NATS 1740 Study Guide - Midterm Guide: Northern Hemisphere, Carbonate Rock, Ecliptic

• School: York University
• Department: Natural Science
• Course: NATS 1740
• Professor: Radu Campeanu

Document Summary

Chapter 2 discovering the universe for yourself. Stars and other objects appear to lie on celestial sphere. From any location on earth, we see half celestial sphere at any given time as dome of our local sky. Horizon is boundary between earth and sky. Meridian runs from due south to due north through zenith. Earth"s rotation makes stars appear to circle earth each day. A star whose complete circle lies above our horizon is said to be circumpolar. Other stars have circles that cross horizon; rise in the east and set in the west. Visible constellations vary with time of year because our night sky lies in different directions in space as we orbit sun. Latitude determines the orientation of your horizon relative to celestial sphere. Axis points in same direction throughout year, so earth orbits the sun, sunlight hits different parts of earth more directly at different times of year.