Physical Science

Quarter 4 – WEEK 1:
How we come to realize that the Earth is not the center of the Universe

This module particularly dwells on the views and ideas of the ancient philosophers on the spherical shape of the Earth
and models of the universe. Using their senses, they gathered information from observing recurring phenomenon like
alternating day and night, appearance and sizes of stars, eclipses and so on. This also covers the discoveries of other
planets and cosmic happenings even before the invention of the telescope. And the utilization of the vast data collected
by Brahe in the formulation of laws of planetary motion by Kepler.

What I Need to Know

At the end of this module, you should be able to:

1. Explain how the Greeks knew that the Earth is spherical (S11/12PS-IVa-38)
2. Cite examples of astronomical phenomena known to astronomers before the advent of telescopes
(S11/12PS-IVa-41)
3. Explain how Brahe’s innovations and extensive collection of data in observational
astronomy paved the way for Kepler’s discovery of his laws of planetary motion (S11/12PS-IVb-44)

PRETEST
Multiple Choice. Select the letter of the best answer from among the given choices.

1. According to the Greeks, the Earth’s shape is _______.

A. elliptical B. flat and square C. spherical D. cylindrical

2. Which among the Greek philosophers computed the Earth’s circumference?

A. Aristotle B. Pythagora C. Plato D. Eratosthenes

3. How did the Greeks especially Aristotle use the lunar eclipse phenomenon to explain that the Earth is not flat?
A. He noticed that the shadow casts by Earth on the moon is round.
B. He argued that since the shape of the moon appears to be round then the Earth
must also be round.
C. He argued that lunar eclipse only happens when a round opaque object blocks the
passage of sunlight.
D. He noticed that all things seems to be moving around the Earth except for Earth
itself.

4. Which of the following is not true about the how ancient people were able to make use of
their knowledge about heavens?
A. They used their knowledge to invent the calendar
B. They used their knowledge to study more closely the origin of the universe
C. They their knowledge in their architecture.
D. They used their knowledge to navigate the ocean

5. Which time of the year did Eratosthenes observe the pillar in Alexandria casted a shadow?
A. noon time during spring B. noon time during summer solstice
C. noon time during solar eclipse D. noon time during winter solstice

6. Which of the following astronomical phenomenon were already observed by the ancient
people even before the telescope was invented?
A. sunspot B. solar eclipse
C. craters of the moon D. atmosphere of Mars

7. Which of the following objects would most likely casts a shadow on the moon during lunar eclipse when
it is observe here on Earth without the aid of a telescope?
A. Sun B. Moon C. North star D. Earth
8. Which phase of the moon is shown in the figure below?

A. full moon B. first quarter moon

C. new moon D. last quarter moon
9. Which phase of the moon is shown in the figure below?

A. full moon B. first quarter moon

C. last quarter moon D. new moon

10. How did the ancient astronomers discover that Mercury and Venus are planets not stars?
A. They noticed that the stars are in a fixed position with respect to each other.
But there are very bright stars that change positions periodically.
B. They noticed that Mercury and Venus are bigger compared to the others stars
C. They noticed that the constellations’ positions in the night sky vary depending on the time of the year
D. They noticed that the stars change positions periodically. But there are very bright stars in a fixed position
with respect to each other.

