investigatingthecausesoftides（7页）.docVIP

Investigating the Causes of Tides Dr. Leslie Sautter, Department of Geology, College of Charleston, SC Focus Question: How do the sun and moon affect the tides? Activity Synopsis: Using hula hoops that represent the tidal bulges created by both the moon and the sun, students will construct a large model of the earth and its tides. In Part I, students will model how a point on the earth passes through two high and low tides each day. In Part II, they will model the different positions of the moon along its orbit (i.e., the moon phases) and the relative positions of the moon and sun with the earth to understand how the tidal range is modified as the moon orbits around the earth. After students work with the hula hoop models, they then translate their new knowledge to paper models that can also be used as a performance measure. Time Frame: 45 minutes to one hour Student Key Terms: tide tide bulge tidal range semidiurnal tide orbit gravitational pull spring tide neap tide Objectives The learner will be able to: Model the movements of the earth’s rotation and the moon’s orbit around the earth. Model how gravitational pull of the moon and sun affect the tides throughout a lunar cycle Determine why tidal ranges change as the moon phases change Background Key Points Key Points will give you the main information you should know to teach the activity. Tides are caused by the gravitational pull of the moon and the sun on the earth. Gravitational attraction “pulls” ocean covering the earth toward the moon, creating a bulge of water at that point on the earth facing the moon, called the “tidal bulge.” There is a similar bulge on the opposite side of the earth that balances the bulge facing the moon. Gravitational attraction between the sun and earth also creates a tidal bulge. This bulge is smaller than the bulge created by the moon. The moon’s gravitational pull is much greater than that of the sun because it is so much closer to the earth as compared to