Appendix B:
Solar Simon Says, by Steve Drake
201303
Game
Objective: Same as the traditional “Simon Says",
but obeying solar commands while becoming the last student standing.
Teaching
Objectives: To
introduce &/or reinforce the knowledge (and exploration) of the environment
beyond our planet, through the set-up and playing of a solar
(daytime)
version of Simon Says.
The terms highlighted in
YELLOW will be used during this game.
Participation
Requirements & Expectations:
1) A working knowledge
of COMPASS DIRECTIONS (North, East, South, West).
2) DEFINITIONS:
AXIS: An imaginary line (or axle), on which an object spins. The
line through Earth north to south pole.
Visual aid: bicycle wheel and/or a ballerina
AZIMUTH:
The Arc on which the sun appears to travel across the sky
Visual aid: At “high
noon,” stand with back to the sun and your shadow directly in front of you, with
arms straight out by your side… The direction of your arms indicates the “arc”
line in which the sun travels… (and, East and West directions, North of the
Equator). Your Shadow will be your North
direction, leaving the South directional heading behind you, in the opposite
direction.
CELESTIAL:
the heavens or “outer-space”.
CONSTELLATION: a group of stars that make up a
“connect the dot” picture.
EARTH: 3rd
planet from the sun (93 million miles), with one moon. Also, the Earth is the only planet that
supports all manner of known life.
GALAXY:
a very large collection of celestial bodies (self illuminating stars,
non-illuminating planets and moons, gaseous nebulae, etc.). The earth resides
in our Sun system, which is part of the
Milky Way Galaxy.
LATITUDE: North to south dividing “rings”
(running east and west), perpendicular to the earth's axis. The equator is the largest ring. Visual aid: horizontal Hoola-Hoop
LONGITUDE: East to West dividing lines (running
north and south), based on the prime meridian line through Greenwich, England
(a suburb of London). Visual aid: vertical Hoola-Hoop
MERIDIAN: An imaginary line, perpendicular to
the sun’s azimuth, drawn in a true solar north and south.
AM: Ante-Meridian (before noon).
PM: Post-Meridian (after noon).
Visual aid: While facing
True North, draw a North/South Line (Solar Noon) and label the West Side (AM)
and the East side (PM). If your shadow
falls to the left of the Meridian line, then it is before noon (AM).
A MOON: is a celestial body or natural “satellite”
that orbits (revolves around) the Earth or another planet.
ROTATION
of Earth's Moon is synchronous. It's rotation
period is the same as its period of revolution.
ORBIT:
When viewed from the
north celestial pole (Polaris),
the Moon orbits (revolves around) the Earth counterclockwise,
the Earth orbits the Sun counterclockwise, and the Moon and Earth rotate on
their own axes counterclockwise.
NORTH
STAR (POLARIS):
is the last star in the handle of the Little Dipper. All other stars seem to rotate around
it. This makes Polaris the only star
that does not move in the night sky. It is the “Alpha” star in the
Constellation Ursa Minor (Latin for Little Bear).
The Little Dipper is an
ASTERISM (a part of) the constellation Ursa Minor.
ORBIT: The path in space that an object revolves along in a
circular or elliptical manner.
PLANET: a
non-luminous object that revolves around a sun.
ROTATION OF THE EARTH:
1) From an earth view,
the sun rises in the east and sets in the west.
2) From the sun’s view,
the earth is spinning west to east around the sun. Visual aid: As the “earth”, walk to your left
and spin around to your left around a representative sun, in an elliptical
orbit (hold on to the hoola-hoop
that is around the “sun”.
TRUE NORTH: (as it relates to geographic maps) vs.
magnetic north (as shown on a compass), and why it is important to know the
difference
SOLAR NOON is the moment
when the Sun transits the celestial meridian – roughly the time when it is highest
above the horizon on that day.
NOON”
(12:00) ON A CLOCK is
set according to the time zone in which we live.
STAR: Self illuminating celestial body that
appears to be stationary (remains in a “fixed” position) in relation to other
stars
Our SUN: a
star at the center of a large collection of celestial bodies to form a solar
system.
UNIVERSE: The collection of all celestial
bodies, in all of space; the cosmos (everything physical).
A
working knowledge of the above terms and directions
provides
a beginner's guide to understanding and explaining many astronomical wonders.
For more information and
opportunities on viewing the day and night sky
contact
the
Astronomy Club of
Augusta
https://www.angelfire.com/ga/astronomyclubaugusta
click
on Calendar of Events
