Welcome to Ms. Royster's world of science.  It's a great place to visit.  Vistors become so intrigued they stay for an entire year.  Many visitors elect to spend another year with me, while some go on to other intriguing worlds of science.
 

 Most of the activity is done outside of class.  You will need to allot time for explanation and discussion of results.  October is the the best time to do this activity.  If cloud cover hides the moon,  have students use information from the local weather service. You might suggest that students work in groups and meet at one student's home for viewing.

 

 

  Lab

           How can you determine how much later the moon rises each night?

               How can you observe a change in the moon's shape?

Materials

          paper

          almanac or

                  http://www.weatherpost.com/longterm/sunrise-set.htm                                                                   http://aa.usno.navy.mil/AA/data/docs/WebMICA_2.html                                                               Washington Post Newspaper - Metro Section (weather)

          calender

          clock

Procedure

You will be collecting and recording data over a seven day period.  Use the following table for your results.
date
moonrise
moonset
time visible
difference 
in moonrise 
time
phase of
enter
l.  From an almanac, find the date of the next full moon and determine the time of     moonrise on  that date.  This date will be the first day of your observations.

2.  On the date you found in Step l, record the exact time you saw the moon rise.  Give the official time of moonrise (from the almanac) in parentheses.  Record the phase of the moon in your data table.

3.  In the morning, record the exact time you saw the moon set.  If the official moonset time is given, record it also.

4.  Record data for seven days.  Each day record the phase of the moon.

5.  After five days the moon may rise too late for you to observe it.  Use the only the official figures in your data table.  After the first two or three days the sun may be too bright for you to see moonset.  Again, use only the official figures.

6.  Calculate the time between moonrise on each succeeding day.  Does your figure always match the official time for moonrise?

7.  Calculate the amount of time the moon is visible each night.

What have you learned?

l.  How much later does the moon rise each day?

2.  What was the moon's shape at the end of seven days?

3.  How long will it be until the moon is in new moon phase?  In full moon phase?

4.  How long does it take for the moon to go from moon to full moon?