Shadow Length Change




Name: Rndy
Status:
Grade: K-3
Location: Great Britain

Question: Why does the length of a shadow change during the day?
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Rndy,
 
Try this (you will need a ruler, pencil and two sheets of paper):
 
1) draw two upright lines of exactly the same height (about 3cm 
in height should do), one line per piece of paper.
 
2) For one of the lines draw a point or dot at a distance of, maybe 
20cm to the right and about 2cm higher than the top of the original 
line.
 
3) Now, draw a line from the dot to the top of the upright line and 
continue the line until the line you are drawing is at about the same 
height as the bottom of the upright line. The distance of the end of 
the line you've just drawn to the bottom of the upright line is the 
length of the "shadow" of the upright line.
 
4) Do the same for the second line, BUT draw the point (or dot) at a 
distance of maybe 10cm to the right and 5cm higher than the top of the 
upright line. Then draw the line as in #3 above.
 
5) You should note that the "shadows" are of different lengths. Can you 
tell why?
 
Greg (Roberto Gregorius)
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