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IntroductionGreetings,andwelcometotheunitonastronomy.Ihopeyouwillfindthishelpfulinpreparingtoteachyourstudents,exhaustivelythoroughincontentandawholelotoffun,becausethat’swhenstudentsandteachersdotheirbestwork.

Thiscurriculumcoursehasbeenpreparedtobecompletedoverseveralweeks,completing1‐2lessonsperweek.Youwillfindthatthereare14lessonsoutlinedtotakeyoufromanintroductionofastronomyonthroughseveraladvancedprojectswhicharecomplexenoughtowinaprizeatthesciencefair.Ifyoucompletethiscourseandsendyourkidsoff,you’llfindtheirhighschoolteachersentirelyblownawaybytheirmasteryofthesubject.EachlessonhasaTeacherPageandaStudentWorksheet.

ThefollowingfeaturesareoneachsetoftheTeacherPages:

Overview:Thisisthemaingoalofthelesson. SuggestedTime:Makesureyouhaveenoughforcompletingthislesson. Objectives:Thesearethecoreprinciplescoveredwiththislesson. Materials:Gatherthesebeforeyoustart LabPreparation:Thisoutlinesanypreparationyouneedtodoaheadoftime. Lesson:Thisoutlineshowtopresentthetopictothestudents,stirsupinterestandgetsthestudents

motivatedtolearnthetopic. LabTime&Worksheets:Thisincludesactivities,experiments,andprojectsthatreinforcetheconceptsand

reallybringsthemtolife.You’llalsofindworksheetsthatmakeuptheirScientificJournal. BackgroundLessonReading:Thisisoptionaladditionalreadingmaterialyoucanutilizeaheadoftimeto

helpyoufeelconfidentwhenthestudentsaskquestionsduringtheLabTime.Idon’trecommendgivingthisreadingtothekidsbeforehand.Ifyoumustshareitwiththem,thendosoafterthestudentshavegottenachancetorollaroundwiththeactivities.Doingthisteacheskidstoasktheirownquestionsbygettingcuriousabouttheconceptsthroughtheexperiments,thewayrealscientistsdointherealworld.

Exercises&AnswerKey:Howwelldidyouteach?Howwelldidtheylearn?Timetofindout. Closure:Beforemovingon,askyourstudentsiftheyhaveanyrecommendationsorunansweredquestions

thattheycanworkoutontheirown.Brainstormingextensionideasisagreatwaytoaddmoresciencestudiestoyourclasstime.

ImmediatelyfollowingtheTeacherPagesare“StudentWorksheets”foreachoftheactivities.Eachsetofstudentworksheetshasthefollowingsections:

Overview WhattoLearn Materials LabTime&Worksheets Exercises

Inadditiontothelessons,wehavealsopreparedthefollowingitemsyou’llfinduseful:

ScientificMethodGuide MasterMaterialsandEquipmentList LabSafetySheet

WrittenQuiz(withAnswerKey)

LabPracticalTest(withAnswerKey)

MasterMaterialsListforAllLabs

Thisisabrieflistofthematerialsthatyouwillneedtodoalloftheactivities,experimentsandprojectsineachsection.Thesetofmaterialslistedbelowisjustforonelabgroup.Ifyouhaveaclassof10labgroups,you’llneedtoget10setsofthematerialslistedbelow.For10labgroups,aneasywaytokeeptrackofyourmaterialsistogiveeachgroupanumberfrom1to10,andmakeup10separatelabkitsusingsmallplastictubsorbaskets.Putonenumberoneachitemandfilleachtubwiththematerialslistedbelow.Labelthetubswiththesectionname,likeAstronomyStudyKitandyouwillhaveaneasywaytokeeptrackofthematerialsandbuildaccountabilityintotheprogramforthekids.Copytheselistsandsticktheminthebinforeasytracking.Feelfreetoreuseitemsbetweenlessonsandunitsections.Mostmaterialsarereusableyearafteryear.

BakingsodaBallbearingormagneticmarbleBalloons(4)BlackpaperBouncyballCalciumchlorideCalculatorCamera(videoorstillcamera)CardboardorsmallpieceofclayCDorDVDChalkClockDiffractiongratingEmptyCDCaseFeatherFlashlightGallonmilkjugcontainerHandheldmagnifyingglass

Indexcards(3)Magnet(strong!)MarkersMeasuringtapePencilPhenolredorredfooddyePieceoffabricPlasticwrapPopsiclesticksProtractorRemotecontrolforTVorstereoRulerSaltSandScaletoweighyourselfScissorsSkewerSmallballs(5)

SoupcansorplasticcontainersSteelwoolStopwatchStringSunblockSunglassesTackorneedleTape(regularanddouble‐sided)TennisballThermometers(4)ThinplasticcuttingboardUVbeads(thesechangecolorswhenexposedtotheSun,5)VinegarWaterbottles(7)WaxpaperYardsticks/metersticks(2)


TABLEOFCONTENTS

Introduction...............................................................................................................................................................................................................2

MasterMaterialsListforAllLabs.....................................................................................................................................................................3

UnitPrep.....................................................................................................................................................................................................................5

LabSafety...................................................................................................................................................................................................................6

TeachingScienceRight.........................................................................................................................................................................................7

EducationalGoals....................................................................................................................................................................................................9

Lesson#1:Stars,Planets,andBlackHoles.................................................................................................................................................11

Lesson#2:SolarSystemScaleModel...........................................................................................................................................................17

Lesson#3:Atmospheres....................................................................................................................................................................................24

Lesson#4:LunarPhases....................................................................................................................................................................................28

Lesson#5:EclipsesandTransits....................................................................................................................................................................34

Lesson#6:RustyBalloon...................................................................................................................................................................................38

Lesson#7:Meteorites.........................................................................................................................................................................................42

Lesson#8:Neptune’sFurnace.........................................................................................................................................................................47

Lesson#9:BinaryPlanetarySystems...........................................................................................................................................................52

Lesson#10:BuildYourOwnSolarSystem................................................................................................................................................58

Lesson#11:WatchYourWeight.....................................................................................................................................................................67

Lesson#12:Sundial.............................................................................................................................................................................................74

Lesson#13:Diffraction......................................................................................................................................................................................83

Lesson#14:InfraredVision..............................................................................................................................................................................88

Lesson#15:UVLight...........................................................................................................................................................................................93

Lesson#16:StarWobble...................................................................................................................................................................................99

Lesson#17:SpaceTelescopes......................................................................................................................................................................103

Astronomy2Evaluation..................................................................................................................................................................................108

Astronomy2Quiz...............................................................................................................................................................................................111

Astronomy2LabPractical.............................................................................................................................................................................114

TheScientificMethod.......................................................................................................................................................................................115

VocabularyfortheUnit....................................................................................................................................................................................117


UnitPrep

Thisisashortlistofthingsthatyoumaywanttoconsiderasyouprepareforthisunit.

StudentLabBooks:Ifyou’rethekindofteacherwholikestopreparelabbooksforyourkids,nowisagoodtimetodothis.YoucancopytheIntroductionforKidsandtheStudentWorksheetsforeachoftheexperiments,3‐holepunchthem,andsticktheminabinder.You’llwantonebinderperstudent.

ScienceJournals:Oneofthebestthingsyoucandowithyourstudentsistoteachthemhowtotakenotesinajournalasyougoalong.Thisisthesamewayscientistsdocumenttheirownfindings,andit’salotoffuntolookbackatthesplatteredpageslateronandseehowfaryou’vecome.Ialwaysjotdownmyquestionsthatdidn’tgetansweredwiththeexperimentacrossthetopofthepagesoIcanresearchthesetopicsmore.

MasterSetofMaterials:Ifyouplanondoingallthelabsinthisunit,you’llwanttostartgatheringyourmaterialstogether.There’samastermaterialslistsoyou’llhaveeverythingyouneedwhenyouneedit.

TestCopies:Studentswilltaketwotestsattheendofeachsection.Therearequizzesandlabpracticaltestsyoucancopyandstashawayforwhenyouneedthem.

ClassroomDesign:Asyouprogressthroughtheunits,you’llbemakingdemosoftheexperimentsandkidswillbemakingposters.Youcanhangtheseuponyourbulletinboards,stringthemfromtheceiling,ordisplaytheminauniqueway.Ialwaysliketosnapphotosofthekidsdoingtheirexperimentsandhangthoseupalongwiththeirbestlabssotheycanseetheirprogressaswegoalong.


LabSafetyGoggles:Theseshouldbewornwhenworkingwithchemicals,heat,fire,orprojectiles.Theseprotectyoureyesfromchemicalsplatter,explosions,andtinyfast‐movingobjectsaimedattheeyes.Ifyouwearglasses,youcanfindgogglesthatfitoverthem.Don’tsubstituteeyeglassesforgoggles,becauseofthelackofsideprotection.Eyeglassesdon’tprovidethisimportantprotection.

CleanupMesses:Yourlabareashouldbeneat,organized,andspotlessbeforeyoustart,duringyourexperiment,andwhenyouleave.Scientistswastemoretimehuntingforlostpapers,piecesofanexperiment,andtryingtorepositionsensitiveequipment…allofwhichcouldhaveeasilybeenavoidedhadtheybeentaughtorganizationalskillsfromthestart.

DisposeofPoisons:Ifapoisonoussubstancewasused,created,orproducedduringyourexperiment,youmustfollowtheproperhandlingproceduresfordisposal.You’llfinddetailsforthisintheexperimentsasneeded.

SpecialNotesonBatteries:Donotusealkalinebatterieswithyourexperiments.Findthesuper‐cheapkindofbatteries(usuallylabeled“HeavyDuty”or“SuperHeavyDuty”)becausethesetypesofbatterieshaveacarbon‐zinccore,whichdoesnotcontaintheacidthatalkalinebatterieshave.Thismeanswhenyouwireupcircuitsincorrectly(whichyoushouldexpecttodobecauseyouarelearning),thecircuitswillnotoverheatorleak.Ifyouusealkalinebatteries(likeEnergizerandDuracell)andyourstudentsshortacircuit,theirwiresandcomponentswillgetsuper‐hotandleakacid,whichisverydangerous.

NoEatingorDrinkingintheLab:Allfoodsanddrinksarebannedfromyourclassroomduringscienceexperimentation.Whenyoueatordrink,youruntheveryrealriskofingestingpartofyourexperiment.Forelectricityandmagnetismlabs,alwayswashyourhandsafterthelabisovertorinseofftheleadfromtheelectricalcomponents.

NoHorsePlay:Whenyougoofaround,accidentshappen,whichmeanschemicalsspill,circuitsshort,andallkindsofhazardscanoccurthatyouweren’texpecting.Neverthrowanythingtoanotherpersonandbecarefulwhereyouputyourhands–itcouldbeinthemiddleofasensitiveexperiment,especiallywithmagnetismandelectricity.Youdon’twanttoruntheriskofgettingshockedorelectrifiedwhenit’snotpartofyourexperiment.

Fire:Ifyouthinkthere’safireintheroom(evenifyou’renotsure),letyourteacherknowrightaway.Iftheyarenotaround(theyalwaysshouldbe),smotherthefirewithafireblanketoruseafireextinguisherandsendsomeonetofindanadult.Stop,drop,androll!

Questions:Ifyou’renotsureaboutsomethingstopandask,nomatterwhatit’sabout.Ifyoudon’tknowhowtoproperlyhandleachemical,dopartofanexperiment,ask!Ifyou’renotcomfortabledoingpartoftheexperiment,thendon’tdoit.


TeachingScienceRightTheseactivitiesandexperimentswillgiveyouatasteofhowsciencecanbetotallycoolANDeducational.Butteachingscienceisn’talwayseasy.There’salotmoretoitthanmosttraditionalsciencebooksandprogramsaccomplish.Ifyourstudentsdon’trememberthesciencetheylearnedlastyear,youhaveaproblem.

Whatdokidsreallyneedtoknowwhenitcomestoscience?Kidswhohaveasolidscienceandtechnologybackgroundarebetterequippedtogotocollege,andwillhavemanymorechoicesoncetheygetoutintotherealworld.

Learningscienceisn’tjustamatterofmemorizingfactsandtheories.Onthecontrary,it’sdevelopingadeepcuriosityabouttheworldaroundus,ANDhavingasetoftoolsthatletskidsexplorethatcuriositytoanswertheirquestions.Teachingscienceinthiswayisn'tjustamatterofputtingtogetheratextbookwithafewscienceexperimentsandkits.

Scienceeducationisathree‐stepprocess(andImeanteachingscienceinawaythatyourstudentswillreallyunderstandandremember).

Herearethesteps:

1.Getkidsgenuinelyinterestedandexcitedaboutatopic.

2.Givethemhands‐onactivitiesandexperimentstomakethetopicmeaningful.

3.Teachthesupportingacademicsandtheory.

Mostsciencebooksandcurriculumjustfocusonthethirdstepandmaythrowinanexperimentortwoasanafterthought.Thisjustisn’thowstudentslearn.Whenyouprovideyourstudentswiththesethreekeys(inorder),youcangiveyourstudentsthekindofscienceeducationthatnotonlyexcitesthem,butthattheyrememberformanyyearstocome.

Sowhatdoyoudo?First,don’tworry.It’snotsomethingthattakesyearsandyearstodo.Itjusttakescommitment.

Whatifyoudon’thavetime?WhatI’mabouttodescribecantakeabitoftimeasateacher,butitdoesn’thaveto.Thereisawaytoshortcuttheprocessandgetthesameresults!ButI’lltellyoumoreaboutthatinaminute.First,letmetellyouhowtodoittherightway:

PuttingItintoAction

Stepone:Getstudentsgenuinelyinterestedandexcitedaboutatopic.Startbydecidingwhattopicyouwantyourstudentstolearn.Then,you’regoingtogetthemreallyinterestedinit.Forexample,supposeIwantmyfifth‐gradestudentstolearnaboutaerodynamics.I’llarrangeforthemtowatchavideoofwhatit’sliketogoupinasmallplane,orevenfindsomeonewhoisapilotandcancometalkwiththekids.Thisisthekindofexperiencethatwillreallyexcitethem.

Steptwo:Giveyourstudentshands‐onactivitiesandexperimentstomakethetopicmeaningful.ThisiswhereItakethatexcitementandletthemexploreit.Ihaveflyinglessonvideos,airplanebooks,andrealpilotsinteractwithmystudents.I’llalsoshowvideosonhowpilotsplanforaflight.Mystudentswilllearnaboutnavigation,figuringouthowmuchfuelisneededfortheflight,howtheweighttheplanecarriesaffectsitsaerodynamics,andsomuchmore.(AnddidIjustseeaspotforafuturemathlessonalso?)I’llusepilottrainingvideostohelpusfigure


thisout(shortofalivedemo,avideoisincrediblypowerfulforlearningwhenusedcorrectly).

Mystudentsareincrediblyexcitedatthispointaboutanythingthathastodowithairplanesandflying.Theyareallpositivetheywanttobepilotssomedayandarealreadywantingflyinglessons(remember‐theyareonlyfifth‐graders!).

Stepthree:Teachthesupportingacademicsandtheory.Now,it’stimetointroduceacademics.Honestly,Ihavemypickofsomanytopics,becauseflyingincludessomanydifferentfields.Imeanmystudentsuseanglesandmathinflightplanning,mechanicsandenergyinhowtheengineworks,electricityinalltheequipmentonboardtheplane,andofcourse,aerodynamicsinkeepingtheplaneintheair(tonamejustafew).

I’mgoingtousethisasthefoundationtoteachtheacademicsideofallthetopicsthatareappropriate.Westartwithaerodynamics.Theylearnaboutliftanddrag,makepaperandbalsa‐woodglidersandexperimentbychangingdifferentparts.Theycalculatehowbigthewingsneedtobetocarrymoreweight(jellybeans)andthentrytheirmodelswithbiggerwings.Thenwemoveontothegeometryusedinnavigation.Insteadofdrawinganglesonablanksheetofpaper,ourworkspaceismadeofairplanemaps(freefromtheairport).We’reactuallyplanningpartofthenextflightmystudentswill“take”duringtheirgeographylesson.Suddenly,anglesarealotmoreinteresting.Infact,itturnsoutthatweneedabitoftrigonometrytofigureoutsomethings.

Ofcourse,a10‐yearoldcan’tdotrigonometry,right?Wrong!Theyhavenoideathatit’susuallyforhighschoolandlearnaboutcosinesandtangents.Throughoutthis,I’mgivingthemchancestotalkwiththepilotinclass,sharewhatthey’velearnedwitheachother,andevenplanarealflight.Howcoolisthattoakid?

Thekeyistofocusonbuildinginterestandexcitementfirst,andthentheacademicsareeasytogetstudentstolearn.Trystartingwiththeacademicsand...well,we’veallhadtheexperienceoftryingtogetkidsdosomethingtheydon’treallywanttodo.

TheShortcut:Okay,sothismightsoundlikeit’stime‐intensive.Ifyou’rethinking“Ijustdon’thavethetimetodothis!”Ormaybe“Ijustdon’tunderstandsciencewellenoughmyselftoteachittomystudentsatthatlevel.”Ifthisisyou,you’renotalone.

Thegoodnewsis,youdon’thaveto.Theshortcutistofindsomeonewhoalreadyspecializesintheareayouwantyourstudentstolearnaboutandexposethemtotheexcitementthatthepersongetsfromthefield.Then,insteadofyoubeingtheonetoinventanentirelynewcurriculumofhands‐onactivitiesandacademics,useasolidscienceprogramorcurriculum(livevideos,notcartoons).Thiswillprovidethemwithboththehands‐onexperimentsandtheacademicbackgroundtheyneed.

Ifyouuseaprogramthatisself‐guided(thatis,itguidesyouandyourstudentsthroughitstep‐by‐step),youdon’tneedtobehassledwiththepreparation.That’swhatthisunitisintendedtodoforyouandyourstudents.Thisprogramusesthesecomponentsandmatchesyoureducationalgoalssetbystatestandards.

