MSTE AIMS 2007: The Science and Math of the Moon Brian Fields Astronomy and Physics Departments, U. Illlinois

Geometry: Sizes, Phases, Eclipses

Phases of the Moon

• demo
• Earth-Moon-Sun Geometry animated
• quiz yourself

Eclipses

• Lunar
  • total, moonrise in eclipse, time lapse
• Solar
  • partial, over the Golden Gate,
  • total--over Turkey: zoom, time lapse
  • high-res annular, composite of rare hybrid event
  • diamond ring
  • Moon at closest and farthest (perigee/apogee)
  • eclipse path animation
  • looking down on an eclipsed Earth

Lunar Spin & Orbit: Co-rotation

• the near side through one lunation
• the far side

The Dynamic Moon: Gravity, Tides, and the Length of the Day

• high/low comparison
  
• online data
• orbit animation
• evolution of the Moon's (and Earth's) spins and orbit:
  the receding Moon: evidence
  the lengthening day: evidence
  

Craters, Statistics, and History

• Compare Earth vs Moon surfaces
• zoom in with Google Moon
• but what about here?
  • Manicouagan, Clearwater Lakes, Canada
  • Tunguska, Siberia
  • Meteor crater, Arizona
  • Cosmic calamity! ... and evidence
    signaling for a fair catch

The Physical Moon: Traveller's Tales and Origin

The Lunar Surface

• highlands
  Descartes highlands as seen by Apollo 16
• maria
  Mare Imbrium, Mare Orientale
• craters
  Copernicus, more, more, and more craters
• regolith: first-hand description

Origin of the Moon

Useful Links

BDF MSTE Astronomy Pages

• AIMS Astronomy 2006
• AIMS Astronomy 2005
• SummerMath 2004

BDF Course Webpages

• Astronomy 100 (Spring 2003): lecture pages with links
• Astronomy For Teachers: lecture pages with links

Other Astronomical/Educational Resources

• the invaluable Astronomy Picture of the Day
• solar motion throughout the year: the analemma
• solar system clearinghouse: nineplanets.org
• Google Earth, Moon

This page: www.astro.uiuc.edu/~bdfields/mste_aims07.html

Acknowledgments & Fine Print

The work of BDF was supported, in part, by the National Science Foundation. Opinions expressed are those of the authors and not necessarily those of the Foundation.