Astronomy and Space · Planetary Science
Calculate the height of lunar mountains from a photo
Measure shadow lengths in a high-resolution Moon image and estimate the height of a crater rim.
- DifficultyAdvanced
- Estimated time2–7 days
- Budget₹0
- ClassClass 11 to college
- TeamSolo or up to 2
- You needComputer only
Prerequisites: None beyond your class work
Original · by TechnifyedData AnalysisInvestigationFree to doComputer onlyResearch oriented
Overview
Measure shadow lengths in a high-resolution Moon image and estimate the height of a crater rim.
Skills you will use
Materials and tools
- Computer
- A public high-resolution image of the Moon near the terminator with its date
- Free image editor
Tools and software
Step-by-step roadmap
Start
You will finish with: a height estimate for a named crater rim compared with the published value.
- 1
Prerequisites
Nothing special to know first. Then collect the 3 items in the materials list.
- 2
Learn
Read up on planetary science: image analysis, Moon, shadows. Your textbook chapter and one short video are enough.
- 3
Plan
Write the research question, who or what you will study, how many, and the exact questions or measures.
- 4
Build
- Choose a crater near the line between light and dark.
- Find the image scale from the Moon's known diameter in pixels.
- Measure the shadow length in kilometres.
- Find the Sun's elevation at that point from the date and position.
- Height = shadow length × tan of the Sun's elevation.
- 5
Test
Check a sample of your data by hand, and ask whether another explanation fits your findings equally well.
- 6
Document
Keep the raw responses or data safe, anonymise names, and build the tables and charts. Report structure
- 7
Present
State the question, the method in one line, the two or three main findings and their limits. Presentation structure
- 8
Publish
Share a short paper or poster; offer a summary to the people who took part.
Expected outcome
A height estimate for a named crater rim compared with the published value.
Other versions of this project
Advanced version
Repeat for five craters and plot rim height against diameter.
Ways to do this project
Text marked "You write this" is a prompt for your own work; everything else is specific to this project.
- Problem
- You write thisWrite your question as: How does [what you change] affect [what you measure]?
- Hypothesis
- You write thisWrite it as: If [I change this], then [this will happen], because [reason].
- Variables
- You write thisName the one thing you change (independent), the thing you measure (dependent) and what you keep the same (controlled).
Materials and procedure are in Materials and the Roadmap.
Observation table
You write thisDraw a table with one column for what you change, one for each repeat reading and one for the average.
- Graph
- You write thisPlot what you changed along the bottom and what you measured up the side; use a bar chart for categories and a line graph for numbers.
- Results
- You write thisState what the graph shows in one or two sentences, with numbers.
- Conclusion
- You write thisSay whether the result supports your hypothesis and why you think so.
Display board
- Title and your name
- Question
- Hypothesis
- Materials
- Procedure (with photos)
- Data table and graph
- Conclusion
- What you would do next
Questions judges ask
- What would you change if you did this again?
- What was your biggest source of error, and how did you reduce it?
- Where is this idea used in real life?
- Research question
- You write thisOne question you can answer with data, narrow enough to finish in the time you have.
- Hypothesis
- You write thisWhat you expect to find, and why.
- Variables
- You write thisWhat you change or compare, what you measure, and what you hold constant.
- Methodology
- You write thisDescribe the method in enough detail that someone else could repeat it: sample, tools, procedure.
- Data collection
- You write thisSay what you will record, how many times, and how you will keep the records safe.
- Analysis
- You write thisChoose the table, chart or test that answers the question; report averages with their spread.
- Limitations
- You write thisList what could have affected the result: small sample, instrument limits, things you could not control.
Literature review
Find five to eight sources (your textbook, review articles, reports) and note what each says about your question. Group them by idea, not one after another, and end with what is still not known.
References
List every source you used in one style throughout (author, year, title, where it was published, link and the date you opened it).
Working as a team
Solo or up to 2. Suggested roles:
Report and presentation
Report structure
- Title
- Abstract
- Introduction and research question
- Review of what is already known
- Method: sample, tools, procedure
- Findings (tables and charts)
- Discussion
- Limitations
- Conclusion and suggestions
- References
- Annexure: questionnaire or data
Presentation structure
- Research question
- Why it matters
- Method and sample
- Finding 1
- Finding 2
- Finding 3
- What it means
- Limitations
- Conclusion
Viva questions
Prepare your own answers to these before you present.
- What is the aim of your project, in one sentence?
- What is the principle behind it?
- Why did you choose these materials or tools?
- What result did you get, and was it what you expected?
- What went wrong and how did you fix it?
- How could this be improved or used in real life?
Resources
Source and attribution
Original
Written by Technifyed. Free to use for your own school or college project; write the report in your own words. Added 1 Oct 2026.
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