Thisunitimplementsthethreekeystepswejusttalkedaboutanddoesthisallforyou.Myhopeisthatyounowhavesomenewtoolsinyourteachingtoolboxtogiveyourstudentsthebeststartyoucan.Iknowit’slikeawildrollercoasterridesomedays,butIalsoknowit’sworthit.Havenodoubtthatthatthecaringandattentionyougivetoyourstudents’educationtodaywillpayoffmanifoldinthefuture.


EducationalGoals

Astrophysicscombinestheknowledgeoflight(electromagneticradiation),chemicalreactions,atoms,energy,andphysicalmotionallintoone.You’llsoonbediscoveringhowtomakearealscalemodelofthesolarsystem(andwheremostmodelsgowrong),you’lllearnaboutthedifferentatmospheresonplanets,howtocapturemeteorites,designasolarsystem,learnaboutdifferentspacemissionsandsomuchmore.

Herearethescientificconcepts:

Objectsintheskymoveinregularandpredictablepatterns.Thepatternsofstarsstaythesame,althoughtheyappeartomoveacrosstheskynightly,anddifferentstarscanbeseenindifferentseasons.

ThepositionoftheMoonchangesduringthecourseofthedayandfromseasontoseason. ThephasesoftheMoonandthelunarcycle. TheEarthisoneofseveralplanetsthatorbittheSun,andtheMoonorbitstheEarth. ThesolarsystemconsistsofplanetsandotherbodiesthatorbittheSuninpredictablepaths. Oursolarsystemincludesrockyterrestrialplanets(Mercury,Venus,Earth,andMars),gasgiants(Jupiter

andSaturn),icegiants(UranusandNeptune),andassortedchunksoficeanddustthatmakeupvariouscometsandasteroids.

Twoplanets(CeresandPluto)havebeenreclassifiedafterastronomersfoundoutmoreinformationabouttheirneighbors.

TheOortCloudholdsanestimated1trillioncomets.TheKuiperBeltholdschunksoficeanddust,likecometsandasteroidsaswellaslargerobjectslikedwarfplanetsErisandPluto.

Theappearance,generalcomposition,relativepositionandsize,andmotionofobjectsinthesolarsystem,includingplanets,planetarysatellites,comets,andasteroids.

HowtouseastronomicalunitsandlightyearsasmeasuresofdistancebetweentheSun,stars,andEarth. ThepathofaplanetaroundtheSunisduetothegravitationalattractionbetweentheSunandtheplanet. TheSun,anaveragestar,isthecentralandlargestbodyinthesolarsystemandiscomposedprimarilyof

hydrogenandhelium.TheSunusesnuclearreactionstogenerateitsenergy. ThepositionoftheSunintheskychangesduringthecourseofthedayandfromseasontoseason. Starsarethesourceoflightforallbrightobjectsinouterspace.TheMoonandplanetsshinebyreflected

sunlight,notbytheirownlight. Visiblelightisasmallbandwithinaverybroadelectromagneticspectrum. Whitelightisamixtureofmanywavelengths(colors),includinginfrared,ultra‐violet,visible,andmore.

Differentinstrumentsdetectandmeasuredifferentwavelengthsoflight. Galaxiesareclustersofbillionsofstars,andmayhavedifferentshapes.TheSunisoneofmanystarsinour

ownMilkyWaygalaxy.Starsmaydifferinsize,temperature,andcolor. Gravitationallensingoccurswhenblackholesandothermassiveobjectsbendlight.

Bytheendofthelabsinthisunit,studentswillbeableto:

DesignandbuildanexperimentthatshowshowtheshapeoftheMoonchangesovertime. Knowhowtodemonstratehowthepositionofobjectsintheskychangesovertime. Knowthecelestialobjectsinthesolarsystemandhowtheyrelateandinteractwitheachother. Measureandestimatethelengthandvolumeofobjects.


Formulateandjustifypredictionsbasedoncause‐and‐effectrelationships. Conductmultipletrialstotestapredictionanddrawconclusionsabouttherelationshipsbetween

predictionsandresults. Constructandinterpretgraphsfrommeasurements.

Followasetofwritteninstructionsforascientificinvestigation.


Lesson#1:Stars,Planets,andBlackHolesTeacherSection

OverviewThisisanintroductiontoastronomyandwhyit’simportanttostudy.Todaystudents(andyou)willtakeanintergalacticstartourwithoutleavingtheirseats!You’llbewatchingthevideorightalongwiththekids.Thisvideoyou’reabouttowatchisbestwithabigbowlofpopcorn.

SuggestedTime:60‐75minutes

OverviewWe’regoingtocoveralotinthispresentation,includingstarslikeoursunaswellasdistantstars,iceandgasgiants,comets,asteroids,moons,ringedplanets,blackholesquasars,supernovaandmore.Thisisanoverviewofmanydifferentconceptswe’regoingtostudyinfurtherdepth,including:

TheSun,anaveragestar,isthecentralandlargestbodyinthesolarsystemandiscomposedprimarilyofhydrogenandhelium.

ThesolarsystemincludestheEarth,Moon,Sun,sevenotherplanetsandtheirsatellites,andsmallerobjectssuchasasteroidsandcomets.

Thestructureandcompositionoftheuniversecanbelearnedfromthestudyofstarsandgalaxies. Galaxiesareclustersofbillionsofstars,andmayhavedifferentshapes. TheSunisoneofmanystarsinourownMilkyWaygalaxy. Starsmaydifferinsize,temperature,andcolor.

Materials(perlabgroup)

Metalball(likeaballbearing)ORamagneticmarble Strongmagnet(thestrongestoneyouown).IhaveaneodymiummagnetthatIamusing. Thinplastic,cardboard,orwoodsheet(likeatableorcuttingboard).Makesurethemagnetcaninfluence

themetalballthroughit(don'tusemetal.) SmallbouncyballandtennisballORatennisballandabasketball(youneedtwoballsofdifferentsizes)

LabPreparation

1. Printoutcopiesofthestudentworksheets.2. ReadovertheBackgroundLessonReadingbeforeteachingthisclass.3. Watchthevideoatthebeginningofthissectiontoprepareyourselfforthisclass.

BackgroundLessonReading

Oursolarsystemincludesrockyterrestrialplanets(Mercury,Venus,Earth,andMars),gasgiants(JupiterandSaturn),icegiants(UranusandNeptune),andassortedchunksoficeanddustthatmakeupvariouscometsandasteroids.

Twoplanets(CeresandPluto)havebeenreclassifiedafterastronomersfoundoutmoreinformationabouttheirneighbors.CeresisnowanasteroidintheAsteroidBeltbetweenMarsandJupiter.BeyondNeptune,theKuiper


Beltholdsthechunksoficeanddust,likecometsandasteroidsaswellaslargerobjectslikedwarfplanetsErisandPluto.

BeyondtheKuiperBeltisanareacalledtheOortCloud,whichholdsanestimated1trillioncomets.TheOortCloudissofarawaythatit’sonlylooselyheldinorbitbyourSun,andconstantlybeingpulledgravitationallybypassingstarsandtheMilkyWayitself.TheVoyagerSpacecraftarebeyondtheheliosphere(theregioninfluencedgravitationallybyourSun)buthavenotreachedtheOortCloud.

Starsliketolivetogetherinfamilies.Galaxiesarestarsthatarepulledandheldtogetherbygravity.Somegalaxiesaresparsewhileothersarepackedsodenselyyoucan’tseethroughthem.Galaxiesalsoliketohangoutwithothergalaxies(calledgalaxyclusters),butnotallgalaxiesbelongtoclusters,andnotallstarsbelongtoagalaxy.

Dyingstarsblowoffshellsofheatedgasthatglowinbeautifulpatterns.WilliamHershel(1795)coinedtheterm“planetarynebula”becausetheoneshelookedatthrough18thcenturytelescopeslookedlikeplanets.Theyactuallyhavenothingtodowithplanets–theyareshellsofdustfeatheringaway.

Lesson

1. Thislabismostlydoneforyou–youdon’tevenhavetoteachifyoudon’twantto!Justfireupthevideoforthestudents,sitbackandenjoytheshow.Youcanhavethekidsfillouttheirquestionsandtableeitherduringoraftertheclass,ingroupsorindividually.Personally,Iencourageteamworkandgroupdiscussions,asthestudentsseemtocatchonmorewhentheyhaveotherstohelpthemoutonthepartstheymighthavemissed.

LabTime

1. Reviewtheinstructionsontheirworksheetsandthenbreakthestudentsintotheirlabgroups.Handeachgrouptheirmaterialsandgivethemtimetolookoverthesheetandgetfamiliarwiththequestionsthatwillbeaskedaboutthepresentation.

2. Whenthevideoisup,askthekidstofillouttheirworksheet.3. Studentscansharetheirresultswithyouwhileyourecordthemontheboardforeveryonetosee.4. Leadthemintoadiscussionofwhattheythinkastronomyisandwhatitisn’t.5. Askthemtoshareonethingaboutastronomythattheynowknowbutdidn’tbeforetheywalkedintoyour

class.6. Finally,askthemtowritedownthreethingstheywanttoknowaboutastronomy.Givethemafewminutes

towritetheirideasdownandthenaskforshares.Youcanrecordtheirrequestsandposttheminyourclassroom.

Exercises

1. IsMercurythehottestplanet?Whyorwhynot?(No,Venusisbecauseit’sgotathickatmospherethatkeepstheheattrappedinside.)

2. Whatissolarwind?Whatprotectsplanetsfromit?(Mars,EarthandVenusarebathedinaflowofplasmathatcomesfromthesun,calledsolarwind.TheEarthhasamagneticfieldwhichactslikeaninvisiblecoattoprotecttheearthbecauseitdeflectsthesolarwindawayfromus,butVenusandMarsdon’thavethisprotectionsotheygetblastedwiththissolarwind.Solarwindisn’treallywind(there’snoairinspace,soitcan’tbelikethenormalkindofwind),butit’sastreamofhighlychargedparticlescomingfromthesun.)


3. Canasteroidshavemoons?(Yes!Idaisanasteroiddetectedin1884,andin1993GalileospacecraftdiscovereditsmoonDactyl.)

4. WhyisIodifferentcolors?(Fromvolcanicactivity.)5. Canmoonshaveatmospheres?Doallplanetshaveatmospheres?(MoonslikeTitanhaveatmospheres.Not

allplanetshaveatmospheres,becauseofaplanet’slowgravity;theatmospherecangetblownawaybystrongsolarwinds.MercuryandMarshaveverythinatmospheres.)

6. HowmanyobjectsinthePlutosystem?(Four:Pluto,Charon,Hydra,andNix.)7. Nametwowaysyoucandetectblackholes.(LookforX‐rayemissions,lookforlightbendingaroundthe

blackhole,orlookforastarwobblingororbitingsomethingthatisn’tthere.)8. Ifastarcollapseswhenitrunsoutoffuel,thenwhydosupernovasexplode?(Whenthecoreofastar

collapses,itsmackstogethersoHARDthatitrebounds–itbouncesback.Whenitreboundsandbouncesbackout,itcollideswiththerestofthegasthatisstillfallinginward(rememberthefoilintheballoonexperiment?)Whenthereboundingcorehitsthein‐fallinggas,thecoreblastseverythingoutintospace…andthismakesagiantexplosion.)

9. Nametwoscientistswhocontributedtotheworkonblackholes.(StephenHawking,KarlSchwarzschild,RobertOppenheimer,RogerPenrose,AlbertEinstein,JohnMitchell…)

10. Whatisagalaxy,andhowisitdifferentfromaquasar?(Agalaxyisasystem,ofmillionsorbillionsofstars,togetherwithgasanddustthatisheldtogetherbygravity.Wethinkquasarsarethebrilliantcoresofagalaxy,whichispoweredbyablackhole.)

ClosureBeforemovingon,askyourstudentsiftheyhaveanyrecommendationsorunansweredquestionsthattheycanworkoutontheirown.Brainstormingextensionideasisagreatwaytoaddmoresciencestudiestoyourclasstime.


Lesson#1:Stars,Planets,andBlackHolesStudentWorksheet

Name______________________________________________________________________

OverviewGreetingsandwelcometothestudyofastronomy!Thisfirstlessonissimplytogetyouexcitedandinterestedinastronomysoyoucandecidewhatitisthatyouwanttolearnaboutastronomylateron.

WhattoLearnWe’regoingtocoveralotinthispresentation,includingstarslikeoursunaswellasdistantstars,iceandgasgiants,comets,asteroids,moons,ringedplanets,blackholesquasars,supernovaandmore.Thisisanoverviewofmanydifferentconceptswe’regoingtostudyinfurtherdepth,including:

TheSun,anaveragestar,isthecentralandlargestbodyinthesolarsystemandiscomposedprimarilyofhydrogenandhelium.

ThesolarsystemincludestheEarth,Moon,Sun,sevenotherplanetsandtheirsatellites,andsmallerobjectssuchasasteroidsandcomets.

Thestructureandcompositionoftheuniversecanbelearnedfromthestudyofstarsandgalaxies. Galaxiesareclustersofbillionsofstars,andmayhavedifferentshapes. TheSunisoneofmanystarsinourownMilkyWaygalaxy. Starsmaydifferinsize,temperature,andcolor.

Materials

Metalball(likeaballbearing)ORamagneticmarble Strongmagnet(thestrongestoneyouown).IhaveaneodymiummagnetthatIamusing. Thinplastic,cardboard,orwoodsheet(likeatableorcuttingboard).Makesurethemagnetcaninfluence

themetalballthroughit(don'tusemetal.) SmallbouncyballandtennisballORatennisballandabasketball(youneedtwoballsofdifferentsizes)

LabTime

1. IsMercurythehottestplanet?Whyorwhynot?

2. Whatissolarwind?Whatprotectsplanetsfromit?

3. Canasteroidshavemoons?

4. WhyisIodifferentcolors?

5. Canmoonshaveatmospheres?Doallplanetshaveatmospheres?


6. HowmanyobjectsinthePlutosystem?

7. Nametwowaysyoucandetectblackholes.

8. Ifastarcollapseswhenitrunsoutoffuel,thenwhydosupernovasexplode?

9. Nametwoscientistswhocontributedtotheworkonblackholes.

10. Whatisagalaxy,andhowisitdifferentfromaquasar?

Writedownthreethingsyoureallywanttoknowaboutastronomy.

1.

2.

3.


PlanetariumStarShowTable

Planet InterestingFactYouDidn’tKnow‘TilNow

HomeworkThisevening,findanarticleorstorythatdescribeshowastronomy(knowledge,equipment,discoveries,etc.)improvesourlives.Bringthearticletoschool.Ifyoubringinanarticlethatnooneelsebringsin,yougetextrapoints.


Lesson#2:SolarSystemScaleModelTeacherSection

Overview:Thislabisaboutbuildingascalemodelofthesolarsystem,bothinthedimensionsoftheplanetsaswellasthedistancesbetweenthem.


Objectives:Studentswilllearnhowoursolarsystemismostlymadeupofemptyspace,andthatthedistancesbetweentheobjectsarehuge.


Measuringtape Ruler(metricorinches) Popsiclesticks Markers Indexcards Tape Tennisball Grassyfieldoroutdoorareatospreadout

LabPreparation

1. Findalargeareathatyoucanletthekidsmarkoffwiththeirsticks.Theywillbeprovidedapproximate(average)orbitaldistancesandsizesforbuildingtheirownscalemodelofthesolarsystem.

2. Printoutcopiesofthestudentworksheets.3. ReadovertheBackgroundLessonReadingbeforeteachingthisclass.4. Watchthevideoforthisexperimenttoprepareforteachingthisclass.


AGreekmathematician,Eratosthenes,wasthefirstpersontomeasuretheEarth’scircumferenceaswellascalculatethetiltoftheEarth’saxis,bothwithremarkableaccuracy.ScientiststhinkhewasalsothefirsttocorrectlycalculatethedistancefromtheEarthtotheSun.Hissystemoflatitudeandlongitudeisstillusedtoday.

Thediameterofoursolarsystemisalittlehardertofigureout,sincetheexactboundarystillhasn’tbeenexploredthoroughlyyetinordertoprovideenoughinformationaboutwhatshouldbeincludedandwhatdoesn’tbelong.Formeasuringlargedistances,astronomersuse“AU”or“au”meaningastronomicalunit.OneAUisthedistancefromtheEarthtotheSun,or93millionmiles(150millionkm).

GianDomenicoCassinimadethefirstgoodplanetmeasurementsin1672byusingparallax.Here’showhedidit:Ifyouholdyourhandoutatarm’slengthandlookatitwithonlyoneeyeatatime,you’llseeyourhandshiftslightlybackandforth.Thisiscalledparallax.Thishappensbecauseyoureyesareseparatedbyacoupleinches.Ifweknowhowfarapartyoureyesare,andcarefullymeasurethehowfaryourhandappearstoshift,wecanfindouthowlongyourarmis.


Nowimaginedoingthisbutinsteadofthedistancebetweenyoureyes,we’llusethedistancetheEarthmoveswhenit’sononesideoftheSunversustheother,likeinwinterandsummer.Thespacingbetweentheeyesnowisn’tacoupleinches;it’snearly2AU’sapart.Bycarefullymeasuringhowmuchanobjectappearstoshift,wecanfindouthowfarthatobjectisfromus.

TodayweusearadiosignalandtimehowlongittakesthesignaltotravelfromtheEarthtoaspacecraftparkedinorbitaroundanotherplanet.Sincethesignaltravelsatthespeedoflight(186,000milespersecond),it’seasytofindouthowfarawaytheobjectis.ScientistsalsobounceradarsignalsoffaplanetandtimehowlongittakestoechobacktoEarth,muchthesamewaythepolicecanfindoutyourspeedusingaradargun.

