Investigation Protocol
- Go outside and look at the Moon. Note the shape of the part that is bright. How much is bright? What is the shape? Does the Moon’s shape change? How? Is there a pattern to those changes?
- Create a Moon observation log to keep a Moon Journal and explore if and how the Moon’s shape appears to change in the night sky. You can also use this template.
- Every night, go to the same place to look at the moon. Make a drawing and color the shape and portion that is bright with a bright pencil or marker. Shade the portion that is dark. Record the date and time of the observations.
- On every observation register: Has the moon changed since the last observation? If so, how? Record your observations in your Moon Journal.
- On the nights that you can’t see the moon because of cloudy wether, register this in your Moon journal. You can either draw clouds on that day or just leave it blank, for example.
- Keep a regular discussion about how the Moon is changing — is it getting bigger (waxing) or smaller (waning)? Did you miss any viewing nights? What do you think the Moon’s bright shape looked like on those missed nights?
- After five weeks, examine what you have observed. Is there a pattern to how the shape of the Moon changes? How long does it take for the pattern to repeat? Try to predict what you will see in your observations the following week.
- Share your Moon drawings on globallab. Take a picture of your drawing each week and upload them on the “Report Form” in globallab. Make sure you have informed the dates and times.
- Compare your Moon Journal to other reports from different parts of the world. Does the Moon appearance different or the same in the different locations? Is the Moon appearance the same on a given date?
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