initial purpose is to show Sun Moon and Earth relations and eclipses but was
extended to explain seasons, phases of the moon and other aspects of the solar system.
This model can be used in a number of ways.