1.1 - Early Views About the Cosmos

Question 1

Why were myths, legends and folklore used to describe what ancient peoples saw in the night sky?

Answer 1

They were used to explain what those people couldn’t at the time.

Question 2

What is the solstice?

Answer 2

The solstice represents the shortest and longest periods of daylight.

Question 3

What is the summer solstice?

Answer 3

The longest period of daylight in the year: June 21st (in the Northern Hemisphere)

Question 4

What is the winter solstice?

Answer 4

The shortest day of the year: December 21st (in the Northern Hemisphere)

Question 5

What does the equinox represent?

Answer 5

Represents equal periods of day and night
2 Equinoxes: March 21st, April 22nd.
- The ancient Egyptians built pyramids and other monuments to align with the seasonal position of certain stars
- The Aboriginal peoples of southwestern Alberta used key rocks in their medicine circles, which aligned with the bright stars that rose in the dawn

Question 6

What is the geocentric model?

Answer 6

• Proposed by Aristotle about 2000 years ago
• Showed Earth at the center of the universe, surrounded by the Sun and planets. Stars were stationary in the outermost sphere
• Did not explain some observations about planetary motions

Question 7

What is the heliocentric model?

Answer 7

• Proposed by Copernicus in 1530
• Showed the Sun at the center of the universe, with the planets orbiting around it
• Galileo’s observations in the 1600s provided evidence for this theory
• Johannes Kepler discovered that the orbits of the planets were not circles, but ellipses