Moon and Eclipses | GK Olympiad for Class 6 PDF Download

Moon and Its Phases

• Moon is Earth’s natural satellite.
• It takes 29.5 Earth days to complete one full rotation on its axis with respect to Sun. This is called a lunar day.
• The Moon does not have its own light, it reflects the light of the Sun, and appears shining like a star.
• The brightness of the Moon depends on the angle with respect to the Sun, by which it is reflecting the light from the Sun.
• The Moon appears to be of different shapes during the cycle of a month. The changing shape of the bright part of the Moon is called its phase. The phase of the Moon depends upon the position of the Moon with respect to the Sun and the Earth.
• There are eight phases of the Moon starting from the New Moon, Crescent, Half, Gibbous, and then Full Moon.

Eclipses

• An eclipse takes place when one body comes in between the two bodies, and partially or totally covers the body.
• The position of the Moon relative to the Earth and the Sun causes the two major eclipses- Solar Eclipse and Lunar Eclipse. These eclipses occur when the Sun, the Moon and the Earth come in a straight line for some time during the revolution.  
  

Solar Eclipse

• Solar eclipses occur during the New Moon phase, when the Moon comes between the Earth and the Sun.
•  In this way, the Moon blocks the sunlight reaching the Earth’s surface by covering it, and appears like a black ball when seen from the Earth.
  

Lunar Eclipse

• Lunar eclipse occurs during the full Moon phase, when the Earth comes in between the Sun and the Moon, thereby casting its shadow on the Moon.
• The universe is the largest unit in which we live. There is only on universe and everything that exists in this universe itself.