12 The Sun, Moon and Stars

NCF Competencies Covered:

Expected Learning Outcomes C-1.1, C-1.2 and C-1.3

Knowledge to be gained : • The Sun • The Moon • The stars and constellations
• Astronomers
Skill to be developed : • Identifying the different phases of the moon and the
constellations in the night sky.
Attitude to be inculcated : • We are very small in context of the Universe.

Space is dark, it is like night-time all the time. You can see the Sun, Earth, Moon, stars
and planets in space.

THE SOLAR SYSTEM

The Earth is one of the eight planets that move around the Sun. Planets are huge
round objects that revolve around the Sun in fixed paths called orbit. The Sun, the
planets that revolve around the Sun and their moons together make the Solar
System. Our Solar System consists of eight planets—Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars,
Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune.

Mars Neptune
Saturn

Earth
THE SUN

Jupiter
Venus Uranus

Mercury

Some of the planets have their own moons. Moons are natural objects that revolve
around a planet. Earth has only one moon. Some planets have more than one moon
and some have no moon.
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 THE SUN
We can see the Sun when we look up at the sky during the day-time. The Sun is round
in shape. It is like a big ball of fire, very far away from Earth. It gives us heat and light.
The Sun is actually huge and very hot. There are burning gases present in the Sun. The
Sun burns all the time. The light and heat of this fire reach us on Earth. It takes eight
minutes for the Sun's rays to reach the Earth. We call it sunlight.
The Sun is just one of the many millions of stars. It is also the centre of the Solar
System. All the planets revolve (move in a fixed orbit) around it.
The Sun is the nearest star to Earth. Compared to the Earth, the Sun is enormous!
More than a million Earths would fit inside the Sun.
There are many other stars in the sky.
There would not be any life on Earth without
They are very far from us, that is why Do the Sun. The Earth would become too cold
they look so small and hazy. You ?for animals and plants to survive. Plants
need sunlight to make their food. Without
Know sunlight, they will not be able to make food.
CHECK YOURSELF
Tick (3) the correct option:
1. Which of the following is not a planet in our Solar System?
(a) Mercury (b) Moon (c) Mars
2. Which of the following is situated at the centre of the Solar System?
(a) Sun (b) Moon (b) Earth
3. It takes _______________ minutes for the Sun’s rays to reach the Earth.
(a) six (b) eight (b) ten

THE MOON—EARTH'S NATURAL SATELLITE

The Moon is our closest neighbour in space. Just like Earth revolves around the Sun,
the Moon revolves around the Earth. That is why, the Moon is also called the Earth’s
natural satellite.
Just like Earth, the Moon also
does not have any light of its own.
Sunlight
We see the Moon shining in the
sky because it reflects the Sun's Sun
light, which falls on it. That is light
on Moon
why, it can be seen only at night. Mo
The Moon can be seen clearly
with the help of a telescope. Earth

Science-3 100 Moon reflects the light from the Sun

When seen through a telescope, mountains as well as a lot of craters are seen on the
surface of the Moon. Craters are huge in size.
The Moon is about 400,000 kms. away from Earth. It takes about 27.3 days for the
Moon to complete one trip around the Earth.
Phases of the Moon
We do not get to see the Moon as a complete circle every time we look at the night sky.
At times, we see a half-moon, at times less than half, sometimes full and sometimes we
cannot see the Moon at all. The different shapes of the Moon that we see are called the
phases of the moon.
As the Moon revolves around Earth, the Moon's lighted portion facing us also
changes. That is why the shape of the Moon as seen by us, keeps on changing.
Let us learn about the different phases of the moon.
New Moon (Amavasya): When the Moon is in between Earth and the Sun, we do
not see the Moon at all. It is called the New Moon (Amavasya). The sunlight falls on
that part of the Moon that is away from Earth. It is dark on the New Moon night.
C re s c e n t M o o n : Tw o Half
moon
or three days later, we
see only a par t of the Waxing
Waxing
Moon. This is called the Crescent Gibbous
Crescent Moon.
Half Moon: Within a week
New Full
from the New Moon, we see Moon Moon
(Amavasya) (Purnima)
half of the Moon. It is called
the Half Moon.
Gibbous Moon: When we Waning Waning
Crescent Gibbous
see more than half of the Half
moon
Mo on, it is calle d the
Gibbous Moon. Phases of the moon
Full Moon (Purnima): Within two weeks from the New Moon, we see the full face
of the Moon. The Moon is round and beautiful. It is Full Moon (Purnima). When
Earth is in between the Sun and the Moon, the sunlight falls on that part of the Moon,
which is facing the Earth.
After the Full Moon night, the size of the Moon appears to decrease again. It seems to
become smaller and smaller. When it completes the circle, we cannot see the Moon at
all (New Moon). Decreasing size of the visible moon is called the waning phase and
increasing size of the visible moon is called the waxing phase.
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 Half
Moon

Waxing
Crescent Waxing
Gibbous

Sun rays

New Moon Full Moon

Earth

Waning Waning
Crescent Gibbous
Sun Half Moon

Positions of the Moon in its orbit and its phases

These phases of the moon play an important role in observing many religious festivals
like Diwali and Eid. Diwali always falls on the New Moon day (Amavasya) and Eid ul-
Fitr is celebrated when the Moon is sighted.