Lesson

1. Holdupabeachballandaskthekidshowlargeasheetofpaperthey’dneedtomakeascalemodelofthesolarsystemiftheSunwasthisbig(yourbeachballshouldbeabout12”indiameter).Theywouldneedasheetofpapernearlyamilelong!

2. Askthekidshowtheywouldmeasurethedistanceofafootballfieldiftheyonlyhadaruler.Thenaskhowwouldtheymeasurehowhighatreeis(withoutclimbingit)usingthesameruler.Nowaskhowthey’dmeasurethedistancetotheMoon.

3. Explaintothekidsaboutparallax(fromtheBackgroundReading),mentioningthatthiswasoneofthefirstwayswefiguredoutthedistancestotheplanets.Sincetheplanetsmoveintheirorbits,scientistshadtotakethatintoaccountwhentheydidtheirmeasurementsandcalculations.

4. Letthestudentsknowthatinordertogetthehangofhowbigandfarawaycelestialobjectsreallyare,we’regoingtomakeascalemodelofthesolarsystem.

5. Askyourstudentstodrawthesolarsystemontheboard.Don’tcorrectanymistakesjustyet(ifany).Moststudentswilltendtodrawtheplanetsevenlyspacedapart.Theywillcorrecttheirmistakesthenexttimeyouaskthisquestioninthenextlesson.

6. Whenbuildingthismodel,startbymarkingoffthelocationoftheSun(youcanusechalk,apapercirclecutto2.63”(66.8mm)orplaceatennisballasaplaceholderfortheSun).Therestisforthemtofigureout.

LabTime

1. Reviewtheinstructionsontheirworksheetsandthenbreakthestudentsintotheirlabgroups.2. Handeachgrouptheirmaterials.3. Ononeendofeachstick,writethenameofeachplanet/objectfromthetablebelow.4. Ontheotherend,drawthescalesizeoftheplanet.IftheplanetislargerthanthePopsiclestick,drawiton

anindexcardandtapeittothestick.Usethefraction‐to‐decimalconverterifneeded(dependingonyourruler).

5. Placeyourtennisballatoneendoftheareamarkedoffforyourexperiments.ThisistheSun.6. Usingthetablebelowandthemeasuringtape,measurethedistancefromtheSuntoMercury.Havealab

partnerholdoneendofthemeasuringtapeatthecenterofthetennisball(oranXyou’vemarkedonthegroundthat’sunderthetennisball).At10.4inches,placeyourPopsiclestickintothegroundsoitstandsup.Ifyou’reonconcrete,layitdownwiththedotrepresentingMercury10.4inchesawayfromtheSun.

7. Continuewiththerestoftheplanets,asfarasyouhaveroomtogo.Whichplanetdidyouhavetostopatbecauseyourareawasn’tbigenough?Ordidn’tyou?


SolarSystemDataTable

AlldistancesaremeasuredfromthecenteroftheSun.TheSunis2.63”(66.8mm)indiameter.

Planet/Object ObjectDiameter DistancefromtheSunMercury 0.009inches 0.2mm 10.4inches 0.264m

Venus 0.023inches 0.5mm 1foot7.4inches 0.493m

Earth 0.024inches 0.6mm 2feet2.9inches 0.682m

Mars 0.013inches 0.3mm 3feet4.9inches 1.039m

Jupiter 0.27inches 6.8mm 11feet7.76inches 3.649m

Saturn 0.22inches 5.5mm 21feet4.3inches 6.51m

Uranus 0.089inches 2.2mm 42feet11.5inches 13.094m

Neptune 0.086inches 2.1mm 67feet4.2inches 20.529m

Pluto(dwarfplanet) 0.004inches 0.1mm 88feet6inches 36.975m

Exercises

1. Whatdoyounoticeaboutthepositionoftherockyterrestrialplanets?(TheyareallbuncheduptogetherclosetotheSun.)

2. Aretheicegiantsfurtherapartfromeachotherthanthegasgiantsare?(Neptune‐Uranusis9.8AUandSaturn‐Jupiteris5AUwhentheyareonthesamesideoftheSun.)

3. Mariner10took147daystoreachMercuryfromEarth.HowlongdoyouthinkitwouldtaketogettoNeptune?(Approximately12‐22years,dependingontheflightpathandthespeedchosen.)

4. IftheEarthis93millionmiles(150millionkm)fromtheSun,andCeresis413millionmiles(665millionkm)fromtheSun,wherewouldyouplaceitinyourscalemodel?(Ceresis4.4AUor3metersor9.91feetaway.Ifyourstudentshaven’tcoveredthisyet,it’sokaytoeyeballthedistanceandapproximateCerestobeaboutfourtimesthedistancefromtheSunthattheEarthis.)Findthedistancewiththisproportionequation:

.

=3meters.


Herearefraction‐to‐decimalequivalentsforyourreferenceifneeded:

inch fraction

inch decimal

mm

1⁄64 0.015625 0.396875

1⁄32 0.03125 0.79375

3⁄64 0.046875 1.190625

1⁄16 0.0625 1.5875

5⁄64 0.078125 1.984375

3⁄32 0.09375 2.38125

7⁄64 0.109375 2.778125

1⁄8 0.125 3.175

9⁄64 0.140625 3.571875

5⁄32 0.15625 3.96875

11⁄64 0.171875 4.365625

3⁄16 0.1875 4.7625

13⁄64 0.203125 5.159375

7⁄32 0.21875 5.55625

15⁄64 0.234375 5.953125

1⁄4 0.25 6.35

17⁄64 0.265625 6.746875

9⁄32 0.28125 7.14375

19⁄64 0.296875 7.540625

5⁄16 0.3125 7.9375

inch fraction

inch decimal

mm

11⁄32 0.34375 8.73125

23⁄64 0.359375 9.128125

3⁄8 0.375 9.525

25⁄64 0.390625 9.921875

13⁄32 0.40625 10.31875

27⁄64 0.421875 10.71563

7⁄16 0.4375 11.1125

29⁄64 0.453125 11.50938

15⁄32 0.46875 11.90625

31⁄64 0.484375 12.30313

1⁄2 0.5 12.7

33⁄64 0.515625 13.09688

17⁄32 0.53125 13.49375

35⁄64 0.546875 13.89063

9⁄16 0.5625 14.2875

37⁄64 0.578125 14.68438

19⁄32 0.59375 15.08125

39⁄64 0.609375 15.47813

5⁄8 0.625 15.875

41⁄64 0.640625 16.27188

21⁄32 0.65625 16.66875

inch fraction

inch decimal

mm

11⁄16 0.6875 17.4625

45⁄64 0.703125 17.85938

23⁄32 0.71875 18.25625

47⁄64 0.734375 18.65313

3⁄4 0.75 19.05

49⁄64 0.765625 19.44688

25⁄32 0.78125 19.84375

51⁄64 0.796875 20.24063

13⁄16 0.8125 20.6375

53⁄64 0.828125 21.03438

27⁄32 0.84375 21.43125

55⁄64 0.859375 21.82813

7⁄8 0.875 22.225

57⁄64 0.890625 22.62188

29⁄32 0.90625 23.01875

59⁄64 0.921875 23.41563

15⁄16 0.9375 23.8125

61⁄64 0.953125 24.20938

31⁄32 0.96875 24.60625

63⁄64 0.984375 25.00313

1 1 25.4

ClosureBeforemovingon,askyourstudentsiftheyhaveanyrecommendationsorunansweredquestionsthattheycanworkoutontheirown.Brainstormingextensionideasisagreatwaytoaddmoresciencestudiestoyourclasstime.


Lesson#2:SolarSystemScaleModelStudentWorksheet

Name______________________________________________________________________

Overview:Todayyougettomakeascalemodelofthesolarsystem.Byscalemodel,Imeanboththesizesoftheplanetswillbetoscaleaswellasthedistancesbetweentheplanets.Yourjobistomakeitasaccurateasyoucan.

WhattoLearn:Youwilllearnhowoursolarsystemismostlymadeupofemptyspaceandthatthedistancesbetweentheobjectsarehuge.You’llalsofindoutwherethatpeskydwarfplanetCeres(whichwasdiscoveredin1801andthoughttobeaplanet,butquicklywasdemotedtoanasteroidandlateradwarfplanet)lives.

Materials

Measuringtape Ruler(metricorinches) Popsiclesticks Markers Indexcards Tape Tennisball Grassyfieldoroutdoorareatospreadout

LabTime

1. Ononeendofeachstick,writethenameofeachplanet/objectfromthetablebelow.2. Ontheotherend,drawthescalesizeoftheplanet.IftheplanetislargerthanthePopsiclestick,drawiton

anindexcardandtapeittothestick.Usethefraction‐to‐decimalconverterifneeded(dependingonyourruler).

3. Placeyourtennisballatoneendoftheareamarkedoffforyourexperiments.ThisistheSun.4. Usingthetablebelowandthemeasuringtape,measurethedistancefromtheSuntoMercury.Havealab

partnerholdoneendofthemeasuringtapeatthecenterofthetennisball(oranXyou’vemarkedonthegroundthat’sunderthetennisball).At10.4inches,placeyourPopsiclestickintothegroundsoitstandsup.Ifyou’reonconcrete,layitdownwiththedotrepresentingMercury10.4inchesawayfromtheSun.

5. Continuewiththerestoftheplanets,asfarasyouhaveroomtogo.Whichplanetdidyouhavetostopatbecauseyourareawasn’tbigenough?Ordidn’tyou?


SolarSystemDataTable

AlldistancesaremeasuredfromthecenteroftheSun.TheSunis2.63”(66.8mm)indiameter.

Planet/Object ObjectDiameter DistancefromtheSunMercury 0.009inches 0.2mm 10.4inches 0.264m

Venus 0.023inches 0.5mm 1foot7.4inches 0.493m

Earth 0.024inches 0.6mm 2feet2.9inches 0.682m

Mars 0.013inches 0.3mm 3feet4.9inches 1.039m

Jupiter 0.27inches 6.8mm 11feet7.76inches 3.649m

Saturn 0.22inches 5.5mm 21feet4.3inches 6.51m

Uranus 0.089inches 2.2mm 42feet11.5inches 13.094m

Neptune 0.086inches 2.1mm 67feet4.2inches 20.529m

Pluto(dwarfplanet) 0.004inches 0.1mm 88feet6inches 36.975m

ExercisesAnswerthequestionsbelow:

1. Whatdoyounoticeaboutthepositionoftherockyterrestrialplanets?

2. Aretheicegiantsfurtherapartfromeachotherthanthegasgiantsare?

3. Mariner10took147daystoreachMercuryfromEarth.HowlongdoyouthinkitwouldtaketogettoNeptune?

4. IftheEarthis93millionmiles(150millionkm)fromtheSun,andCeresis413millionmiles(665millionkm)fromtheSun,wherewouldyouplaceitinyourscalemodel?


Herearefraction‐to‐decimalequivalentsforyourreferenceifneeded:

inch fraction

inch decimal

mm

1⁄64 0.015625 0.396875

1⁄32 0.03125 0.79375

3⁄64 0.046875 1.190625

1⁄16 0.0625 1.5875

5⁄64 0.078125 1.984375

3⁄32 0.09375 2.38125

7⁄64 0.109375 2.778125

1⁄8 0.125 3.175

9⁄64 0.140625 3.571875

5⁄32 0.15625 3.96875

11⁄64 0.171875 4.365625

3⁄16 0.1875 4.7625

13⁄64 0.203125 5.159375

7⁄32 0.21875 5.55625

15⁄64 0.234375 5.953125

1⁄4 0.25 6.35

17⁄64 0.265625 6.746875

9⁄32 0.28125 7.14375

19⁄64 0.296875 7.540625

5⁄16 0.3125 7.9375

inch fraction

inch decimal

mm

11⁄32 0.34375 8.73125

23⁄64 0.359375 9.128125

3⁄8 0.375 9.525

25⁄64 0.390625 9.921875

13⁄32 0.40625 10.31875

27⁄64 0.421875 10.71563

7⁄16 0.4375 11.1125

29⁄64 0.453125 11.50938

15⁄32 0.46875 11.90625

31⁄64 0.484375 12.30313

1⁄2 0.5 12.7

33⁄64 0.515625 13.09688

17⁄32 0.53125 13.49375

35⁄64 0.546875 13.89063

9⁄16 0.5625 14.2875

37⁄64 0.578125 14.68438

19⁄32 0.59375 15.08125

39⁄64 0.609375 15.47813

5⁄8 0.625 15.875

41⁄64 0.640625 16.27188

21⁄32 0.65625 16.66875

inch fraction

inch decimal

mm

11⁄16 0.6875 17.4625

45⁄64 0.703125 17.85938

23⁄32 0.71875 18.25625

47⁄64 0.734375 18.65313

3⁄4 0.75 19.05

49⁄64 0.765625 19.44688

25⁄32 0.78125 19.84375

51⁄64 0.796875 20.24063

13⁄16 0.8125 20.6375

53⁄64 0.828125 21.03438

27⁄32 0.84375 21.43125

55⁄64 0.859375 21.82813

7⁄8 0.875 22.225

57⁄64 0.890625 22.62188

29⁄32 0.90625 23.01875

59⁄64 0.921875 23.41563

15⁄16 0.9375 23.8125

61⁄64 0.953125 24.20938

31⁄32 0.96875 24.60625

63⁄64 0.984375 25.00313

1 1 25.4


Lesson#3:AtmospheresTeacherSection

Overview:Theatmosphereofaplanethasahugeeffectonitstemperature.We’regoingtosimulateconditionsonthreeoftheplanetsandmeasuretheirtemperatureovertime.


Objectives:Eachplanethasitsownuniqueatmosphericconditions.MarsandMercuryhaveverythinatmospheres,whileEarthhasadecentatmosphere(asleast,weliketothinkso).Venus’satmosphereissothickanddense(92timesthatoftheEarth’s)thatitheatsuptheplanetsoit’sthehottestrockaround.JupiterandSaturnaresogaseousthatit’shardtotellwheretheatmosphereendsandtheplanetstarts,soscientistsdefinethelayersbasedonthedensityandtemperaturechangesofthegases.UranusandNeptunearecalledicegiantsbecauseoftheamountsoficeintheiratmospheres.


4thermometers 3jarsorwaterbottles Plasticwraporclearplasticbaggie Waxpaper Stopwatch

LabPreparation



Venusishotenoughtomeltcannonballsandcrushanyspaceshipthattriestolandonthesurface.Carbondioxideisa“greenhousegas,”meaningthatsomewavelengthsoflightcanpassthroughit,butspecificallynotinfraredlight,whichisalsoknownasheat.LightfromtheSuneitherbouncesofftheuppercloudlayersandbackintospace,orpenetratesthecloudsandstrikesthesurfaceofVenus,warminguptheland.Thegroundradiatestheheatbackout,butthecarbondioxideatmosphereissodenseandthickthatittrapsandkeepstheheatdownonthesurfaceoftheplanet.Thinkofrollingupyourwindowsinyourcaronahotday.

TheheatissointenseonVenusthatthecarbonnormallylockedintorockssublimated(turnedstraightfromsolidtogas)andaddedtothecarbonintheatmosphere,tomakeevenmorecarbondioxide.

Lesson

1. Mercurydoesn’thavemuchofanatmosphere,whichisjustlikeabarethermometer.There’snothingtoholdontotheheatthatstrikesthesurface.Marsisinasimilarsituation.


2. Earth’satmosphereissimulatedbyplacingthethermometerinabottle.TheEarthhasacloudlayerthatkeepssomeoftheheatontheplanet,butmostofitdoesgetradiatedbackintospace.Whenthecloudsareinatnight,theplanetstayswarmerthanwhenit’sclear(andcold).

3. Venus’sheavy,densecarbondioxideatmosphereissimulatedbyusingthewaxedpaper.Venusisthehottestplanetinoursolarsystembecauseoftherunawaygreenhouseeffectthattrapsmostoftheheatthatmakesitthroughtheatmosphere,bouncingitbackdowntothesurface.TheaveragetemperatureofVenusisover900oF.

4. JupiterandSaturn’satmospheresarethinnerlayersofhydrogenandheliumthandeeperinthecore.5. UranusandNeptunearecalledicegiantsbecauseoftheamountsoficeintheiratmospheres.Their

atmospheresarealsomadeofmostlyhydrogenandhelium.

LabTime

1. Reviewtheinstructionsontheirworksheetsandthenbreakthestudentsintotheirlabgroups.2. Handeachgrouptheirmaterialsandgivethemtimetoperformtheirexperimentandwritedowntheir

observations.3. Placeonethermometerindirectsunlight.ThisisliketheatmosphereofMercuryandMars.4. Placeasecondthermometerinajarandcapit.Placethisinsunlight.ThisistheEarth’s,Jupiter’sand

Saturn’satmosphere.5. Linethesecondjarwithwaxortissuepaper.Placethethirdthermometerinthejarandcapit.Placeitnext

totheothertwoinsunlight.ThisistheatmosphereonVenus.6. Insertthefourththermometerintoaplasticbaggie,putitintothebottleandcapit.Makesurethebaggieis

loose.ThisisNeptuneandUranus.7. Recordyourdataobservationsinthetablebelow.

Exercises

1. Whichatmospherereachedthehighesttemperature?(Refertodatatable,butyoushouldfindthewaxedpaperheatedupthemost.Ifthebaggiejardid,thenyoupackedittootightlyinthejar.)

2. EachofthejarsreceivedthesameamountofenergyfromtheSun.Whyisthisnotquiteliketherealsolarsystem?(EachplanetisadifferentdistancefromtheSun,andreceiveslessenergythefurtheroutit’slocated.Thisexperimentworksbecauseit’soverashortperiodoftime,andwe’refiguringoutwhichconditionstrapheatthebest.)

Closure:Beforemovingon,askyourstudentsiftheyhaveanyrecommendationsorunansweredquestionsthattheycanworkoutontheirown.Brainstormingextensionideasisagreatwaytoaddmoresciencestudiestoyourclasstime.


