Part 3: The Moon, Moon Phases, and Eclipses
(1) Use the accompanying maps of the Moon to find the names of Maria A-J, Craters 1-9, Mountain ranges 10-12, and Other features 13-15. You may use either the English or the Latin names: see the accompanying Latin/English Guide, after the pages on eclipses. I like the English names, they’re more romantic, for example, “The Sea of Tranquility,” versus the Latin “Mare Tranquilitatis.”
(2) On this map, plot the sites of all the Apollo landings (11, 12, 14, 15, 16, 17), as well as the sites for Luna 16, 20, and 24 (the automated Soviet sample return missions), and turn in this map. The coordinates of these sites are:
Mission Landing Date Landing Site Latitude Longitude
Apollo 11 1969 Jul 20 Sea of Tranquility 0° 67' N 23° 49' E Apollo 12 1969 Nov 19 Ocean of Storms 3° 12' S 23° 23' W Apollo 14 1971 Jan 31 Fra Mauro highlands 3° 40' S 17° 28' W Apollo 15 1971 Jul 30 Hadley-Apennine 26° 06' N 3° 39' E Apollo 16 1972 Apr 21 Descartes highlands 9° 00' N 15° 31' E Apollo 17 1972 Dec 11 Taurus-Littrow 20° 10' N 30° 46' E
Luna 16 1970 Sep 20 Sea of Fertility 0° 41' S 56° 18' E Luna 20 1972 Feb 21 Apollonius highlands 3° 32' N 56° 33' E Luna 24 1976 Aug 18 Sea of Crises 12° 45' N 60° 12' E
[Hint: Use the latitude and longitude lines on one of the maps to find the sites, and then use nearby landmarks to find the sites.]
(3) As the Moon orbits the Earth every month, we see if go through its cycle of phases, because of the Sun angle. It has nothing to do with the Earth’s shadow: that’s a lunar eclipse, and those are rare, occurring every 2-3 years, on average.
On a separate piece of paper, redo the drawing on Moon phases, the way it appears on the page after the lunar map. Don’t photocopy it: draw it yourself, it’ll help you learn it. Be sure to label all the phases, including: waxing crescent, First Quarter, waxing gibbous, Full Moon, waning gibbous, Last Quarter, and waning crescent, and New Moon.
(4) Redo the drawings on the page after the page on Moon phases, of: (a) a solar eclipse, and (b) a lunar eclipse. In both cases, be sure to label which drawing depicts a solar eclipse and which depicts a lunar eclipse. Also draw and label Earth, Sun, and Moon, and draw and label where the umbra (total shadow) and penumbra (partial shadow) are.
(5) Read the write-up on eye safety and eclipses that follows the page with the drawings of eclipses.