Republic of the Philippines

BULACAN STATE UNIVERSITY

Written Report

In

Astronomy

Group 8

Andales, Rodillyn

Maxwell, Michaela May

Gumatay, Ruth

Conopio, Rochelle

Lumbre, Jun Harvey

BSED-PHYSICAL SCIENCE 3B
Seasons

The passing of a year can bring a marked change in the weather and the surrounding
environment. The four seasons: winter, spring, summer, autumn — can vary significantly in
characteristics, and can prompt changes in the world around them. Let's take an overview of
these four separate periods.

In the spring, seeds take root and vegetation begins to grow. The weather is warmer, and often
wetter. Animals wake or return from warmer climates, often with newborns. Melting snow from
the previous season, along with increased rainfall, can cause flooding along waterways,
according to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).

In the summer, temperatures may increase to their hottest of the year. If they spike too high, heat
waves or droughts may cause trouble for people, animals, and plants. For example, in the
summer of 2003, the high temperatures claimed more than 30,000 lives, according
to Encyclopedia Britannica. Rainfall may increase in some areas, as well. Others may receive
less water, and forest fires may become more frequent.

In the autumn, or fall, temperatures cool again. Plants may begin to grow dormant. Animals
might prepare themselves for the upcoming cold weather, storing food or traveling to warmer
regions. Various cultures have celebrated bountiful harvests with annual festivals. Thanksgiving
is a good example. "Thanksgiving in the United States is a historical commemoration but it has a
spiritual dimension strongly associated with homecoming and giving praise for what has been
bestowed upon us," Cristina De Rossi, an anthropologist at Barnet and Southgate College in
London, told Live Science.

Winter often brings a chill. Some areas may experience snow or ice, while others see only cold
rain. Animals find ways to warm themselves, and may have changed their appearance to adapt.
"In a similar way to the Autumnal theme, Winter festivals celebrate the return of the light during
a time of deepest physical darkness," said De Rossi. The Indian festival of Diwali, for example,
which takes place between October and November, celebrates the triumph of righteousness, and
of light over darkness.

Factors Affecting Season

The Earth's seasons are not caused by the differences in the distance from the Sun throughout the
year (these differences are extremely small). The seasons are the result of the tilt of the Earth's
axis. The Earth's axis is tilted from perpendicular to the plane of the ecliptic by 23.45°. This
tilting is what gives us the four seasons of the year - spring, summer, autumn (fall) and winter.
Since the axis is tilted, different parts of the globe are oriented towards the Sun at different times
of the year.
Solstices
The solstices are days when the Sunreaches its farthest northern and southern declinations. The
winter solstice occurs on December 21 or 22 and marks the beginning of winter (this is the
shortest day of the year). The summer solstice occurs on June 21 and marks the beginning of
summer (this is the longest day of the year).

Equinoxes
Equinoxes are days in which day and night are of equal duration. The two yearly equinoxes
occur when the Suncrosses the celestial equator.

The vernal equinox occurs in late March (this is the beginning of spring in the Northern
Hemisphere and the beginning of fall in the Southern Hemisphere); the autumnal equinox occurs
in late September (this is the beginning of fall in the Northern Hemisphere and the beginning of
spring in the Southern Hemisphere).

Layers of the Earth

The Earth consists of four layers: the crust , mantle, outer core and inner core.

 The crust is the outer layer of the earth. It is a thin layer between 0-60 km thick. The
crust is the solid rock layer upon which we live.

 The mantle is the widest section of the Earth. It has a thickness of approximately 2,900
km. The mantle is made up of semi-molten rock called magma. In the upper parts of the
mantle the rock is hard, but lower down the rock is soft and beginning to melt.

 The outer core is the layer surrounding the inner core. It is a liquid layer, also made up
of iron and nickel. It is still extremely hot, with temperatures similar to the inner core.