Lesson#3:AtmospheresStudentWorksheet

Name______________________________________________________________________

Overview:ScientistsdoexperimentshereonEarthtobetterunderstandthephysicsofdistantworlds.We’regoingtosimulatethedifferentatmospheresandtakedatabasedonthemodelweuse.

WhattoLearn:Eachplanethasitsownuniqueatmosphericconditions.MarsandMercuryhaveverythinatmospheres,whileEarthhasadecentatmosphere(asleast,weliketothinkso).Venus’satmosphereissothickanddense(92timesthatoftheEarth’s)thatitheatsuptheplanetsoit’sthehottestrockaround.JupiterandSaturnaresogaseousthatit’shardtotellwheretheatmosphereendsandtheplanetstarts,soscientistsdefinethelayersbasedonthedensityandtemperaturechangesofthegases.UranusandNeptunearecalledicegiantsbecauseoftheamountsoficeintheiratmospheres.

Materials

4thermometers 3jarsorwaterbottles Plasticwraporclearplasticbaggie Waxpaper Stopwatch

LabTime

1. Placeonethermometerindirectsunlight.ThisisliketheatmosphereofMercuryandMars.2. Placeasecondthermometerinajarandcapit.Placethisinsunlight.ThisistheEarth’s,Jupiter’sand

Saturn’satmosphere.3. Linethesecondjarwithwaxortissuepaper.Placethethirdthermometerinthejarandcapit.Placeitnext

totheothertwoinsunlight.ThisistheatmosphereonVenus.4. Insertthefourththermometerintoaplasticbaggie,insertitintothebottleandcapit.Makesurethebaggie

isloose.ThisisNeptuneandUranus.5. Recordyourdataobservationsinthetablebelow,takingdataeverycoupleofminutes.


AtmospheresDataTable

Don’tforgettolabelyourunits!

Time NakedThermometer

ClearJarThermometer

WaxJarThermometer

IceJarThermometer


1. Whichatmospherereachedthehighesttemperature?

2. EachofthejarsreceivedthesameamountofenergyfromtheSun.Whyisthisnotquiteliketherealsolarsystem?


Lesson#4:LunarPhasesTeacherSection

OverviewTheMoonappearstochangeinthesky.Onemomentit’sabigwhitecircle,andnextweekit’sshapedlikeasidewaysbikehelmet.There’sevenonedaywhereitdisappearsaltogether.Sowhatgives?That’swhatthislabisallabout.


Objectives:StudentswilllearnhowtheMoon'sappearancechangesduringthefour‐weeklunarcycle.


Ball Flashlight

LabPreparation

1. Thislabworksbestifyourroomisverydark.Buttondownthoseshadesandmakeitasdarkasyoucan.2. Printoutcopiesofthestudentworksheets.3. ReadovertheBackgroundLessonReadingbeforeteachingthisclass.4. Watchthevideoforthisexperimenttoprepareforteachingthisclass.


TheSunilluminateshalfoftheMoonallthetime.Imagineshiningaflashlightonabeachball.Thehalfthatfacesthelightislitup.There’snolightonthefarside,right?SofortheMoon,whichhalfislitupdependsontherotationoftheMoon.AndwhichpartoftheilluminatedsidewecanseedependsonwherewearewhenlookingattheMoon.Soundcomplicated?Thislabwillstraighteneverythingoutsoitmakessense.

Onequestionyou’llhearis:Whydon’twehaveeclipseseverymonthwhenthere’sanewMoon?Thenextlessonisallabouteclipses,butyoucanquicklyanswertheirquestionsbyremindingthemthattheMoon’sorbitaroundtheEarthisnotinthesameplaneastheEarth’sorbitaroundtheSun(calledtheecliptic).It’sactuallyoffbyabout5o.Infact,onlytwicepermonthdoestheMoonpassthroughtheecliptic.

Thelunarcycleisapproximately28days.Tobeexact,ittakesonaverage29.53days(29days,12hours,44minutes)betweentwofullmoons.Theaveragecalendarmonthis1/12ofayear,whichis30.44days.SincetheMoon’sphasesrepeatevery29.53days,theydon’tquitematchup.That’swhyonMoonphasecalendars,you’llseeaskippeddaytoaccountforthemismatch.

AsecondfullMooninthesamemonthiscalledablueMoon.It’salsoablueMoonifit’sthethirdfullMoonoutoffourinathree‐monthseason,whichhappensonceeverytwoorthreeyears.

TheMoonisn’ttheonlyobjectthathasphases.MercuryandVenusundergophasesbecausetheyareclosertotheSunthantheEarth.IfwelivedonMars,thentheEarthwouldalsohavephases.


Lesson

1. Ifyouprefer,youcanrunthislabasademonstrationwhereyouaretheball‐holder(Moon)andavolunteerholdsastronglight(fortheSun),withthekidsallseatedinabigpileatthecenter(Earth).HavethekidsrecordtheirobservationsasyoucreatethedifferentphasesoftheMoon.

2. GooverthedifferentphasesoftheMoonwiththekidsbyaskingthemtocomeupanddrawyouapictureoftheEarthinthemiddleoftheboard.

3. AskkidstocomeupanddrawafullMoon(atthe9o’clockposition),firstquarter(12o’clockposition),thirdquarter(6o’clockposition),andnewMoon(3o’clockposition)ontheboard.Leaveplentyofspacebetweensoyoucanaddlabelsandadditionalphases.

4. WhichMooniswaxing(firstquarter)andwhichiswaning(thirdquarter)?LabeleachMoon.5. DrawawaxingcrescentMoonbetweenthefirstquarterandthenewMoonandlabelit.6. Askthekidswherethewaningcrescentshouldbe.(BetweenthethirdquarterandthenewMoon.)7. AskthekidswherethewaxinggibbousMoonshouldbe.(Betweenthefullandthefirstquarter.)8. DrawthewaninggibbousMoonbetweenthefullandthirdquarter.9. Nowaskthekidswherethesunlightiscomingfrom(totherightoftheboard).Drawarrowstowardthe

newMoontoshowthedirectionofthesunlight.

LabTime

1. Reviewtheinstructionsontheirworksheetsandthenbreakthestudentsintotheirlabgroups.Youneedatleastthreepergroup.

2. Handeachgrouptheirmaterialsandgivethemtimetoperformtheirexperimentandwritedowntheirobservations.

3. AssignonepersontobetheSunandhandthemtheflashlight.Tellthemtostaystandingupaboutfourfeetawayfromthegroup.TheSundoesn’tmoveatallforthisactivity.

4. AssignonepersontobetheMoonandhandthemtheball.Tellthispersontostaystandingup,asthey’llbecirclingtheEarth.

5. TherestofthepeoplearetheEarth,andtheystandorsitrightinthemiddle(sotheydon’tgetaflashlightintheireyesastheMoonorbits).

6. StartwithanewMoon.ShinetheflashlightabovetheheadsoftheEarth.MovetheMoon(ball)intopositionsothattheballblocksallthelightfromtheflashlight.AsktheEarthkidshowmuchlighttheycanseeontheirsideoftheMoon(shouldbenone).WhichphaseoftheMoonisthis?__________________________________________________________________

7. NowtheMoonmovesaroundtotheoppositesideoftheEarthsothattheEarthkidscanseetheentirehalfoftheballlitupbytheflashlight.AsktheEarthkidshowmuchlighttheycanseeontheirsideoftheMoon(shouldbehalftheball).WhichphaseoftheMoonisthis?

__________________________________________________________________


8. Nowfindthepositionsforfirstquarter.WheredoestheMoonneedtostandsothattheEarthkidscanseethefirstquarterMoon?

9. Continuearoundinacompletecircleandfilloutthediagrambelow.ColorinthecirclestoindicatethedarkhalfoftheMoon.Forexample,thenewMoonshouldbecompletelydarkened.

10. Nowit’stimetoinvestigatewhyVenusandMercuryhavephases.PuttheSuninthecenterandassignastudenttobeVenus.Venusgetstheball.

11. VenusshouldbewalkingslowlyaroundtheSun.TheSunisgoingtohavetorotatetoalwaysfaceVenus,sincetheSunnormallygivesofflightineverydirection.

12. TheEarthkidsneedtomovefurtheroutfromtheSunthanVenus,sotheywillbewatchingVenusorbittheSunfromadistanceofacoupleoffeet.

13. Earthkids:WhatdoyounoticeabouthowtheSunlightsupVenusfromyourpointofview?IsthereatimewhenyougettoseeVenuscompletelyilluminated,andothertimeswhenit’scompletelydark?Drawadiagrambelowofwhat’sgoingon,labelingVenus’sfullphase,newphase,halfphases,crescent,andgibbousphases.LabeltheSun,Earth,and8phasesofVenuslikewedidontheboardfortheMoonatthebeginningofthislesson.

Exercises

1. DoestheSunalwayslightuphalftheMoon?(Yes.Wedon’talwaysgettoseeit,whichisbecausetheMoonhasphases.)

2. HowmanyphasesdoestheMoonhave?(Eight)3. WhatisitcalledwhentheMoonappearstogrow?(Waxing)4. WhatisitcalledwhenyouseemorelightthandarkontheMoon?(Gibbous)5. Howlongdoesittakeforacompletelunarcycle?(About29½days)


SOURCE:ONE‐MINUTEASTRONOMER


Lesson#4:LunarPhasesStudentWorksheet

Name______________________________________________________________________

Overview:TheMoonappearstochangeinthesky.Onemomentit’sabigwhitecircle,andnextweekit’sshapedlikeasidewaysbikehelmet.There’sevenadaywhereitdisappearsaltogether.Sowhatgives?

WhattoLearnTheSunilluminateshalfoftheMoonallthetime.Imagineshiningaflashlightonabeachball.Thehalfthatfacesthelightislitup.There’snolightonthefarside,right?FortheMoon,whichhalfislitupdependsontherotationoftheMoon.AndwhichpartoftheilluminatedsidewecanseedependsonwherewearewhenlookingattheMoon.Soundcomplicated?Thislabwillstraighteneverythingoutsoitmakessense.

Materials

Ball Flashlight

LabTime

1. AssignonepersontobetheSunandhandthemtheflashlight.Staystandingupaboutfourfeetawayfromthegroup.TheSundoesn’tmoveatallforthisactivity.

2. AssignonepersontobetheMoonandhandthemtheball.Staystandingup,asyou’llbecirclingtheEarth.3. TherestofthepeoplearetheEarth,andtheystandorsitrightthemiddle(sotheydon’tgetaflashlightin

theireyesastheMoonorbits).4. StartwithanewMoon.ShinetheflashlightabovetheheadsoftheEarth.MovetheMoon(ball)intoposition

sothattheballblocksallthelightfromtheflashlight.AsktheEarthkidshowmuchlighttheycanseeontheirsideoftheMoon(shouldbenone).WhichphaseoftheMoonisthis?__________________________________________________________________

5. NowtheMoonmovesaroundtotheoppositesideoftheEarthsothattheEarthkidscanseetheentirehalfoftheballlitupbytheflashlight.AsktheEarthkidshowmuchlighttheycanseeontheirsideoftheMoon(shouldbehalftheball).WhichphaseoftheMoonisthis?

__________________________________________________________________

6. Nowfindthepositionsforfirstquarter.WheredoestheMoonneedtostandsothattheEarthkidscanseethefirstquarterMoon?

7. Continuearoundinacompletecircleandfilloutthediagrambelow.ColorinthecirclestoindicatethedarkhalfoftheMoon.Forexample,thenewMoonshouldbecompletelydarkened.


LunarPhasesDataObservations

1. Nowit’stimetoinvestigatewhyVenusandMercuryhavephases.PuttheSuninthecenterandassignastudenttobeVenus.Venusgetstheball.

2. VenusshouldbewalkingslowlyaroundtheSun.TheSunisgoingtohavetorotatetoalwaysfaceVenus,sincetheSunnormallygivesofflightineverydirection.

3. TheEarthkidsneedtomovefurtheroutfromtheSunthanVenus,sotheywillbewatchingVenusorbittheSunfromadistanceofacoupleoffeet.


4. Earthkids:WhatdoyounoticeabouthowtheSunlightsupVenusfromyourpointofview?IsthereatimewhenyougettoseeVenuscompletelyilluminated,andothertimeswhenit’scompletelydark?

5. Drawadiagrambelowofwhat’sgoingon,labelingVenus’sfullphase,newphase,halfphases,crescent,andgibbousphases.LabeltheSun,Earth,andalleightphasesofVenuslikewedidontheboardfortheEarthatthebeginningofthislesson:

ExercisesAnswerthequestionsbelow:1. DoestheSunalwayslightuphalftheMoon?

2. HowmanyphasesdoestheMoonhave?

3. WhatisitcalledwhentheMoonappearstogrow?

4. WhatisitcalledwhenyouseemorelightthandarkontheMoon?

5. Howlongdoesittakeforacompletelunarcycle?


Lesson#5:EclipsesandTransitsTeacherSection

Overview:Kidswillsimulatetransitsandthreedifferentkindsofsolareclipsesastheylearnhowplanets,stars,andmoonscanlineupindifferentcombinations.


Objectives:AtotaleclipsehappensaboutonceeveryyearwhentheMoonblockstheSun’slight.LunareclipsesoccurwhentheSun,Moon,andEartharelinedupinastraightlinewiththeEarthinthemiddle(andhencetheMoonisalwaysfull),whichhappensacoupletimeseachyear.Lunareclipseslasthours,whereassolareclipseslastonlyminutes.


2indexcards Flashlightorsunlight Tackorneedle Blackpaper Scissors

LabPreparation



Aneclipseiswhenoneobjectcompletelyblocksanother.Ifyou’rebigonvocabularywords,thenletthestudentsknowthateclipsesareonetypeofsyzygy(astraightlineofthreeobjectsinagravitationalsystem,liketheEarth,Moon,andSun).

AlunareclipseiswhentheMoonmovesintotheEarth’sshadow,makingtheMoonappearcopper‐red.

AsolareclipseiswhentheMoon’sshadowcrawlsovertheEarth,blockingouttheSunpartiallyorcompletely.Therearethreekindsofsolareclipses.AtotaleclipseblockstheentireSun,whereasinapartialeclipsetheMoonappearstoblockpart,butnotalloftheSun’sdisk.AnannulareclipseiswhentheMoonistoofarfromEarthtocompletelycovertheSun,sothere’sabrightringaroundtheMoonwhenitmovesinfrontoftheSun.

ItjustsohappensthattheSun’sdiameterisabout400timeslargerthantheMoon,buttheMoonis400timescloserthantheSun.ThismakestheSunandMoonappeartobeaboutthesamesizeintheskyasviewedfromEarth.Thisisalsowhytheeclipsethingissuchabigdealforourplanet.

Transitsarewherethediskofaplanet(likeVenus)passeslikeasmallshadowacrosstheSun.IotransitsthesurfaceofJupiter.Inrarecases,oneplanetwilltransitanother.Thesearerarebecauseallthreeobjectsmustaligninastraightline.


Astronomersusethismethodtodetectlargeplanetsarounddistantbrightstars.Ifalargeplanetpassesinfrontofitsstar,thestarwillappeartodimslightly.

Note:Atransitisnotanoccultation,whichcompletelyhidesthesmallerobjectbehindalargerone.

Lesson

1. Usingabeachball(fortheSun),ping‐pongball(fortheMoon),andtennisball(fortheEarth),showthekidsthedifferenttypesofeclipsesasmentionedintheBackgroundReadingsection.

2. Youcandothisexperimentoutside,oriftheweather’snotcooperating(meaningthatthere’snoSun),handoutflashlightsandturndownthelightsinside.

LabTime


observations.3. Tracethecircleofyourflashlightontheblackpaperandcutoutthecirclewithpaper.ThisisyourMoon.If

youareusingtheSuninstead,cutoutacircleaboutthesizeofyourfist.4. Makeatinyholeinoneoftheindexcardsbypushingatackthroughthemiddleofthecard.5. Holdthepunchedindexcardacoupleofinchesabovetheplainoneandshineyourlightthroughtheholeso

thatasmalldiskappearsonthelowercard.Movethecardsclosertogetherorfurtherapartuntilitcomesintofocus.ThediskoflightistheSun.

6. AskyourlabpartnertoslowlymovetheblackpaperdiskinfrontofyourlightasyouwatchwhathappenstotheSunonthebottomindexcard.

7. ContinuemovingtheblackpaperuntilyoucanseetheSunagain.8. Wheredoesyourcircleneedtobeinordertocreateanannulareclipse?Apartialeclipse?9. Filloutthetablebelow.

Exercises

1. Whatotherplanetscanhaveeclipses?(MercuryandVenusdon’thavemoons,andthemoonsofMarsaretoosmall.Jupiter,Saturn,UranusandNeptunecanhaveeclipsesastheirmoonsarelargeenoughandtheSunappearssmaller.PlutoandCharonareinaweirdorbitsothatonlyonesideofeitheronewilleverexperienceeclipses,andevenwhentheydo,it’severy120yearsorso.)

2. WhichplanetstransittheSun?(VenusandMercury)3. Howisasolareclipsedifferentfromalunareclipse?(AlunareclipseiswhentheEarthcomesbetweenthe

SunandMoon.AsolareclipseiswhentheMooncomesbetweentheEarthandSun.)4. Whatphasecanalunareclipseoccur?(OnlyonanightofafullMoon.)5. Canasolareclipseoccuratnight?(No,becausetheSunisn’tvisibleatnight.)



Lesson#5:EclipsesandTransitsStudentWorksheet

Name______________________________________________________________________

Overview:ItjustsohappensthattheSun’sdiameterisabout400timeslargerthantheMoon,buttheMoonis400timescloserthantheSun.ThismakestheSunandMoonappeartobeaboutthesamesizeintheskyasviewedfromEarth.Thisisalsowhytheeclipsethingissuchabigdealforourplanet.You’reabouttomakeyourowneclipsesasyoulearnaboutsyzygy.