LESSON 1: THE UNIVERSE: THROUGH THE EYES OF THE ANCIENT GREAT THINKERS

What I Need to Know

You have probably gazed at the sky on a clear night and wonder about whether there are aliens or parallel
universes out there. With the advent of space explorations, the notion of living in Mars has already been entertained by
some people just in case Earth ceased to be a habitable planet in the future. Or maybe you imagined taking vacation on
board on a space ship and your destination is the outer space! Isn’t it cool?
Man’s knowledge about the universe has a come a long way. Gone are the days that people feared the occurrence
of an eclipse for its means something bad is going to happen. But it’s a different story if you were born hundreds or
thousands years ago.
Ancient people perhaps did not think about aliens or parallel universe or thought of going to Mars, but they
have definitely wondered and gave a lot of thought about how object seem to move across the sky. As they continued to
observe the occurrences around them the more they became fascinated and curios, thus, these lead them to their quest
for answers and explanations. And the knowledge they accumulated through the years about the skies has been applied
to their everyday lives. They rely on it to tell the time, in making calendars, in navigation, in architecture, in agriculture
especially on when to sow and when to harvest and so on. And how about you can you tell the time or direction by just
observing the sky?
Apart from utilizing their knowledge about astronomy in their day to day living, they also used this to shed light
on some prevalent questions and ideas of their time. Few of the ideas that ancient people tried to work on were on giving
us the picture of the shape of the Earth and of the universe.As for the Earth’s shape, how did the Greeks (though they
were not the only who studied it) come into a conclusion that it’s not flat? What were the evidences that they used
support the idea?
And before we expound the concept let’s put to test first your power of observation and reasoning by doing the
activity below. As you know, observing is one of the skills that the great ancient thinkers possessed and you too as
senior high school learner is expected to acquire.

WHAT IS NEW: Activity 5.1.1: The Way I See It

You and your siblings are playing the game “Truth or Dare”. And it so happen that the spinning bottle stopped
and it is pointing at your direction. Since you lose by the verdict of the spinning bottle, thus, you choose to do the
“Dare”. And the dare is for you to determine which of the five (5) shadows cannot be formed by the object below if it is
lighted from different positions. You are given 30 seconds by your sibling to figure it out. And your timer starts now!

A B C

D E

The shadows that cannot be formed are: B (the first one is done for you),___________
WHAT IS IT: SPHERE IT IS

Did your careful observation prove you right? Just like you, before the Greeks and the rest of the ancient people
were able to formulate theories of the sky and of the Earth, they made careful and repetitive observation of the
phenomena around them.
The Mesopotamian as accounted in their mythology around 6th century BC, described Earth as a flat disk
floating in the ocean and bounded by a spherical sky. And this idea has prevailed for hundreds of years until a new view
was presented (Punzalan and Monserrat, Science in Todays’ World,126)
As the quest for knowledge continues and civilization prospers, several models of the universe were presented.
And it is categorized as geocentric model or Earth-centred and heliocentric model or Sun-centred. (Retrieved from
https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/communication). In the geocentric model, the Earth was at the center
and rest of the planets and heavenly bodies revolved around it. While in the heliocentric model, the Sun was at the
center and the rest of the heavenly bodies including the Earth moved around it.
In all of the geocentric models of the universe, the Earth and other heavenly bodies were assumed to be spheres.
They were convinced that the shape of the Earth was not flat instead it was spherical. This idea was already entertained
by Pythagoras and Plato however they do not have concrete evidences to support their claim. Until Aristotle (around
320 BC), a student of Plato presented his arguments that established the claim during their time as referenced from the
DepEd CDO Learning Activity Sheet in Physical Science Shared Option LAS

Aristotle argued that:

 the sphere is a perfect solid and the heavens are a region of perfection
 the Earth's component pieces, falling naturally towards the center, would press into a round form
 in an eclipse of the Moon, the Earth's shadow is always circular: a flat disc would cast an oval shadow
 even in short travels northwards the Pole Star is higher in the sky.

Are there still other evidences that you know about that are not listed here? Can you name them?

One of the astronomical events that fascinated the early civilization was the eclipse. And the recorded
information about eclipses was used by Eratosthenes (about 235 BC) to approximate the circumference of the Earth.
This was another proof presented about the spherical shape of the Earth. As you know an eclipse is actually a shadow
formation. This happens when the path of light rays is blocked by an object.

Fig 1.2. When the rays shine directly above at Syene, it

is not directly overhead at Alexandria which around
800 km north. The pillar in Alexandria casted a shadow,
while the water in the deep well at Syene directly
reflected back the sunlight.

