25.1 Exploring the Solar System
25.2 The Earth-Moon System
25.3 The Inner Solar System
25.4 The Outer Solar System
25.5 The Origin of the Solar System
Why Does the Sun Seem to Move?
Procedure
Tape a pencil to a sunny window with its point facing up.
Tape a sheet of paper to a desk or the floor so that the shadow of the pencil point falls on the paper. Use a compass to find east, and mark an arrow on the paper pointing to the east. CAUTION Do not look directly at the sun.
Mark the position of the pencil point's shadow on the paper. Record the time of day.
After 10 minutes, repeat Step 3.
Think About It
Observing In which direction did the shadow move between your two observations?
Inferring What can you infer about the apparent motion of the sun from the movement of the shadow?
Drawing Conclusions How must Earth be moving to explain the apparent movement of the sun?