WhattoLearn:AtotaleclipsehappensaboutonceeveryyearwhentheMoonblockstheSun’slight.LunareclipsesoccurwhentheSun,Moon,andEartharelinedupinastraightlinewiththeEarthinthemiddle.Lunareclipseslasthours,whereassolareclipseslastonlyminutes.

Materials

2indexcards Flashlightorsunlight Tackorneedle Blackpaper Scissors

LabTime

1. Tracethecircleofyourflashlightontheblackpaperandcutoutthecirclewithpaper.ThisisyourMoon.IfyouareusingtheSuninstead,cutoutacircleaboutthesizeofyourfist.

2. Makeatinyholeinoneoftheindexcardsbypushingatackthroughthemiddleofthecard.3. Holdthepunchedindexcardacoupleinchesabovetheplainoneandshineyourlightthroughtheholeso

thatasmalldiskappearsonthelowercard.Movethecardsclosertogetherorfurtherapartuntilitcomesintofocus.ThediskoflightistheSun.

4. AskyourlabpartnertoslowlymovetheblackpaperdiskinfrontofyourlightasyouwatchwhathappenstotheSunonthebottomindexcard.

5. ContinuemovingtheblackpaperuntilyoucanseetheSunagain.6. Wheredoesyourcircleneedtobeinordertocreateanannulareclipse?Apartialeclipse?7. HowwouldyousimulateMercurytransitingtheSun?Whatwouldyouuse?8. Filloutthetablebelow.


EclipsesandTransitsDataTable

Forthesecondcolumn,describewhereyourobjectwascomparedtotheflashlight/Sun,andhowlargeitwas.Forthethirdcolumn,drawthechangeyousawintheSun.

TypeofEclipse WherewastheMoonlocated? Whatdiditlooklike?

Total

Partial

Annular

Transit

ExercisesAnswerthequestionsbelow:1. Whatotherplanetscanhaveeclipses?

2. WhichplanetstransittheSun?

3. Howisasolareclipsedifferentfromalunareclipse?

4. Whatphasecanalunareclipseoccur?

5. Canasolareclipseoccuratnight?


Lesson#6:RustyBalloonTeacherSection

Overview:Marsisbasicallyarustyburp,asit’sgotathickcoatingofironoxideonthesurface.Atnight,theplanetlooksreddishbecausethelightreflectingoffthesurfaceisred.Buthowdoyougetrustonanentireplanet?


Objectives:Marsiscoatedwithironoxide,whichnotonlycoversthesurfacebutisalsopresentintherocksmadebytheMartianvolcanoes.Studentswillperformachemistryexperimentthatinvestigatesthedifferentkindsofrustandshowsthatgiventherightconditions,anythingcontainingironwilleventuallybreakdownandcorrode.


Fouremptywaterbottles Fourballoons Water Steelwool Vinegar Water Salt

LabPreparation

1. Thislabisbestdoneovertwoconsecutivedays.Plantosetuptheexperimentonthefirstday,andfinishupwiththeobservationsonthenext.



Marshasasolidcorethatismostlyironandsulfur,andasoftpastel‐likemantleofsilicates(therearenotectonicplates).Thecrusthasbasaltandironoxide.TheironisintherocksandvolcanoesofMars,andMarsappearstobecoveredinrust.

When iron rusts, it’s actually going through a chemical reaction: Steel (iron) + Water (oxygen) + Air (oxygen) = Rust

Therearemanydifferentkindsofrust.Stainlesssteelhasaprotectivecoatingcalledchromium(III)oxidesoitdoesn’trusteasily.

Aluminum,ontheotherhand,takesalongtimetocorrodebecauseit’salreadycorroded—thatis,assoonasaluminumisexposedtooxygen,itimmediatelyformsacoatingofaluminumoxide,whichprotectstheremainingaluminumfromfurthercorrosion.


Aneasywaytoremoverustfromsteelsurfacesistorubthesteelwithaluminumfoildippedinwater.Thealuminumtransfersoxygenatomsfromtheirontothealuminum,formingaluminumoxide,whichisametalpolishingcompound.Andsincethefoilissofterthansteel,itwon’tscratch.

Lesson

1. Rustisacommonnameforironoxide.Whenmetalsrust,scientistssaythattheyoxidize,orcorrode.2. Ironreactswithoxygenwhenwaterispresent.Thewatercanbeliquidorthehumidityintheair.3. Othertypesofrusthappenwhenoxygenisnotaround,likethecombinationofironandchloride.When

rebarisusedinunderwaterconcretepillars,thechloridefromthesaltintheoceancombineswiththeironintherebarandmakesagreenrust.

LabTime


observations.3. Lineupfouremptybottlesonthetable.4. Labelyourbottlessoyouknowwhichiswhich:Water,Water+Salt,Vinegar,Vinegar+Salt5. Filltwobottleswithwater.6. Filltwowithvinegar.7. Addatablespoonofsalttooneofthewaterbottles.8. Addonetablespoonofsalttooneofthevinegarbottles.9. Stuffapieceofsteelwoolintoeachbottlesoitcomesincontactwiththeliquid10. Stretchaballoonacrossthemouthofeachbottle.11. Letyourexperimentsit(overnightisbest,butyoucanshortenthisabitifyou’reinahurry).12. Thetricktogettingthisonetoworkisinwhatyouexpecttohappen.Theballoonshouldgetshovedinside

thebottle(notexpandandinflate!).Checkbackoverthecourseofafewhourstoafewdaystowatchyourprogress.

13. Fillinthedatatablebelow.

Exercises

1. Whydidoneballoongetlargerthantherest?(Theballoonwillshowyouhowmuchgasisgenerated–thelargertheballoon,themoregaswasproduced.Therust(ironoxide)isthenameofthereactiontakingplacebetweenthesteelwoolandtheliquids.)

2. Whichhadthehighestpressuredifference?Why?(Checkresultsfromdatatable.Inthevideo,thebottlewithjustwaternotonlysuckedintheballoon,italsosuckedinthesidesofthewaterbottleitself,showingyouthatitusedtheoxygenintheairtogeneratetherust.You’llseethismoredramaticallywhenyouaddsalttothewaterbeforeaddingthesteelwool.)



Lesson#6:RustyBalloonStudentWorksheet

Name______________________________________________________________________

Overview:Marsiscoatedwithironoxide,whichnotonlycoversthesurfacebutisalsopresentintherocksmadebytheMartianvolcanoes.

WhattoLearn:Todayyougettoperformachemistryexperimentthatinvestigatesthedifferentkindsofrustandshowsthatgiventherightconditions,anythingcontainingironwilleventuallybreakdownandcorrode.When iron rusts, it’s actually going through a chemical reaction: Steel (iron) + Water (oxygen) + Air (oxygen) = Rust

Materials

Fouremptywaterbottles Fourballoons Water Steelwool Vinegar Water Salt

LabTime

1. Lineupfouremptybottlesonthetable.2. Labelyourbottlessoyouknowwhichiswhich:Water,Water+Salt,Vinegar,Vinegar+Salt3. Filltwobottleswithwater.4. Filltwowithvinegar.5. Addatablespoonofsalttooneofthewaterbottles.6. Addonetablespoonofsalttooneofthevinegarbottles.7. Stuffapieceofsteelwoolintoeachbottlesoitcomesincontactwiththeliquid.8. Stretchaballoonacrossthemouthofeachbottle.9. Letyourexperimentsit(overnightisbest,butyoucanshortenthisabitifyou’reinahurry).10. Thetricktogettingthisonetoworkisinwhatyouexpecttohappen.Theballoonshouldgetshovedinside

thebottle(notexpandandinflate!).Checkbackoverthecourseofafewhourstoafewdaystowatchyourprogress.

11. Fillinthedatatablebelow.


RustyBalloonDataTable

What’sintheBottle? Whathappened?Describewhathappenedtothewool,bottle,andballoon.


1. Whydidoneballoongetlargerthantherest?

2. Whichhadthehighestpressuredifference?Why?


Lesson#7:MeteoritesTeacherSection

Overview:Meteorsarethesmallestmembersofoursolarsystem,rangingfrompebblesizetosmallerthanagrainofsandandusuallyweighinglessthan2grams.Kidswilllearnhowtocollecttinymeteoritesveryeasily.TheywillalsobeabletotellameteoritefromanEarthrock.


Objectives:Ameteoroidisasmallrockthatzoomsaroundouterspace.WhenthemeteoroidzipsintotheEarth’satmosphere,it’snowcalledameteoror“shootingstar.”Iftherockdoesn’tvaporizeenroute,it’scalledameteoriteassoonasitwhacksintotheground.ThewordmeteorcomesfromtheGreekwordfor“highintheair.”


Whitepaper Unglazedwhiteporcelaintile Strongmagnet Handheldmagnifyingglass(optional)

LabPreparation

1. Printoutcopiesofthestudentworksheets.2. ReadovertheBackgroundLessonReadingbeforeteachingthisclass.3. Watchthevideoforthisexperimenttoprepareforteachingthisclass.4. Puttogethera“Meteor‐right&Meteor‐wrong”bag(seeLessonbelowforinstructions).Youcanmakeone

foryourentireclass,oroneperlabgroup.5. Thislabisdoneintwoparts.Thefirstpartonlyneedsacoupleofminutesandcanbedonewhenthe

studentsfirstarriveinthemorning.Thesecondpartrequiresabout20minutes,andcanbedonejustbeforelunchtime.


94%ofallmeteoritesthatfalltotheEartharestonymeteorites.Stonymeteoriteswillhavemetalgrainsmixedwiththestonethatareclearlyvisiblewhenyoulookataslice.

Ironmeteoritesmakeuponly5%ofthemeteoritesthathittheEarth.However,sincetheyarestronger,mostofthemsurvivethetripthroughtheatmosphereandareeasiertofindsincetheyaremoreresistanttoweathering.Morethanhalfthemeteoriteswefindareironmeteorites.TheyaretheoneofthedensestmaterialsonEarth.TheystickstronglytomagnetsandaretwiceasheavyasmostEarthrocks.TheHobameteoriteinNamibiaweighs50tons.

Sincenearlyallmeteoriteshavelotsofiron,theyareusuallyattractedtoamagnet.However,lodestoneisanEarthrockthatalsohasalotofiron.Ironisheavy,andmeteoritescontainalotofiron.Whenlookingthroughthepossibilities,removeanylightweightrocks,astheyarenotusuallymeteorites.


Meteoritesaresmall.Mostnevergetbigenoughorhotenoughformetaltosinkintothecore,sothemajorityaremixedwithrockanddust(stonymeteorites).Thefewthatdogetbigandformmetalcoresarecalledironmeteorites.

MostmeteoritescomefromtheAsteroidBelt.Somemeteoritesgetadarkcrust,whileotherslooklikesplashedmetal.Theyarealldark,atleastontheoutside.

Rocksthathaveholesvaporizeorexplodewhentheygothroughtheatmosphere,theydon’tburnup.Onlystrongspacerockswithoutholesmakeittotheground.

Everyyear,theEarthpassesthroughthedebrisleftbehindbycomets.CometsaredirtysnowballsthatleaveatrailofparticlesastheyorbittheSun.WhentheEarthpassesthroughoneofthesetrails,thetinyparticlesentertheEarth’satmosphereandburnup,leavingspectacularmeteorshowersforustowatchonaregularbasis.ThebestmeteorshowersoccurwhentheMoonisnewandtheskyisverydark.

Meteoritesareblack,heavy(almosttwicethenormalrockdensity),andmagnetic.However,thereisanEarth‐maderockthatisalsoblack,heavy,andmagnetic(magnetite)thatisnotameteorite.Totellthedifference,scratchalinefrombothrocksontoanunglazedtile(orthebottomofacoffeemugortheundersideofthetoilettank).Magnetitewillleaveamark,whereastherealmeteoritewillnot.

Ifyoufindameteorite,headtoyournearestgeologydepartmentatalocaluniversityorcollegeandletthemknowwhatyou’vefound.IntheUSA,ifyoufindameteorite,yougettokeepit…butyoumightwanttolettheexpertsinthegeologydepartmenthaveathinsliceofittoseewhattheycanfigureoutaboutyourparticularspecimen.

AnnualMeteorShowers

Jan3‐4 QuadrantidsApr21‐22 AprilLyridsMay4‐5 EtaAquaridsJul28‐29 DeltaAquaridsAug12‐13 Perseids

Oct21‐22 OrionidsNov3‐13 TauridsNov16‐17 LeonidsDec13‐14 GeminidsDec21‐22 Ursids

Lesson

1. Tomakea“Meteor‐rightandMeteor‐wrong”bag,placeinabagthefollowingitems:a. 8‐10differentrocks,nomorethanthreeofwhicharerealmeteorites.Theydon’thavetobelarge.I

haveinminepumice(fromavolcano),lodestone(anaturallymagnetizedpieceofmagnetite,andoftenmistakenformeteorites),fossil(Ihaveaturtleshell,butyoucanuseanythingyouwant),tektite(dryfusedglass),pyrite(alsoknownasfool’sgold),marble(calciteordolomite),andacoupleofdifferentkindsofrealmeteorites(ironmeteorite,stonymeteorite,etc.)

b. Unglazedtilec. Magnet

2. Announcetotheclassthattheyaregoingonarockhunt.TheyaretofindwhichrocksaremeteoritesandwhichareEarthrocks.Ifyoudon’thaveaccesstorocksamplestoshare,showthekidspicturesofdifferentkindsofrockastheytrytoguessiftheyaremeteoritesornot.Here’showyoucantell:


3. Asyoushowthekidsthedifferentsamplesofrocks,askthemtorecordtheirobservationsontheirdatasheet.

a. Sincenearlyallmeteoriteshavelotsofiron,theyareusuallyattractedtoamagnet.However,lodestoneisanEarthrockthatalsohasalotofiron.Ironisheavy,andmeteoritescontainalotofiron.Whenlookingthroughthepossibilities,removeanylightweightrocks,astheyarenotusuallymeteorites.

b. Meteoritesaresmall.Mostnevergetbigenoughorhotenoughformetaltosinkintothecore,sothemajorityaremixedwithrockanddust(stonymeteorites).Thefewthatdogetbigandformmetalcoresarecalledironmeteorites.

c. MostmeteoritescomefromtheAsteroidBelt.Somemeteoritesgetadarkcrust.Whileotherslooklikesplashedmetal.Theyarealldark,atleastontheoutside.Removeanylight‐coloredrocks.

d. Rocksthathaveholesvaporizeorexplodewhentheygothroughtheatmosphere,theydon’tburnup.Onlystrongspacerockswithoutholesmakeittotheground.Removeanyporousrocks.

e. Theonesyouhaveleftareeithermeteoritesorlodestone.Totellthedifference,scratchalinefrombothrocksontoanunglazedtile.Magnetite(lodestone)willleaveamarkwhereastherealmeteoritewillnot.

LabTime


observations.3. Placeasheetofwhitepaperoutsideontheground.Dothisinthemorningwhenyoufirststartupclass.4. Afterafewhours(likejustbeforelunchtime),yourpaperstartstoshowsignsof“dust”.5. Carefullyplaceamagnetunderneaththepaper,andseeifanyoftheparticlesmoveasyouwigglethe

magnet.Ifso,you’vegotyourselfafewbitsofspacedust.6. Useamagnifyinglenstolookatyourspacemeteoritesupclose.

Exercises

1. Aremeteorsmembersofthesolarsystem?(Yes–theyarethesmallestmembers.)2. Howbigaremeteors?(Theyrangefrompebblesizetosmallerthanagrainofsand,usuallyweighingless

than2grams.)3. Whydowehavemeteorshowersatpredictabletimesoftheyear?(Everyyear,theEarthpassesthrough

thedebrisleftbehindbycomets.Theparticlesenterouratmosphereandburnup.Theonesthatmakeittothegroundaremeteorites.)



Lesson#7:MeteoritesStudentWorksheet

Name______________________________________________________________________

Overview:Ameteoroidisasmallrockthatzoomsaroundouterspace.WhenthemeteoroidzipsintotheEarth’satmosphere,it’snowcalledameteoror“shootingstar.”Iftherockdoesn’tvaporizeenroute,it’scalledameteoriteassoonasitwhacksintotheground.ThewordmeteorcomesfromtheGreekwordfor“highintheair.”

WhattoLearn:Meteoritesareblack,heavy(almosttwicethenormalrockdensity),andmagnetic.However,thereisanEarth‐maderockthatisalsoblack,heavy,andmagnetic(magnetite)thatisnotameteorite.Totellthedifference,scratchalinefrombothrocksontoanunglazedtile.Magnetitewillleaveamarkwhereastherealmeteoritewillnot.

Materials

Whitepaper Unglazedwhiteporcelaintile Strongmagnet Handheldmagnifyingglass(optional)

LabTime

1. Yourteacherwillshowyoudifferentsamplesofrocks.Recordyourobservationsonthedatasheetbelow.You’llfindcluesonhowtotellanEarthrockfromameteoritehere:

2. Sincenearlyallmeteoriteshavelotsofiron,theyareusuallyattractedtoamagnet.However,lodestoneisanEarthrockthatalsohasalotofiron.Ironisheavy,andmeteoritescontainalotofiron.Whenlookingthroughthepossibilities,removeanylightweightrocks,astheyarenotusuallymeteorites.

3. Meteoritesaresmall.Mostnevergetbigenoughorhotenoughformetaltosinkintothecore,somostaremixedwithrockanddust(stonymeteorites).Thefewthatdogetbigandformedmetalcoresarecalledironmeteorites.

4. MostmeteoritescomefromtheAsteroidBelt.Somemeteoritesgetadarkcrust.Whileotherslooklikesplashedmetal.Theyarealldark,atleastontheoutside.Removeanylight‐coloredrocks.