WHAT IS IT : PRE- TELESCOPE OBSERVED PHENOMENA

Based from your answers on the activity, it shows that your sense of fashion and the things that you used is
most often also dictated by the season. It is rather unusual that you would be wearing a raincoat when in fact the Sun
is brightly shining or you’re wearing thick socks, long sleeves and several layers of shirts while swimming in the pool.
The change in the season on Earth were already known and studied by the ancient people even before
sophisticated instruments were invented. They realized that the changing season has something to do with the variation
of Sun’s motion. And they also found out that this variation was periodic. They noticed that the Sun rises from the east
and sets in the west. Below is the list of other pre-telescope astronomical events studied by ancient people as referenced
from the DepEd CDO Learning Activity Sheet in Physical Science Shared Option LAS

1.PHASES OF THE MOON

Ancient people have observed that the moon changes

its path and its appearance within a period of 29.5
days. They observe that the moon changes appearance
from thin semi-circular disk to full circular disk. The
periodic change of moon’s phases was the basis of
ancient calendar

Fig. 1.3.1 Moon’s relative position with respect to the

Sun as it moves around the Earth attributes its changing
appearance as viewed from the Earth
.
 2. LUNAR ECLIPSE
One of the things that caught the attention of the ancient
people was the time in a month when the moon or part of it
seemed to be covered by a shadow for a brief moment. A
phenomenon such as this is known as lunar eclipse. Lunar
eclipse occurs when Earth is between the moon and the Sun,
Earth casts a shadow on the moon. Sometimes they would
notice that moon’s color changes into blood red color Fig. 1.3.2 A lunar eclipse occurs Earth’s shadow is cast on
the moon.

3. SOLAR ECLIPSE
solar eclipse occurs when the moon is in between the Sun
and the Earth and the moon partially or completely blocks
out the Sun. This caused temporary darkness on a day time,
thus, ancient people feared the occurrence of a solar eclipse
since they associate it to the wrath of God to them.

Fig. 1.3.3 A solar eclipse occurs when a moon’s shadow is

cast on Earth

4. THE MOTION OF THE STARS

It was also observed that the stars appear to be attached to a celestial sphere that rotates around an axis in one
day. Also, the constellations’ positions in the night sky vary depending on the time of the year.

5. VISIBILITY OF PLANETS
Astronomers have discovered that Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn are planets because they have
noticed that the stars are in a fixed position with respect to each other. But there are very bright stars that change
positions periodically which are called “wanderers” or planetes in Greek terms.
Now that you have learned about the different astronomical events even before an instrument like telescope was
invented. From the information that they gathered, it has resulted to innovation and invention. One of these is the
calendar.

Activity 5.1.2: Synthesizing Your Learning

Answer the following questions based on your learning. Be brief and concise.
1. Can you tell the time or direction by just observing the sky? How?
2. Of all the arguments presented by the Greeks as proof that the Earth is spherical, which among you find more
convincing? Why?
3. Differentiate a solar eclipse from a lunar eclipse?

LESSON 2: THANKS TO BRAHE

Activity 5.2.1: The Who

Below is a simple matching type activity. All you have to do is match the names in column A with their corresponding
contribution in column B. Write the letter that corresponds to your answers on the space provided.

Column A Column B

______ 1. Eudoxus a. proponent of the universal law of gravitation.

______ 2. Tycho Brahe b. invented his own telescope and discovered the craters of the
______ 3. Aristotle moon and gathered proof that supports the claim of Copernicus
______ 4. Claudius Ptolemy c. proposed the geo-heliocentric universe model
______ 5. Johannes Kepler d. proposed the first idea of a heliocentric universe.
______ 6. Galileo Galilie e. proponent of the laws of planetary motion
______ 7. Eratosthenes f. calculated the Earth’s circumference
______ 8. Aristarchus of Samos h. proposed an geocentric model of the universe where Earth is
______ 9. Nicolaus Copernicus at the center and is layered with earth, water, air and fire.
______ 10. Isaac Newton i. proponent of a heliocentric universe wherein a moving
Earth is revolving around the Sun
j. a proponent of the Earth centered model universe where Earth
lies stationary at the center of the celestial sphere.
k. proposed a homocentric and concentric universe
 Fig. 2.1 The timeline of some
of the who’s who in the field
of astronomy and mathematics.