THE STARS AND THE CONSTELLATIONS

We all like to see the stars twinkling in the night sky. The stars are huge, heavenly
bodies. They are huge balls of fire that produce heat and light. The Sun is also a star.
Some stars look brighter than others in the night sky. It is because they are nearer to
us than the other stars. The brightest star in the Northern Hemisphere is the Pole
Star.
Stars form various patterns in the sky. A group of stars that forms a particular design
is called a constellation. Each constellation is given a name based on human
imaginations.
Some of the easily seen constellations are Leo (Lion), Orion (Hunter), Scorpius
(Scorpion) and Ursa Major (Great Bear).

Orion (Hunter) Ursa Major (Great Bear) Scorpius

(Scorpion)
Various constellations in the night sky
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ASTRONOMERS
The study of stars is called astronomy and
scientists who study the stars are called
astronomers. They look at the stars with powerful
telescopes. Galileo, a famous astronomer, was the
first to use a telescope for studying the stars.
Around 1500 years ago, Aryabhatta, an Indian
astronomer, was the first man who proclaimed that
Indian astronomer, Aryabha a
the Earth is round and spins on its own axis.

CHECK YOURSELF
Tick (3) the correct option:
1. When we see more than half of the moon, it is called the:
(a) Crescent Moon (b) Gibbous Moon (c) Full Moon
2. The brightest star in the Northern Hemisphere is:
(a) The Sun (b) Alpha Centauri (c) Pole Star
3. A group of stars that forms the shape of a hunter is the:
(a) Orion (b) Leo (c) Scorpion

NEW WORDS
Planets : Huge round objects moving in a fixed orbit around a star
Satellite : An object that con nuously moves around a planet
Star : A huge celes al body that produces heat and light
Constella ons : A group of stars that form a pa ern in the sky.

SUMMARY
v The Sun, the planets that revolve around it and their moons together form the Solar
System.
v The Sun is the star nearest to Earth. It is located at the centre of the Solar System.
v The Moon is our closest neighbour in the space.
v The shape of the Moon keeps on changing. These are called phases of the moon.
v Stars are huge heavenly bodies that produce their own heat and light.
v A group of stars that form a particular design is called a constellation.
v Scientists who study stars are called astronomers.

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 Exercise
A. Tick (3) the correct option:
1. _______________ is dark. It is like being in the night sky all the time.
(a) Sun (b) Earth
(c) Space (d) Moon
2. When we do not see the Moon at all, we call it:
(a) New Moon (b) Full Moon
(c) Gibbous Moon (d) Crescent Moon
3. A group of stars that form a pattern is called a:
(a) galaxy (b) constellation
(c) crater (d) pit
B. Name the following:
1. Round objects that move around the Sun _______________
2. When the Moon is between Earth and the Sun _______________
3. Heavenly bodies that produce their own light _______________
4. Star patterns _______________

C. Fill in the blanks:

1. The Sun is located at the _______________ of the Solar System.
2. The Moon is a _______________ of Earth.
3. The lighted portion of the Moon increases during the ___________ phases.
4. The study of stars is called _______________.

D. True or False:
1. Without the Sun, there would be no life on Earth. _________
2. Orion is a planet. _________
3. The Moon is a satellite. _________
4. The Moon is a huge ball of fire _________
5. When the lighted portion of the Moon cannot be
seen at all, we call it the New Moon. _________
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E. Match the following:
1. The Earth (a) Constellation
2. The Sun (b) Planet
3. The Moon (c) Astronomer
4. Scorpius (d) Star
5. Aryabhatta (e) Satellite
F. Answer the following questions in brief:
1. What is the Solar System?
2. Name the planets of the Solar System.
3. What is a Moon?
4. What are constellations?
5. Who was the first astronomer to use a telescope?
G. Answer the following questions in detail:
1. What are the phases of the moon?
2. What is the difference between the waning and waxing phases of the moon?
3. When can we see the Full Moon?
4. What are stars? Why do they look so tiny in the night sky?

Activity Time Creativity

A. Take a white sheet of paper. Draw eight squares on it. Each square should be big
enough to fit an Oreo biscuit inside it.
Mark the phases of the moon under the
squares respectively.
Now, take a pack of Oreo biscuits. Take Waxing
New Moon Crescent Half Waxing
Moon Gibbous
out eight pieces and gently remove the top
and bottom biscuits by twisting so
that the frosting remains attached
to the bottom side of the biscuit.
Waning Half Waning Full Moon
Now, remove the frosting using a Crescent Moon Gibbous
butter knife to show the various
phases of the moon and display it on the paper in their respective boxes. Display
the biscuit with complete frosting as the Full Moon.
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 NCF C-1.2 Social & Cross-Cultural Interaction
B. Speak with your friends and other people from different cultural backgrounds.
Ask them about the festivals they celebrate that are related to the phases of the
moon.

Be a Young NCF C-1.3 Flexibility & Adaptability

Researcher
Observe the Moon every night for one month starting from New Moon (amavasya)
or Full Moon (purnima) night. Write down the dates on which the different shapes of
the moon was seen. Present your work in the classroom. Now, predict the dates of the
upcoming month in which these shapes would be seen again.

NCF C-1.3
Let Us Visit
Try to find out the orion constellations in the night sky. Orion is one of the most
visible constellations. It was named after the hunter in Greek mythology. It is clearly
visible in the night sky from November to February. With the help of any elder, try to
locate it in a clear night sky.

Subject Link : Mathematics

Find out the total number of stars that have formed the following constellations.
Also, write their names.

___________________ ___________________ ___________________

FOOTNOTE
® Teacher should help the children in making a model of the Solar System. By now they should have a knowledge of the
Sun, the Moon and other stars. They should have some idea of constellations and different phases of the moon in the
sky.

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