5. Rocksthathaveholesvaporizeorexplodewhentheygothroughtheatmosphere,theydon’tburnup.Onlystrongspacerockswithoutholesmakeittotheground.Removeanyporousrocks.

6. Theonesyouhaveleftareeithermeteoritesorlodestone.Totellthedifference,scratchalinefrombothrocksontoanunglazedtile.Magnetite(lodestone)willleaveamarkwhereastherealmeteoritewillnot.

FindingMeteorites

7. Placeasheetofwhitepaperoutsideontheground.Dothisinthemorningwhenyoufirststartupclass.8. Afterafewhours(likejustbeforelunchtime),yourpaperstartstoshowsignsof“dust.”9. Carefullyplaceamagnetunderneaththepaper,andseeifanyoftheparticlesmoveasyouwigglethe

magnet.Ifso,you’vegotyourselfafewbitsofspacedust.10. Useamagnifyinglenstolookatyourspacemeteoritesupclose.


MeteoritesDataTable

RockSample#

Color? HeavyorLight?

LargeorSmall?

PorousorDense?

Magnetic? MarksonTile?


1. Aremeteorsmembersofthesolarsystem?

2. Howbigaremeteors?

3. Whydowehavemeteorshowersatpredictabletimesoftheyear?


Lesson#8:Neptune’sFurnaceTeacherSection

Overview:We’regoingtodoachemistryexperimenttosimulatetheheatgeneratedbytheplanetusingcalciumchloride.


Objectives:Calciumchloridesplitsintocalciumionsandchlorideionswhenitismixedwithwater,andenergyisreleasedintheformofheat.Theenergyreleasedcomesfromthebondenergyofthecalciumchlorideatoms,andisactuallyelectromagneticenergy.Whenthecalciumionsandchlorideionsarefloatingaroundinthewarmsolution,theyarefreetointeractwiththerestoftheingredientsadded,likethesodiumbicarbonate,toformcarbondioxidegasandsodiumchloride(tablesalt).


Calciumchloride(lookincampingaislesforDri‐EzorhardwarestoresforSno‐Melt,makingsuretheonlyingredientinthepackageiscalciumchloride)

Sodiumbicarbonate(bakingsoda) Phenolredorredfooddye Resealableplasticbaggie Gallonmilkjugcontainer Straightpin Warmwater Coldwater

LabPreparation



Neptuneisoneoftheicegiantsofoursolarsystem,andthefurthestplanetfromthesun.Becauseit’sagasgiant,youcouldn’tlandyourspaceshiponthesurfacebecauseitdoesn’thaveone.You’dcontinuouslyfalluntilthepressurecrushedyourship.Andthenwhenyougotdownfarenough,you’dberoasted,becauseNeptuneradiates2.6timesmoreenergythanitgetsfromtheSun.That’simpressive,especiallysinceit’ssofarfromtheSun(30.1AU,ormorethan30timestheEarth‐Sundistance).TheaveragedailywindspeedonNeptuneis1,200mph.That’sfourtimesfasterthanthebiggesthurricanesonEarth!

NeptunehasmoremassthanUranuseventhoughit’ssmallerthanUranus.Theringsaroundtheplanetweren’tconfirmeduntilaspaceprobepasseditandsentusbackpicturesoftheblueplanet.It’shardforbackyardastronomerstofindthisplanet,sinceit’snotanaked‐eyeobject.Youneedacomplicated‐lookingsetofstarcharts


oraGPStrackingsystemcoupledwithastronomicaldatatopointyourscopeintherightdirection.Eventhen,allyouseeisawhite‐bluelookingstar.

Althoughit’sagasgiant,it’sclassifiedasanicegiant,sincetherearelargeamountsofmethaneandammoniaicesintheupperatmosphere,givingtheplanetitsbluecolor.Thelargestof13moonsisTriton(nottobeconfusedwithSaturn’smassivemoon,Titan),whichorbitsNeptuneintheoppositedirectionfromtheplanet’srotationandalsoupataninclinefromtheplanet’sequator.

Lesson

1. We’resimulatingtheheatgenerationonNeptuneusingachemistryexperimentwithahotpack.2. Mostinstanthotpacksavailableindrugstoresworkonthissameprinciplewe’reabouttoinvestigate.

Whenthehotpackisneeded,thebagissqueezedtocausethewaterandsalttomix.Dependingonthesaltusedinthepack,energyiseitherabsorbed(coldpack)orgivenoff(hotpack).Ammoniumnitrateisthemostcommonlyusedsaltincoldpacks.Andcalciumchlorideisthemostcommonlyusedsaltinhotpacks.

3. Calciumchloridesplitsintocalciumionsandchlorideionswhenitismixedwithwater,andenergyisreleasedintheformofheat.Thisisthesameheatenergyyouwillfeelwhenholdingthebaggieandrubbingthepellets.

4. Dissolvingcalciumchlorideishighlyexothermic,meaningthatitgivesoffalotofheatwhenmixedwithwater(thewatercanreachupto140oF,sowatchyourhands!).Theenergyreleasedcomesfromthebondenergyofthecalciumchlorideatoms,andisactuallyelectromagneticenergy.

5. Whenthecalciumionsandchlorideionsarefloatingaroundinthewarmsolution,theyarefreetointeractwiththerestoftheingredientsadded,likethesodiumbicarbonate,toformcarbondioxidegasandsodiumchloride(tablesalt).Youcantellthere’scarbondioxidegasinsidewhenthebagpuffsup.

6. Asthegasinthebagincreases,itpuffsoutandincreasesthepressure.Thisstretchesthebagandsomeofthegasisreleasedouttheholesinthetopofthebag,bubblinguptothesurfaceofthemilkjug.Afterawhile,thewarmwaterwillalsoriseoutoftheholesduetothetemperaturedifferencebetweenthebagandjugandyou’llseereddriftuptothesurfaceofthemilkjug.TheheatgeneratedbyNeptuneisdeepinthecore,anditbubblesupandradiatesouttospace,justlikethewarmbagbubblingitscontentstothecoldwaterjug.Theentireplanetisawhirling,swirling,fast‐movingballofgasandicethatmovebecauseoftemperatureandpressuredifferences.

LabTime


observations.3. Cutthetopoffthemilkjugjustabovethehandlesoyoucaneasilyputyourexperimentinthejug.4. Fillyourmilkjugwithcoldwatermostoftheway.Leaveenoughroomforyoutoaddthebagwithout

overflowingthewater,andmakesureyouputinverycoldwater.Setthisaside.5. Addaninchofwarmwatertotheplasticbag.6. Addacoupleofdropsofreddyetothebag.7. Ifyouareusingahotpack,openthehotpack(usescissors)carefully.Youdon’twanttopuncturethewater

pouchinside.Throwthewaterpouchawayandpourtherestofthecontentsintoacontainer(thisiscalciumchloride).Youwantacoupleoftablespoonsofcalciumchlorideintheplasticbaggie.

8. Sealthebagclosedandrollthepelletsbetweenyourfingers.9. Useastraightpinandmakesixholesnearthetopofthebag,awayfromthewater.


10. Openthebagandaddacoupleoftablespoonsofsodiumbicarbonate(bakingsoda).Quicklyzipupyourbag!

11. Makesurethebagissealedbeforeinsertingitintoyourcoldwaterjug.12. Drawyourexperimentbelow:

Exercises

1. Whathappenswhenthechemicalscomeincontactwitheachother?(Whenthecalciumionsandchlorideionsinteractwiththesodiumbicarbonate,theyformcarbondioxidegasandsodiumchloride(tablesalt).)

2. Whatdidyounoticewhenyousealedthebagclosedandrolledthepelletsbetweenyourfingers?(Dissolvingcalciumchlorideishighlyexothermic,meaningthatitgivesoffalotofheatwhenmixedwithwater.)

3. Whathappenedwhenthesolutionwasplacedinthecoldwaterjug?(Thisremovesenergyfromthereactionsandcausesthetablesalttoprecipitateoutmorequickly.)

4. WhatdoesthisexperimenthavetodowithNeptune?Whydidweusethebakingsodaatall?(Asthegasinthebagincreases,itpuffsoutandincreasesthepressure.Thisstretchesthebagandsomeofthegasisreleasedouttheholesinthetopofthebag,bubblinguptothesurfaceofthemilkjug.Afterawhile,thewarmwaterwillalsoriseoutoftheholesduetothetemperaturedifferencebetweenthebagandjugand,you’llseereddriftuptothesurfaceofthemilkjug.TheheatgeneratedbyNeptuneisdeepinthecore,anditbubblesupandradiatesouttospace,justlikethewarmbagbubblingitscontentstothecoldwaterjug.Theentireplanetisawhirling,swirling,fast‐movingballofgasandicethatmovebecauseoftemperatureandpressuredifferences.)



Lesson#8:Neptune’sFurnaceStudentWorksheet

Name______________________________________________________________________

Overview:We’regoingtodoachemistryexperimenttosimulatetheheatgeneratedbytheinternalcoreofNeptunebyusingasubstanceusedformeltingsnowmixedwithbakingsoda.

WhattoLearn:Calciumchloridesplitsintocalciumionsandchlorideionswhenitismixedwithwater,andenergyisreleasedintheformofheat.Theenergyreleasedcomesfromthebondenergyofthecalciumchlorideatoms,andisactuallyelectromagneticenergy.Whenthecalciumionsandchlorideionsarefloatingaroundinthewarmsolution,theyarefreetointeractwiththerestoftheingredientsadded,likethesodiumbicarbonate,toformcarbondioxidegasandsodiumchloride(tablesalt).

Materials

Calciumchloride Sodiumbicarbonate(bakingsoda) Phenolredorredfooddye Resealableplasticbaggie Gallonmilkjugcontainer Straightpin Warmwater Coldwater

LabTime

1. Cutthetopoffthemilkjugjustabovethehandlesoyoucaneasilyputyourexperimentinthejug.2. Fillyourmilkjugwithcoldwatermostoftheway.Leaveenoughroomforyoutoaddthebagwithout

overflowingthewater,andmakesureyouputinverycoldwater.Setthisaside.3. Addaninchofwarmwatertotheplasticbag.4. Addacoupleofdropsofreddyetothebag.5. Ifyouareusingahotpack,openthehotpack(usescissors)carefully.Youdon’twanttopuncturethewater

pouchinside.Throwthewaterpouchawayandpourtherestofthecontentsintoacontainer(thisiscalciumchloride).Youwantacoupleoftablespoonsofcalciumchlorideintheplasticbaggie.

6. Sealthebagclosedandrollthepelletsbetweenyourfingers.7. Useastraightpinandmakesixholesnearthetopofthebag,awayfromthewater.8. Openthebagandaddacoupleoftablespoonsofsodiumbicarbonate(bakingsoda).Quicklyzipupyour

bag!9. Makesurethebagissealedbeforeinsertingitintoyourcoldwaterjug.Watchcarefullyforseveralminutes

andrecordyourobservationswiththenextstep.


10. Drawyourexperimentbelowduringstep9.Labelallpartsofwhat’sgoingonwithyourexperiment:


1. Whathappenswhenthechemicalscomeincontactwitheachother?

2. Whatdidyounoticewhenyousealedthebagclosedandrolledthepelletsbetweenyourfingers?

3. Whathappenedwhenthesolutionwasplacedinthecoldwaterjug?

4. WhatdoesthisexperimenthavetodowithNeptune?Whydidweusethebakingsodaatall?


Lesson#9:BinaryPlanetarySystemsTeacherSection

Overview:PlutoandCharonareabinaryplanetarysystem,meaningthattheybothorbitapointthat’soutsideofeitheroneofthem.TheEarthandMoonarenotabinarysystem,becausealthoughtheMoonyanksontheEarth,itstillorbitsapointthatliesinsidetheEarthbecausetheEarthissomuchmoremassivethantheMoon.


Objectives:Abinarysystemexistswhenobjectsapproacheachotherinsize(andgravitationalfields),thecommonpointtheyrotatearound(calledthecenterofmass)liesoutsidebothobjectsandtheyorbitaroundeachother.Astronomershavefoundbinaryplanets,binarystars,andevenbinaryblackholes.Studentswillknowthatthepathofaplanetaroundanobjectisduetothegravitationalattractionbetweentheobjectandtheplanet.


1‐2soupcansorplasticcontainers(likeplasticyogurtcontainers,buttertubs,etc.) String Water Sand Rocks Pebbles Bakingsoda Vinegar

LabPreparation

1. Punchtwoholesinthecontainers,onoppositesidesfromeachother.2. Printoutcopiesofthestudentworksheets.3. ReadovertheBackgroundLessonReadingbeforeteachingthisclass.4. Watchthevideoforthisexperimenttoprepareforteachingthisclass.


ThepathofaplanetaroundtheSunisduetothegravitationalattractionbetweentheSunandtheplanet.ThisistrueforthepathoftheMoonaroundtheEarth,andTitanaroundSaturn,andtherestoftheplanetsthathaveanorbitingmoon.

CharonandPlutoorbitaroundeachotherduetotheirgravitationalattractiontoeachother.However,CharonisnotthemoonofPluto,asoriginallythought.PlutoandCharonactuallyorbitaroundeachother.PlutoandCharonalsoaretidallylocked,justliketheEarth‐Moonsystem,meaningthatonesideofPlutoisalwaysfacesthesamesideofCharon.

Centripetal(translation=“center‐seeking”)istheforceneededtokeepanobjectfollowingacurvedpath.Rememberhowobjectswilltravelinastraightlineunlesstheybumpintosomethingorhaveanotherforceactingonthem(gravity,dragforce,etc.)?Well,tokeepthebucketofwaterswinginginacurvedarc,thecentripetalforce


canbefeltinthetensionexperiencedbythehandle(oryourarm,inourcase).Swinginganobjectaroundonastringwillcausetheropetoundergotension(centripetalforce),andifyourropeisn’tstrongenough,itwillsnapandbreak,sendingthemassflyingoffinatangent(straight)lineuntilgravityanddragforcepulltheobjecttoastop.Thisforceisproportionaltothesquareofthespeed‐thefasteryouswingtheobject,thehighertheforce.

Lesson

1. Bringabuckethalf‐fullofwaterontoyourdesk(oroutside),anddon’ttouchthehandle.Askthekids:“ImagineIgiveyouabuckethalf‐fullofwater.Canyoutiltabucketcompletelysidewayswithoutspillingadrop?”

2. Havethekidstrytoaccomplishthis.Eventually,onewillstartswingitbythehandle.Nowask:“So–what’skeepingthewaterinsidethebucket?Isthereglueinthere?Ahamsterpushingitkeepingitinside?Ablackhole?”

3. Nowsay:“OK,sotoexplainthis,Ihavetoaskyouaquestionfirst‐whodrivesfaster,MomorDad?”4. “OK–soimaginetheyaredrivingthecar,andtheyarelateforanappointment.Theytakeaturnalittletoo

fast,andyouforgotyourseatbelts.Theyaremakingaleftturn–showmewhichwayyou’dmoveinthecariftheytookthisturntoofast?Exactly–you’dgoslidingtotheright.So,whopushedyou?”

5. “Noone!Yourbodywantedtocontinueinastraightline,butthecaristurning,sotherightsidecardoorkeepspushingyoutoturnyouinacurve–intotheleftturn.Thecardoorkeepsmovinginyourway,turningyouintoacircle.Thecardoorpushingonyouiscalledcentripetalforce.Centripetalmeans“center‐seeking.”It’stheforcethatpointstowardthecenterofthecircleyou’removingon.Whenyouswingthebucketaroundyourhead,thebottomofthebucketismakingthewaterturninacircleandnotflyaway.Yourarmispullingonthehandleofthebucket,keepingitturninginacircleandnotlettingitflyaway.That’scentripetalforce.

6. “Thinkofitthisway:IfIthrowaballinouterspace,doesitgoinastraightlineordoesitwiggleallovertheplace?Straightline,right?Centripetalforceistheforceneededtokeepanobjectfollowingacurvedpath.Yourbodywantstogoinastraightline,butthecaristurning.Sothecardoorisexertingaforce(centripetalforce)onyoutokeepyoumovingaroundtheturn.”

7. Thisisoptional:“Forthoseofyouwhohaveheardofcentripetalandcentrifugal,youmaybewonderingwhatthedifferenceis.Centrifugalforceisequalandoppositeofcentripetalforce.Centrifugalmeans“center‐fleeing,”soit’saforcethat’sintheoppositedirection.Thecarpushingonyouisthecentripetalforce.Thepushofyourweightonthedooristhereactivecentrifugalforce.Onarollercoaster,that“pancake”feelingwhenyou’regoingaroundaloopisthecentrifugalforce.Centrifugalforceisalsoareactiveforce,meaningthatit’sonlytherewhensomething’shappening.Forexample–standup.Doyoufeeltheearthholdingyouup?Probablynot,becauseyouaresousedtoit.Buttheearthonlypushesupwiththeamountofweightyou’repushingdownonlywhenitneedsto.That’swhatmakesitareactiveforce.”

8. Alsooptional:“Letmeshowyou–walkovertothewall.Now,takeyourhandandreallyPUSHonthewall.Doesthewallfallover?No.Doyoufallover?No.Thewallpusheswithequalandoppositeforceasyou–thewallpushesthesameamountyouarepushingwithbutintheoppositedirection.That’scalledareactiveforce.Doesthatmakesense?Centrifugalforceisareactiveforce–itonlyshowsupwhenstuffishappening.Andit’sequaltoandoppositeofthecentripetalforce.“

9. “Thinkofitthisway:Rememberhowobjectswilltravelinastraightlineunlesstheybumpintosomething,likeablackhole,astar,analienspaceship…That’sNewton’sfirstlaw…whichsaysthatanobjectin


motionwillstayinmotionunlessacteduponbyanexternalforce.ObjectsWANTtogoinastraightline–ifIslingabagoforangesaroundmyheadandthenletgo,dotheorangesgooffinastraightlineordotheyzigzagwildlyallovertheplace?Theygoinastraightline.Soweusecentripetalforcetomoveobjectsinacurve,andtheforcetheobjectfeelsiscentrifugalforce.”