Fig.2.1 you will see that Geocentric Universe Model has prevailed for thousands of years.Only in the later part in the
16th century that this idea questioned by Copernicus wherein he proposed that it’s the Sun not the Erath is the center
of the universe

Fig 2.2 Brahe’s model of the universe also called the

Tychonic model. It is considered as a hybrid of
geocentric and heliocentric models of the universe.

The conflicting ideas and evidences in both models have pushed Brahe to come up with his own model. It is
called the geoheliocentric model, a hybrid of the geocentric model of Ptolemy and the heliocentric model of Copernicus.
In his model the Sun orbited Earth, while the other planets orbited the Sun.

It was also during this time that Brahe met the young German mathematician Johannes Kepler. Brahe hired
Kepler as sort of “research assistant” primarily to prove that Brahe’s model (geoheliocentric model) which emphasize
that the Earth was at rest, the sun went around the Earth and the planets all went around the sun - an intermediate
picture between Ptolemy and Copernicus. Kepler needed Brahe’s data to do mathematical analysis while Brahe needs
Kepler to make mathematical calculations to prove that the model satisfies the observed data. Brahe died before his
model is proven. Kepler inherited vast set of data that will prove crucial for developing his Three Laws of Planetary
Motion later. It took Kepler many more years trying out many possible models to fit the available data being concerned
largely on the philosophical implication of his models and the belief that there has to be simple numerical relationships
among phenomena like the Pythagoreans. But Kepler failed to reconcile the data on hand with the model Brahe proposed
especially on the notion of the stationary Earth. It takes another brilliant mind and his invention the telescope to prove
that Copernicus was right in proposing that Earth after all is not the center of the universe.
 SUMMATIVE ASSESSMENT 1
Multiple Choice. Select the letter of the best answer from among the given choices.

1. How did the Greeks especially Aristotle use the lunar eclipse phenomenon to explain that the Earth is not flat?
A. He noticed that all things seems to be moving around the Earth except for Earth itself
B. He argued that since the shape of the moon appears to be round then the Earth must also be round.
C. He argued that lunar eclipse only happens when a round opaque object blocks the passage of sunlight.
D. He noticed that the shadow casts by Earth on the moon is round.

2. Which time of the year did Eratosthenes observe the pillar in Alexandria casted a shadow?
A. noon time during spring B. noon time during summer solstice
C. noon time during solar eclipse D. noon time during winter solstice

3. According to the Greeks, the Earth’s shape is _______.

A. flat and square B. spherical C. elliptical D. cylindrical

4. Which of the following is not true about the how ancient people were able to make use of
their knowledge about heavens?
A. They used their knowledge to navigate the ocean
B. They their knowledge in their architecture.
C. They used their knowledge to invent the calendar
D. They used their knowledge to study more closely the beginning of the universe

5. Which among the Greek philosophers computed the Earth’s circumference?

A. Eratosthenes B. Pythagoras C. Plato D. Aristotle

6. Which phase of the moon is shown in the figure below?

A. full moon B. new moon C. first quarter moon D. last quarter moon

7. Which of the following astronomical phenomenon were already observed by the ancient
people even before the telescope was invented?
A. solar eclipse B. sunspots C. craters of the moon D. all the moons of Jupiter

8. Which of the following casts a shadow on the moon during lunar eclipse when it is
observe here on Earth without the aid of a telescope?
A. Sun B. Earth C. North star D. Moon

9. What is the major contribution of Tycho Brahe to the field of astronomy?

A. the invention of telescope
B. the Earth’s axis of rotation
C. measurement of Earth’ circumference
D. accurate measurement of stars’ and planets’ position

10. Kepler discovered that planets do not go around the Sun at a uniform speed but it depends on it position relative
to the Sun. What is its speed when it is farther from the Sun?
A. faster B. neither fast nor slow
C. slower D. similar to the speed when it is closer to the Sun