Questions on the Earth in Space

Q6.

Some children watched an eclipse of the Sun. During the eclipse, the Moon passed between the Sun and the Earth. It blocked out sunlight.

(a) Sheldon watched the eclipse. He knew that the Sun is much bigger than the Moon but they looked about the same size. Why did they look the same size?

A: The Moon is nearer to the Earth than the Sun is.

B: The Sun is nearer to the Earth than the Moon is.

C: The Sun goes round the Earth faster than the Moon does.

D: The Moon goes round the Sun faster than the Earth does.

1 mark

(b) Sheldon's class measured the light level during the eclipse. The graph below shows their results.

(i) Use the graph to work out the time that the Moon blocked out most of the Sun's light.

Always use a ruler to find out the point that corresponds on an axis - a dotted line is useful!

Answers betweeen 12-15 and 12-17 were accepted.

1 mark

(ii) What happened to the air temperature during the eclipse? Give a reason for your answer.

The temperature decreased or went down because the Moon blocked out the Sun's heat (or rays or radiation).

1 mark

Maximum 3 marks