In a scale model, all the parts are the right size compared to each

other.

A scale model of the Earth, Sun and Moon requires that the celestial objects are all the

same size smaller. It helps us to know how much bigger each

is from the other so we can investigate them “to scale”

• About 4 moons would fit across the diameter of the Earth. (3.7)

• Volume is a different measurement so lots more little moons would fit inside a 3 dimensional earth than fit across the diameter.

It is a long ways from the Earth to the moon. 30 Earth diameters

(12,752km each) would fit between the Earth and the Moon.

The Sun is much bigger than the Earth. 109 Earth diameters would fit across the diameter of the Sun.

But, if you put little Earth spheres into a 3 dimensional Sun sphere, you could fit one million of them!

• To create a scale model that includes the correct distance to the Sun from Earth, you need to make the Sun and Earth very small or the distances really big!

• If the Earth is the size of the little globe, and the Sun is the size of this room, the distance would need to be 12 times longer than our school!