LabTime


observations.3. Threadoneendofthestringthroughoneoftheholesandtieastrongknot.Reallystrong.4. Tietheotherendthroughtheotherholeandtieoff.5. Gooutside.6. Fillyourcanpartwaywithwater.7. Moveawayfromeveryonebeforeyoustarttoswingyourcontainerinagentlecircle.Asyouspinfasterand

faster,noticewherethewaterisinsidethecontainer.8. Nowemptyoutthewaterandreplaceitwithrocks.Spinagainandfilloutthedatatablebelow.9. Tomakecarbondioxidegas,you’llneedtoworkwithanotherlabteam.Coverthebottomofyourcontainer

withbakingsoda.Addenoughvinegarsothatthebubblesreachthetopwithoutoverflowing.Waitpatientlyforthebubblestosubside.Younowhaveacontainerfilledwithcarbondioxidegas(andalittlesodiumacetate,theleftoversfromthereaction).Carefullypourthecarbondioxideintotheemptycontainerfromtheotherlabteam.Theycanspinagainandrecordtheirresults.Whentheyaredone,borrowtheircontainerandgivethemyourssotheycanfillitforyou.

Exercises

1. HowisspinningthecontainerlikePlutoandCharon?(Youarealwaysfacingthesamesideofthecontainer,justlikePlutoandCharonarealwaysfacingthesamesidesofeachother.)

2. Whatwouldhappenifwecutthestringwhileyouarespinning?Whichwaywouldthecontainergo?(Inastraightlinetangenttothecurveatthemomentwecutthestring.)

3. Whathappensifwetriplethesizeofyourcontainerandwhat’sinsideofit?(Ittakesmoreenergytoswingalargerloadaround.Foroneobjecttoorbitanother,theymusthavestronggravitationalattractiontomovethatmuchmassaround.)



Lesson#9:BinaryPlanetarySystemsStudentWorksheet

Name______________________________________________________________________

Overview:Abinarysystemexistswhenobjectsapproacheachotherinsize(andgravitationalfields),thecommonpointtheyrotatearound(calledthecenterofmass)liesoutsidebothobjectsandtheyorbitaroundeachother.Astronomershavefoundbinaryplanets,binarystars,andevenbinaryblackholes.Studentswillknowthatthepathofaplanetaroundanobjectisduetothegravitationalattractionbetweentheobjectandtheplanet.

WhattoLearn:ThepathofaplanetaroundtheSunisduetothegravitationalattractionbetweentheSunandtheplanet.ThisistrueforthepathoftheMoonaroundtheEarth,andTitanaroundSaturn,andtherestoftheplanetsthathaveanorbitingmoon.

Materials

Soupcansorplasticcontainerswithholespunched(likeplasticyogurtcontainers,buttertubs,etc.) String Water Sand Rocks Pebbles Bakingsoda Vinegar

LabTime

1. Threadoneendofthestringthroughoneoftheholesandtieastrongknot.Reallystrong.2. Tietheotherendthroughtheotherholeandtieoff.3. Gooutside.4. Fillyourcanpartwaywithwater.5. Moveawayfromeveryonebeforeyoustarttoswingyourcontainerinagentlecircle.Asyouspinfasterand

faster,noticewherethewaterisinsidethecontainer.6. Nowemptyoutthewaterandreplaceitwithrocks.Spinagainandfilloutthedatatablebelow.7. Tomakecarbondioxidegas,you’llneedtoworkwithanotherlabteam.Coverthebottomofyourcontainer

withbakingsoda.Addenoughvinegarsothatthebubblesreachthetopwithoutoverflowing.Waitpatientlyforthebubblestosubside.Younowhaveacontainerfilledwithcarbondioxidegas(andalittlesodiumacetate,theleftoversfromthereaction).Carefullypourthecarbondioxideintotheemptycontainerfromtheotherlabteam.Theycanspinagainandrecordtheirresults.Whentheyaredone,borrowtheircontainerandgivethemyourssotheycanfillitforyou.


BinaryPlanetarySystemsDataTable

Whenfillingoutthethirdcolumn,noticehowhardoreasyitwastospinthecontainer,whatitfeltlike,whichwayitfaced,etc.Recordeverythingyoucanabouteachone.

ItemintheCan StateofMatter(solid,liquid,orgas?)

Whatdidyounotice?

Water

Rocks

Sand

Air

Pebbles

CarbonDioxideGas



1. HowisspinningthecontainerlikePlutoandCharon?

2. Whatwouldhappenifwecutthestringwhileyouarespinning?Whichwaywouldthecontainergo?

3. Whathappensifwetriplethesizeofyourcontainerandwhat’sinsideofit?


Lesson#10:BuildYourOwnSolarSystemTeacherSection

Overview:Whatwouldhappenifoursolarsystemhadthreesuns?OrtheEarthhadtwomoons?Youcanfindoutalltheseandmorewiththislessononorbitalmechanics.Insteadofwaitinguntilyouhitcollege,wethoughtwe’dthrowsomeuniversity‐levelphysicsatyou…withoutthehardmath.SuggestedTime:30‐45minutes

Objectives:StudentswillknowthatthepathofaplanetaroundtheSunisduetothegravitationalattractionbetweentheSunandtheplanet.


AccesstoacomputerwithInternet Ruler

LabPreparation

1. You’llneedsomedemonstrationequipmentforyourself:aping‐pongball,agolfball,andafeather.2. Printoutcopiesofthestudentworksheets.3. ReadovertheBackgroundLessonReadingbeforeteachingthisclass.4. Watchthevideoforthisexperimenttoprepareforteachingthisclass.


In1666,IsaacNewtondidhisearlyworkonhisThreeLawsofMotion.Tothisday,thoselawsstillholdtrue.Therehavebeensomeallowancesforreallybigthings(likethecosmos)andforreallysmallthings(liketheatom).Otherthanthat,Newton’sLawsareprettymuchdeadon.

Newton’sLawsareallscientistsandengineersusedtogetthefirstmantothemoon.Theyareanamazinglypowerfulandwonderfulareaofphysics.Ilikethembecauseevidenceofthemiseverywhere.Ifsomethingmovesorcanbemoved,itfollowsNewton’sLaws.Youcan’tsitinacar,walkdowntheroad,drinkaglassofmilk,orkickaballwithoutusingNewton’sLaws.Ialsolikethembecausetheyarerelativelyeasytounderstandandyetopenupworldsofanswersandquestions.Theyaretrulyafoundationforunderstandingtheworldaroundyou.

WheneverIteachaclassaboutgravity,I’lldropsomething(usuallysomethinglarge).Aftertheheadswhiparound,Iaskthehardquestion:“Whydiditfall?”Youalreadyknowtheanswer–gravity.

Butwhy?Whydoesgravitypullthingsdown,notup?Andwhendidpeoplefirststartnoticingthatwesticktothesurfaceoftheplanetandnotfloatupintothesky?

Noonecantellyouwhygravityis…that’sjustthewaytheuniverseiswired.Gravitationisanaturalthingthathappenswhenyouhavemass.Galileowasactuallyoneofthefirstpeopletodoscienceexperimentsongravity.


Lesson

AbouttheConceptofGravity

1. Eventhoughwedealwithgravityonaconstantbasis,thereareseveralmisconceptionsaboutit.Let’sgettoanexperimentrightawayandI’llshowyouwhatImean.

2. Whenyoudropagolfballandapingpongballfromthesameheight,whathappens?3. Whatyoushouldseeisthatbothobjectshitthegroundatthesametime!Gravityacceleratesbothitems

equallyandtheyhitthegroundatthesametime.Anytwoobjectswilldothis,abrickandaBuick,aflowerandafish,akumquatandacow!

4. Butwhatifyoudropafeatherandaballatthesametime?Thereisonethingthatwillchangetheresultsandthatisairresistance.Thebigger,lighterandfluffiersomethingis,themoreairresistancecanaffectitandsoitwillfallmoreslowly.Airresistanceisatypeoffrictionwhichwewillbetalkingaboutlater.Infact,ifyouremovedairresistance,afeatherandaflounderwouldhitthegroundatthesametime!!!

5. Wherecanyouremoveairresistance?Themoon!!!OneoftheApollomissionsactuallydidthis(well,theydidn’tuseaflounder,theyusedahammer).Anastronautdroppedafeatherandahammeratthesametimeandindeed,bothfellatthesamerateofspeedandhitthesurfaceofthemoonatthesametime.

6. Asksomeonethisquestion:Whichwillhitthegroundfirst,ifdroppedfromthesameheight,abowlingballoratennisball?Mostwillsaythebowlingball.Infact,ifyouaskedyourselfthatquestion5minutesago,wouldyouhavegottenitright?It’sconventionalwisdomtothinkthattheheavierobjectfallsfaster.

7. Unfortunately,conventionalwisdomisn’talwaysright.Gravityacceleratesallthingsequally.Inotherwords,gravitymakesallthingsspeeduporslowdownatthesamerate.

8. Thisisagreatexampleofwhythescientificmethod(moreonthislater)issuchacoolthing.Many,manyyearsago,therewasamanofgreatknowledgeandwisdomnamedAristotle.Whateverhesaid,mostpeoplebelievedtobetrue.Thetroublewas,hedidn’ttesteverythingthathesaid.Oneofhisstatementswasthatobjectswithgreaterweightfallfasterthanobjectswithlessweight.Everyonebelievedthatthiswastrue.Hundredsofyearslater,Galileocamealongandsaid“Yaknow...thatdoesn’tseemtoworkthatway.I’mgoingtotestit”ThestorygoesthatGalileograbbedamelonandanorangeandwenttothetopoftheLeaningTowerofPisa.Hesaid,“Lookoutbelow!”anddroppedthem!Bydoingthat,heshowedthatobjectsfallatthesamerateofspeednomatterwhattheirsize.ItistruethatitwasGalileowho“proved”thatgravityacceleratesallthingsequallynomatterwhattheirweight,butthereisnorealevidencethatheactuallyusedtheLeaningTowerofPisatodoit.

9. Keyconceptsaboutgravity:a. Gravityisaforcethatattractsthingstooneanother.b. Allbodies(objects)haveagravitationalfield.c. Thelargerabodyis,thegreaterthestrengthofthegravitationalfield.d. Bodiesmustbevery,verylargebeforetheyexertanynoticeablegravitationalfield.e. Gravityacceleratesallthingsequally.Whichmeansallthingsspeedupthesameamountastheyfall.f. Gravitydoesnotcarewhatsizethingsareorwhetherthingsaremoving.Allthingsareaccelerated

towardtheEarthatthesamerateofspeed.g. Gravitydoespullonthingsdifferently.Gravityispullinggreateronobjectsthatweighmore.h. Weightisameasureofhowmuchgravityispullingonanobject.i. Massisameasureofhowmuchmatter(howmanyatoms)makeupanobject.

AbouttheComputerSimulation


1. Togetyouexperiencedwiththeforceofgravitywithoutgettinglostinthemath,there’sanexcellentcomputerprogramthatallowsyoutoseehowmulti‐objectsystemsinteract.Mosttextbooksarelimitedtotheinteractionbetweenaverylargeobject,liketheEarth,andmuchsmallerobjectsthatareveryclosetoit,liketheMoon.Thisseriouslycutsoutmostoftheinterestingsolarsystemsthatareoutthereintherealuniverse.

2. TheUniversityofColoradoatBoulderdesignedagreatsystemtodothehardmathforyou.Don’tbefooledbythesimplisticappearance–thephysicsbehindthesimulationarerock‐solid…meaningthattheresultsyougetareexactlywhatscientistswouldpredicttohappen.

3. GototheMySolarSystemsimulationonthePhETwebsiteandcarefullyfollowtheinstructionsforeachactivity.Answerthequestionsandrecordyourresultsbeforegoingontothenextactivity.ClickheretoRUNthesimulationontheInternet,orclickheretodownloadthesimulatortoyourcomputer.

LabTime

1. Reviewtheinstructionsontheirworksheetsandthenbreakthestudentsintotheirlabgroups.2. Geteachgroupsituatedatacomputerandgivethemtimetoperformtheirexperimentandwritedown

theirobservations.3. ClickheretoRUNthesimulationontheInternet.4. Oncetheprogramopens,hitstart.You’llseetheEarthorbitaroundtheSun.DoyounoticehowtheEarth

alsocausestheSuntofollowatinyorbit?That’sbecausetheEarthpullsontheSunjustastheSunpullsontheEarth.

5. Pressstop.Noticethe“V?”Thatstandsfordirectionandspeed,asin55mphnorth.Itgiveshowfastyouaregoingaswellasthedirectionyou’regoing.Orinthiscase,theplanet.Noticenearthebottomthatyoucanchangethemassoftheobject.Increasethemasssothatit’slargerthantheSun.Pressstart.

6. Reset,andchangethepurpleobject(Earth)tobethesizeoftheMoon(makeit1).Didyounoticeachangeintheorbitpath?

7. Changethepurplemassbackto10,andincreasethespeedtoalargernumber.Whathappened?8. TheEarthisataveryspecialmassandspeed,isn’tit?9. Resetandmakeyourspeed200.Diditstayinorbit?10. Addathirdandfourthobjectbypullingdownthemenuontheupperright.Select“Sun,planet,andmoon”

andhit“Start.”11. Whathappensifyouuncheck“showtrace?”(You’llonlyseetheobjectsthemselvesorbiting,notthepath

theytake.)12. Whathappensifyouuncheck“systemcentered?”(Thesystemwilleventuallywanderoffthescreenasthe

entiresystemhasacceleration.)13. Playwiththeprogramforabit,changingthelocationdistancetheobjectsareapart,thespeedand

directiontheyinitiallystartoutat,andtheirmasses.14. Completethetablesbelow.Noticeattheendthatyouwillpredictthenecessarymass,velocity,and

distancefromtheSunofaplanetinorderforthisplanettomakeacircularorbitaroundaSun.

Exercises:Answersarereaddirectlyfromthedatatablesthestudentsrecord.

1. Whateffectdoeschangingthemassoforbitingplanethaveonthediameteroftheorbit?2. Whateffectdoeschangingthespeedhaveonaplanet’sorbit?3. Whathappenstotheplanet'sorbitwhenyouincreasetheinitialdistancebetweentheplanetandthe

Sun?


4. Findthemassvaluesneededforastableorbit.Circlethevaluesonthetablethatmakeastableorbit.5. Whydon’tafeatherandabrickhitthegroundatthesametime?(Theydo…ifyou’reontheMoon!On

Earth,thefrictionbetweentheairandthefeathercausesthefeathertoslowdownandthebricktowintherace.)



Lesson#10:BuildYourOwnSolarSystemStudentWorksheet

Name______________________________________________________________________

Overview:Whatwouldhappenifoursolarsystemhadthreesuns?OrtheEarthhadtwomoons?Youcanfindoutalltheseandmorewiththislessononorbitalmechanics.Insteadofwaitinguntilyouhitcollege,wethoughtwe’dthrowsomeuniversity‐levelphysicsatyou…withoutthehardmath.

WhattoLearnKeyconceptsaboutgravity:

a. Gravityisaforcethatattractsthingstooneanother.b. Allbodies(objects)haveagravitationalfield.c. Thelargerabodyis,thegreaterthestrengthofthegravitationalfield.d. Bodiesmustbevery,verylargebeforetheyexertanynoticeablegravitationalfield.e. Gravityacceleratesallthingsequally.Whichmeansallthingsspeedupthesameamountastheyfall.f. Gravitydoesnotcarewhatsizethingsareorwhetherthingsaremoving.Allthingsareaccelerated

towardtheEarthatthesamerateofspeed.g. Gravitydoespullonthingsdifferently.Gravityispullinggreateronobjectsthatweighmore.h. Weightisameasureofhowmuchgravityispullingonanobject.i. Massisameasureofhowmuchmatter(howmanyatoms)makeupanobject.

Materials

AccesstoacomputerwithInternet Ruler

LabTime

1. ClickheretoRUNthesimulationontheInternet.2. Oncetheprogramopens,hitstart.You’llseethepurpleEarthorbitaroundtheyellowSun.Doyounotice

howtheEarthalsocausestheSuntofollowatinyorbit?That’sbecausetheEarthpullsontheSunjustastheSunpullsontheEarth.

3. Pressstop.Noticethe“V?”Thatstandsfordirectionandspeed,asin55mphnorth.Itgiveshowfastyouaregoingaswellasthedirectionyou’regoing.Orinthiscase,theplanet.Noticenearthebottomthatyoucanchangethemassoftheobject.Increasethemasssothatit’slargerthantheSun.Pressstart.

4. Reset,andchangethepurpleobject(Earth)tobethesizeoftheMoon(makeit1).Didyounoticeachangeintheorbitpath?

5. Changethepurplemassbackto10,andincreasethespeedtoalargernumber.Whathappened?6. TheEarthisataveryspecialmassandspeed,isn’tit?7. Resetandmakeyourspeed200.Diditstayinorbit?8. Addathirdandfourthobjectbypullingdownthemenuontheupperright.Select“Sun,planet,andmoon”

andhit“Start.”9. Whathappensifyouuncheck“showtrace?”(You’llonlyseetheobjectsthemselvesorbiting,notthepath

theytake.)10. Whathappensifyouuncheck“systemcentered?”(Thesystemwilleventuallywanderoffthescreenasthe

entiresystemhasacceleration.)


