The Darkest Day
Lucas Thibert 6
Summer Fun!
On August 21st, I viewed the solar eclipse. I was hanging out with my friend at the time, and watched it from my porch. The eclipse happened on August 21st, 2017 at about 1:15 p.m. While I was outside, I watched my surroundings and saw how they were affected by this. I watched the eclipse because it's very rare to have a solar eclipse pass over the United States, so it was really cool to see it. The last time this happened in the United States was in 1979.
Look At Me!
The Science of It
The solar eclipse connects to science in many ways. The first way how the solar eclipse connects to science is about the orbit of the Earth and moon. The Earth is always orbiting around the sun, and the moon is always orbiting around the Earth. The eclipse happens when the moon and Earth line up perfectly with the sun. The second reason the solar eclipse connects to science, is how the first accurate prediction was made. In the early 1700s, astronomer Edmund Halley made the first precise prediction. He used Isaac Newton's theory of universal gravitation to make this prediction, and came within four minutes of when the actual eclipse was.
I Wonder...
Citations
“Photo Gallery (U.S. National Park Service).” National Parks Service, U.S. Department of the Interior, www.nps.gov/media/photo/gallery.htm?id=264CB81D-155D-451F-67D13CE230EC4328.
Schoeneberg, Henrik. “How Solar Eclipses Illuminate the Marvel of Science.” Wired, Conde Nast, 15 Aug. 2017, www.wired.com/story/how-solar-eclipses-illuminate-the-marvel-of-science/.