The Moon and Tides
Abstract
The high and low tides or Moon and Tides were one of the secrets of Mother Nature. That mystery was solved after the gravity theory of Sir Isaac Newton in the 17th century came out. Have you ever wondered what causes the tides in Earth’s oceans?
Observation
In this astronomy project or Moon and Tides science fair project, the experiment discovers the answer for moon and tides relation. This will help investigate and understand how the Sun and Moon control tides in Earth’s oceans.
Theory– Gravity is what pulls the ocean’s waters to create the two high tides and two low tides that the moon’s gravity causes. Gravitational force depends on both mass and distance, although the sun is bigger, the moon is closer to Earth has more gravitational pull.
The experiment helps to understand the concept.
Terms used
Springtide—the tide during a new and full moon.
Neap tide—Refers to a period of moderate tides
Procedure
Materials- Scissors, colored construction paper yellow, blue, green, and grey or white are good colors, Glue, marker pen.
- Cut out construction paper to make Sun, Earth, and Moon.
- Cut an oval out of blue construction paper, and then trim off the two sides to make a circle. Save the trimmed crescent shapes for later use to demonstrate the springtides.
- Cut out a few smaller shavings to represent neap tides.
- Cut out continents in green construction paper to understand clearly, and then glue them to the Earth.
- Draw a dotted line through the middle to represent the equator.
- The Moon is much smaller than the Earth in size and the Sun is much larger than the Earth. Since the moon makes a bigger impact being near to the earth, cut out a wee bigger moon than the sun.
- Place the Sun, Earth, and Moon on a table to epitomize the solar system. Place Sun at the far corner, although in reality, the sun is far away from the earth and moon.
- Place the sun in the line of the equator, as the line of the equator runs into the Sun. The Moon orbits the Earth, so place it next to the Earth. Now create the springtide.
- Full Moon happens when the sun illuminates the moon’s face. Then Sun aligns to the moon in relation to the Earth, so position them accordingly.
- Now, place one of the spring tide crescent trimmings on the side of the Earth-facing the moon and one crescent trimming for spring tide on the other side of the earth.
Compare the positions of the Sun, Moon, and Earth during spring tides and neap tides. Why would this affect the tides?
Explanation
The phases of the moon explain high or low tides. The new moon happens when the moon is between Sun and Earth in one line, this is when the tides are low. A quarter moon phase position is when the sun moon and earth are at right angles. The sun & moon’s gravity counters each other hence the Neap tides or LOW tides. During spring tides or high tides, Sun and moon aligned to Earth, which cause the maximum pull on the tides. The project helps to understand the concept of high & low tides.