 The inner core is in the centre and is the hottest part of the Earth. It is solid and made up
of iron and nickel with temperatures of up to 5,500°C. With its immense heat energy, the
inner core is like the engine room of the Earth.

Division of Atmosphere

Earth's atmosphere has a series of layers, each with its own specific traits. Moving upward from
ground level, these layers are named the troposphere, stratosphere, mesosphere, thermosphere
and exosphere. The exosphere gradually fades away into the realm of interplanetary space.
Troposphere
The troposphere is the lowest layer of our atmosphere. Starting at ground level, it extends
upward to about 10 km (6.2 miles or about 33,000 feet) above sea level. We humans live in the
troposphere, and nearly all weather occurs in this lowest layer. Most clouds appear here, mainly
because 99% of the water vapor in the atmosphere is found in the troposphere. Air pressure
drops, and temperatures get colder, as you climb higher in the troposphere.
Stratosphere
The next layer up is called the stratosphere. The stratosphere extends from the top of the
troposphere to about 50 km (31 miles) above the ground. The infamous ozone layer is found
within the stratosphere. Ozone molecules in this layer absorb high-energy ultraviolet (UV) light
from the Sun, converting the UV energy into heat. Unlike the troposphere, the stratosphere
actually gets warmer the higher you go! That trend of rising temperatures with altitude means
that air in the stratosphere lacks the turbulence and updrafts of the troposphere beneath.
Commercial passenger jets fly in the lower stratosphere, partly because this less-turbulent layer
provides a smoother ride. The jet stream flows near the border between the troposphere and the
stratosphere.
Mesosphere
Above the stratosphere is the mesosphere. It extends upward to a height of about 85 km (53
miles) above our planet. Most meteors burn up in the mesosphere. Unlike the stratosphere,
temperatures once again grow colder as you rise up through the mesosphere. The coldest
temperatures in Earth's atmosphere, about -90° C (-130° F), are found near the top of this layer.
The air in the mesosphere is far too thin to breathe; air pressure at the bottom of the layer is well
below 1% of the pressure at sea level, and continues dropping as you go higher.
Thermosphere
The layer of very rare air above the mesosphere is called the thermosphere. High-energy X-rays
and UV radiation from the Sun are absorbed in the thermosphere, raising its temperature to
hundreds or at times thousands of degrees. However, the air in this layer is so thin that it would
feel freezing cold to us! In many ways, the thermosphere is more like outer space than a part of
the atmosphere. Many satellites actually orbit Earth within the thermosphere! Variations in the
amount of energy coming from the Sun exert a powerful influence on both the height of the top
of this layer and the temperature within it. Because of this, the top of the thermosphere can be
found anywhere between 500 and 1,000 km (311 to 621 miles) above the ground. Temperatures
in the upper thermosphere can range from about 500° C (932° F) to 2,000° C (3,632° F) or
higher. The aurora, the Northern Lights and Southern Lights, occur in the thermosphere.
Exosphere
Although some experts consider the thermosphere to be the uppermost layer of our atmosphere,
others consider the exosphere to be the actual "final frontier" of Earth's gaseous envelope. As
you might imagine, the "air" in the exosphere is very, very, very thin, making this layer even
more space-like than the thermosphere. In fact, air in the exosphere is constantly - though very
gradually - "leaking" out of Earth's atmosphere into outer space. There is no clear-cut upper
boundary where the exosphere finally fades away into space. Different definitions place the top
of the exosphere somewhere between 100,000 km (62,000 miles) and 190,000 km (120,000
miles) above the surface of Earth. The latter value is about halfway to the Moon!
Ionosphere
The ionosphere is not a distinct layer like the others mentioned above. Instead, the ionosphere is
a series of regions in parts of the mesosphere and thermosphere where high-energy radiation
from the Sun has knocked electrons loose from their parent atoms and molecules. The
electrically charged atoms and molecules that are formed in this way are called ions, giving the
ionosphere its name and endowing this region with some special properties.