21 The Sun and the Seasons Natural environments: Planet Earth in space

G E O G R A P H Y

A

The sun and the seasons

A B

1 In part A of the diagram, is it summer or winter in the southern hemisphere? _______________________________________________________ 2 In part B of the diagram, is it summer or winter in the northern hemisphere? _______________________________________________________ 3 Why do the two hemispheres experience the seasons at opposite times of the year? _______________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________

Fill in the blanks.

east Earth moon noon axis gas December rotating June eight winter nearest west summer

A star is a ball of burning _________ . The sun is the _________

star to the Earth. It takes _________ minutes for sunlight to reach the Earth. The sun appears to move across the sky during the day because the Earth is ____________

on its _________ . The sun rises in the _________

and sets in the _________ . It is highest in the sky at _________. The shortest day of the year is known as the _________

solstice. It falls around 21 _________

in the northern hemisphere. The longest day of the year is known as the _________ solstice. It falls around 21 ______________ in the northern hemisphere. A solar eclipse occurs when the _________ moves between the Earth and the sun. A lunar eclipse occurs when the _________ moves between the sun and the moon.