Question

leticia is a space scientist who made this diagram of the moon and earth (as seen from above (top view), with sunlight coming from the left, as shown by the arrows). note: this diagram is not to scale. why does leticia’s diagram show that it’s brighter on the left half of the moon? a because leticia’s diagram is showing that the half of the moon that is facing the sun is lit by the sun, and the other half is dark. b because the moon has some lighter - colored rock and some darker - colored rock, and leticia’s diagram is showing that the half of the moon with the lighter colored rock has rotated to the left. c because as the moon gets closer to the sun more of it is lit by the sun, so leticia’s diagram is showing sunlight on half of the moon.

Explanation:

To determine why the diagram shows it's brighter on the left half of the Moon, we analyze each option:

• Option A: The Moon's illumination by the Sun is such that half facing the Sun (left, as sunlight comes from the left) is lit, and the other half is dark. This matches the diagram's depiction of sunlight (from left arrows) hitting the left half of the Moon.
• Option B: The Moon’s rock color and rotation (unrelated to the diagram’s brightness from sunlight) are incorrect explanations.
• Option C: The Moon’s distance to the Sun doesn’t change its half - lit nature (it’s always half - lit by the Sun from the perspective of the Sun - Moon - Earth system), so this is wrong.

Answer:

A. Because Leticia’s diagram is showing that the half of the Moon that is facing the sun is lit by the sun, and the other half is dark.