Answered by Brian Tonks – BYU-I daho Astronomy Professor The ancients noticed that seven celestial objects move relative to the stars: the Sun, the Moon, and the five visible planets (the word “planet” comes from the Greeks meaning “wanderer”—the Greeks knew them as wandering stars). Astrologers attributed special meaning to these objects. It is clear…
Question Answered by NOAA, Air Resources Laboratory, Field Research Division, Idaho Falls, ID The Earth’s climate does vary over time due to factors such as the movement of continents, large-scale volcanic activity, changes in the Earth’s orbit, and variations in the Sun’s energy output. Because of these changing factors, there is not one fixed temperature…
Question Answered by Dr. Brian Tonks, Astronomy Professor, BYU-Idaho Check out Part 1 of this question at http://www.idahoaskascientist.com. Part 2: Now let’s add the Moon to the figure at the right . We have to be careful when we look at figures like these because they are never drawn to the correct scale. If the…
Answered by Dr. Brian Tonks, Astronomy Professor, BYU-Idaho You can see the Moon during the day because it slowly orbits the Earth. As a result, the Moon lies opposite the Sun during part of its orbit and we see it all night long. During part of its orbit, it lies near the Sun and we…