11. Playwiththeprogramforabit,changingthelocationdistancetheobjectsareapart,thespeedanddirectiontheyinitiallystartoutat,andtheirmasses.

b. Whatdoestheyellowobjectrepresent?________________________________________

c. Whatisthemassoftheyellowobject?________________________________________

(Note:Nounitsaregiven,sonounitsarenecessary.)

d. Whatdoesthepurpleobjectrepresent?________________________________________

e. Whatisthemassofthepurpleobject?________________________________________

f. Whatdoestheredarrowrepresent?________________________________________

12. Completethetablebelow.Noticeattheendthatyouwillpredictthenecessarymass,velocity,anddistancefromthesunofaplanetinorderforthisplanettomakeacircularorbitaroundasun.

BuildYourOwnSolarSystemDataTable1

Usetheoriginalpresetforallvaluesforasunandplanet,exceptchangethemassofbody2(purpleobject)asshownbelow:

MassofBody2 DiameterofOrbit(measurewithruler)

1000

100

10

1

0.1

0.01

0.001

0.0001

Exercises:(Notethattheexercisequestionsarebeloweachdatatable)

1. Whateffectdoeschangingthemassoforbitingplanethaveonthediameteroftheorbit?



Usetheoriginalpresetforallvaluesforasunandplanet,exceptchangethemassofbody2(purpleobject)andvelocityasshownbelow:

MassofBody2 VelocityofBody2 Describewhathappened…?

0.1 yvelocity=130

0.1 yvelocity=140

0.1 yvelocity=150

0.1 yvelocity=600

0.1 yvelocity=80

0.1 yvelocity=40

0.1 yvelocity=20

0.1 yvelocity=0

2. Whateffectdoeschangingthespeedhaveonaplanet’sorbit?



Usetheoriginalpresetforallvaluesforasunandplanet,exceptchangethemassofbody2to50andthex‐distanceofbody2asshownbelow:

xdistanceforBody2 DiameterofOrbit(measurewithruler)

30

60

90

120

150

180

210

240

3. Whathappenstotheplanet'sorbitwhenyouincreasetheinitialdistancebetweentheplanetandthesun?



Usetheoriginalpresetforabinarystarandplanet.Changeonlythemassesandrecordyourobservationsbelow.

MassofBody1

MassofBody2

MassofBody3

Istheorbitstable?

4. Findthemassvaluesneededforastableorbit.Circlethevaluesonthetablethatmakeastableorbit.


Usetheoriginalpresetforellipses.Changeonlythemassesandrecordyourobservationsbelow.

MassofBody1

MassofBody2

MassofBody3

MassofBody4

Whathappened?

250 10 1 0.1

5. Whydon’tafeatherandabrickhitthegroundatthesametime?


Lesson#11:WatchYourWeightTeacherSection

Overview:IfyoucouldstandontheSunwithoutbeingroasted,howmuchwouldyouweigh?Thegravitationalpullisdifferentfordifferentobjects.Let’sfindoutwhichcelestialobjectyou’dcrackthepavementon,andwhichyourlightweighttoeswouldhavetobecarefulaboutjumpingonincaseyouleapedofftheplanet.


Objectives:Noticethatinthelastlesson,Isaidthatgravityacceleratesallthingsequally,notgravitypullsonallthingsequally.Gravitydoespullharderonsomethingsthanonotherthings.ThisiswhyIweighmorethanadog.Iammadeofmorestuffthantheaveragedog,sogravitypullsonmemore.Weightisnothingmorethanameasureofhowmuchgravityispullingonyou.


Scaletoweighyourself Calculator Pencil

LabPreparation



Weightisnothingmorethanameasureofhowmuchgravityispullingonyou.Thisiswhyyoucanbe“weightless”inspace.Youarestillmadeofstuff,butthere’snogravitytopullonyousoyouhavenoweight.Thelargerabodyis,themoregravitationalpull(orinotherwordsthelargeragravitationalfield)itwillhave.

TheMoonhasafairlysmallgravitationalfield(ifyouweighed100poundsonEarth,you’donlybe17poundsontheMoon).TheEarth’sfieldisfairlylargeandtheSunhasaHUGEgravitationalfield(ifyouweighed100poundsonEarth,you’dweigh2,500poundsontheSun!).

Asamatteroffact,thedogandIbothhavegravitationalfields!Sincewearebothbodiesofmass,wehaveagravitationalfieldwhichwillpullthingstowardus.Allbodieshaveagravitationalfield.However,mymassissosmallthatthegravitationalfieldIhaveisminiscule.Somethinghastobeverymassivebeforeithasagravitationalfieldthatnoticeablyattractsanotherbody.

Sowhat’sthemeasurementforhowmuchstuffyou’remadeof?Mass.Massisbasicallyaweightlessmeasureofhowmuchmattermakesyouyou.Ahamsterismadeofafairlysmallamountofstuff,soshehasasmallmass.Iammadeofmorestuff,somymassisgreaterthanthehamster’s.Yourhouseismadeofevenmorestuff,soitsmassisgreaterstill.So,here’saquestion.Ifyouare“weightless”inspace,doyoustillhavemass?Yes,theamountofstuffyou’remadeofisthesameonEarthasitisinyourspaceship.Massdoesnotchange,butsinceweightisameasureforhowmuchgravityispullingonyou,weightwillchange.


DidyounoticethatIputweightlessinquotationmarks?Wonderwhy?

Weightlessnessisamyth!Believeitornot,oneisneverweightless.Apersoncanbeprettyclosetoweightlessinverydeepspace,buttheastronautsinaspaceshipactuallydohaveabitofweight.

Thinkaboutitforasecond.IfaspaceshipisorbitingtheEarth,whatisitdoing?It’sconstantlyfalling!Ifitwasn’tmovingforwardattensofthousandsofmilesanhouritwouldhittheEarth.It’smovingfastenoughtofallaroundthecurvatureoftheEarthasitfallsbut,indeed,it’sfallingastheEarth’sgravityispullingittous.

Otherwisetheshipwouldfloatouttospace.Sowhatistheastronautdoing?She’sfalling,too!TheastronautandthespaceshiparebothfallingtotheEarthatthesamerateofspeedandsotheastronautfeelsweightlessinspace.Ifyouwereinanelevatorandthecablesnapped,youandtheelevatorwouldfalltotheEarthatthesamerateofspeed.You’dfeelweightless!(Don’ttrythisathome!)

Eithernoworatsomepointinthefutureyoumayaskyourselfthisquestion,“Howcangravitypullharder(putmoreforceonsomethings,likebowlingballs)andyetaccelerateallthingsequally?”WhenwegetintoNewton’slawsinafewlessons,you’llrealizethatdoesn’tmakeanysenseatall.MoreforceequalsmoreaccelerationisbasicallyNewton’sSecondLaw.

Well,Idon’twanttotaketoomuchtimeheresincethisisalittledeeperthenweneedtogo,butIdofeelsomeexplanationisinordertoavoidfutureconfusion.Theexplanationforthisisinertia.WhenwegettoNewton’sFirstLawwewilldiscussinertia.Inertiaisbasicallyhowmuchforceisneededtogetsomethingtomoveorstopmoving.

Now,let’sgetbacktogravityandacceleration.Let’stakealookatabowlingballandagolfball.Gravityputsmoreforceonthebowlingballthanonthegolfball.Sothebowlingballshouldacceleratefastersincethere’smoreforceonit.However,thebowlingballisheaviersoitishardertogetitmoving.Conversely,thegolfballhaslessforcepullingonitbutit’seasiertogetmoving.Doyouseeit?Theforceandinertiathingequaloutsothatallthingsaccelerateduetogravityatthesamerateofspeed!

Gravityhadtobeoneofthefirstscientificdiscoveries.Whoeverthefirstguywastodroparockonhisfootprobablyrealizedthatthingsfalldown!However,eventhoughwehaveknownaboutgravityformanyyears,itstillremainsoneofthemostelusivemysteriesofscience.Atthispoint,nobodyknowswhatmakesthingsmovetowardabodyofmass.

WhydidtherockdroptowardtheEarthandonthatguy’sfoot?Westilldon’tknow.Weknowthatitdoes,butwedon’tknowwhatcausesagravitationalattractionbetweenobjects.Gravityisalsoaveryweakforce.Comparedtomagneticforcesandelectrostaticforces,thegravitationalforceisextremelyweak.Howcome?Nooneknows.Alargeamountofamazingbrainpowerisbeingusedtodiscoverthesemysteriesofgravity.Maybeitwillbeyouwhofiguresthisout!


Lesson

1. ReadovertheBackgroundReadingsectionandsharewhatyoufeelisappropriatefortheirlevel.2. Doademonstrationcalculationontheboardwiththekidsbeforeturningthemloose.SeeLabTimefor

details.

LabTime


observations.3. First,we’regoingtotalkaboutthedifferencebetweenweightandmass.Ineverydaylanguage,weightand

massareusedinterchangeably,butscientistsknowbetter.4. Massishowmuchstuffsomethingismadeoutof.Ifyou’reholdingabowlingball,you’llnoticethatit’shard

togetstarted,andonceitgetsmoving,itneedsanotherpushtogetittostop.Ifyouleavethebowlingballonthefloor,itstaysput.Onceyoupushit,itwantstostaymoving.This“sluggishness”iscalledinertia.Massishowmuchinertiaanobjecthas.

5. Everyobjectwithmassalsohasagravitationalfield,andisattractedtoeverythingelsethathasmass.Theamountofgravitysomethinghasdependsonhowfaraparttheobjectsare.Whenyousteponabathroomscale,youarereadingyourweight,orhowmuchattractionisbetweenyouandtheEarth.

6. Ifyousteppedonascaleinaspaceshipthatisparkedfromanyplanets,moons,blackholes,orotherobjects,itwouldreadzero.Butisyourmasszero?Noway.You’restillmadeofthesamestuffyouwereonEarth,soyourmassisthesame.Butyou’dhavenoweight.

7. WhatisyourweightonEarth?Let’sfindoutnow.

8. Steponthescaleandreadthenumber.Writeithere:__________________________________________

9. Now,whatisyourweightontheMoon?Thecorrectionfactoris0.17.Somultiplyyourweightby0.17tofindwhatthescalewouldreadontheMoon.Writeithere:______________________________________________________________________________________________

10. Forexample,ifIweigh100poundsonEarth,thenI’dweightonly17poundsontheMoon.Ifthescalereads10kgonEarth,thenitwouldread1.7kgontheMoon.

Exercises

1. Ofthefollowingobjects,whichonesareattractedtooneanotherbygravity?a)AppleandBananab)BeagleandChihuahuac)EarthandYoud)Alloftheabove

2. TrueorFalse:Gravityacceleratesallthingsdifferently3. TrueorFalse:Gravitypullsonallthingsdifferently4. IfIdropagolfballandagolfcartatthesametimefromthesameheight,whichhitsthegroundfirst?(They

bothhitthegroundatthesametime.)


5. Thereisamonkeyhangingonthebranchofatree.Awildlifebiologistwantstoshootatranquilizerdartatthemonkeytomarkandstudyhim.Thebiologistverycarefullyaimsdirectlyattheshoulderofthemonkeyandfires.However,thegunmakesaloudenoughnoisethatthemonkeygetsscared,letsgoofthebranchandfallsdirectlydownward.Doesthedarthitwherethebiologistwasaimingordoesitgohigherorlowerthanheaimed?(Themonkeyandthedartfalldownwardatthesamerateofspeed.Sothedartwouldhitexactlywherethebiologistaimed!Infact,ifthemonkeydidn’tletgo,thedartwouldhavehitlowerthanthebiologistaimed.)



Lesson#11:WatchYourWeightStudentWorksheet

Name______________________________________________________________________

Overview:IfyoucouldstandontheSunwithoutbeingroasted,howmuchwouldyouweigh?Thegravitationalpullisdifferentfordifferentobjects.Let’sfindoutwhichcelestialobjectyou’dcrackthepavementon,andwhichyourlightweighttoeswouldhavetobecarefulaboutjumpingonincaseyouleaptofftheplanet.

WhattoLearn:Weightisnothingmorethanameasureofhowmuchgravityispullingonyou.Massisameasureofhowmuchstuffyou’remadeoutof.Weightcanchangedependingonthegravitationalfieldyouarestandingin.Masscanonlychangeifyouloseanarm.

Materials

Scaletoweighyourself Calculator Pencil

LabTime

1. Weneedtotalkaboutthedifferencebetweenweightandmass.Ineverydaylanguage,weightandmassareusedinterchangeably,butscientistsknowbetter.

2. Massishowmuchstuffsomethingismadeoutof.Ifyou’reholdingabowlingball,you’llnoticethatit’shardtogetstarted,andonceitgetsmoving,itneedsanotherpushtogetittostop.Ifyouleavethebowlingballonthefloor,itstaysput.Onceyoupushit,itwantstostaymoving.This“sluggishness”iscalledinertia.Massishowmuchinertiaanobjecthas.

3. Everyobjectwithmassalsohasagravitationalfield,andisattractedtoeverythingelsethathasmass.Theamountofgravitysomethinghasdependsonhowfaraparttheobjectsare.Whenyousteponabathroomscale,youarereadingyourweight,orhowmuchattractionisbetweenyouandtheEarth.

4. Ifyousteppedonascaleinaspaceshipthatisparkedfromanyplanets,moons,blackholes,orotherobjects,itwouldreadzero.Butisyourmasszero?Noway.You’restillmadeofthesamestuffyouwereonEarth,soyourmassisthesame.Butyou’dhavenoweight.

5. WhatisyourweightonEarth?Let’sfindoutnow.

6. Steponthescaleandreadthenumber.Writeithere:__________________________________________

7. Now,whatisyourweightontheMoon?Thecorrectionfactoris0.17.Somultiplyyourweightby0.17tofindwhatthescalewouldreadontheMoon.Writeithere:______________________________________________________________________________________________

8. Forexample,ifIweigh100poundsonEarth,thenI’dweightonly17poundsontheMoon.Ifthescalereads10kgonEarth,thenitwouldread1.7kgontheMoon.


9. Filloutthetablebelow.

WatchYourWeightDataTable

WeightonPlanet/Object=WeightonEarthxGravityCorrection

Planet/Object WeightonEarth GravityCorrection WeightonPlanet/Object

TheSun 28

Mercury 0.38

Venus 0.91

Earth 1

Moon 0.17

Mars 0.38

Jupiter 2.14

Saturn 0.91

Uranus 0.86

Neptune 1.1

Pluto 0.08

OuterSpace 0

Betelgeuse 14,000

WhiteDwarf 1,300,000

NeutronStar(Pulsar) 140,000,000,000

BlackHole ∞



1. Ofthefollowingobjects,whichonesareattractedtooneanotherbygravity?a)AppleandBananab)BeagleandChihuahuac)EarthandYoud)Alloftheabove

2. TrueorFalse:Gravityacceleratesallthingsdifferently

3. TrueorFalse:Gravitypullsonallthingsdifferently

4. IfIdropagolfballandagolfcartatthesametimefromthesameheight,whichhitsthegroundfirst?

5. Thereisamonkeyhangingonthebranchofatree.Awildlifebiologistwantstoshootatranquilizerdartatthemonkeytomarkandstudyhim.Thebiologistverycarefullyaimsdirectlyattheshoulderofthemonkeyandfires.However,thegunmakesaloudenoughnoisethatthemonkeygetsscared,letsgoofthebranchandfallsdirectlydownward.Doesthedarthitwherethebiologistwasaiming,ordoesitgohigherorlowerthanheaimed?(This,bytheway,isanoldthoughtproblem.)


Lesson#12:SundialTeacherSection

Overview:UsingthepositionoftheSun,youcantellwhattimeitusbymakingoneofthesesundials.TheSunwillcastashadowontoasurfacemarkedwiththehours,andthetime‐tellinggnomonedgewillalignwiththepropertime.


Objectives:ThepositionoftheSunintheskychangesduringthecourseofthedayandfromseasontoseason.Studentswillalsolearnhowtocorrectforlongitude,latitude,andothercommonsundialerrors.


SimpleSundial

Indexcard Scissors Tape

IntermediateSundial

2yardsticksormetersticks Protractor Chalk Clock

AdvancedSundial

OldCD(thiscanalsobethetransparentCDatthetopofDVD/CDspindles) EmptyCDcase Skewer Stickytape Cardboardorsmallpieceofclay Protractor Scissors Tape Hotglue

LabPreparation

1. Decidewhichsundialyouaregoingtodo,andprintouttheappropriatetemplateforthestudents.2. Makeasampleofeachsundialtoshowthatalthoughtheylookdifferent,theyallworkthesameway.3. Printoutcopiesofthestudentworksheets.4. ReadovertheBackgroundLessonReadingbeforeteachingthisclass.5. Watchthevideoforthisexperimenttoprepareforteachingthisclass.



SundialshavebeenusedforcenturiestokeeptrackoftheSun.Therearedifferenttypesofsundials.Someusealineoflighttoindicatewhattimeitis,whileothersuseashadow.

Hereareafewdifferentmodelsthat,althoughtheylookalotdifferentfromeachother,actuallyallworktogivethesameresults!YoursundialwillworkalldaysoftheyearwhentheSunisout.

You’llnoticethatnorthisthedirectionthatyourshadow’slengthistheshortest.However,ifyoudon’tknowwhereeastandwestare,allyoucandoisknowwherenorthis.TheequinoxisaspecialtimeofyearbecausetheSunrisesintheexacteastandsetsintheexactwest,makingthesetwopointsexactlyperpendicularwiththenorthforyourlocation(whichtheyusuallyaren’t).Atsunset,youcanviewyourshadow(quicklybeforeitdisappears)anddrawitwithchalkontheground,makingalinethatrunseast‐west.90ocounterclockwisefromthelineisnorth.

Lesson

1. Ingeneral,sundialsaresusceptibletodifferentkindsoferrors.Ifthesundialisn’tpointednorth,it’snotgoingtowork.Ifthesundial’sgnomonisn’tperpendicular,it’sgoingtogiveerrorswhenyoureadthetime.

2. Latitudeandlongitudecorrectionsmayalsoneedtobemade.Somedesignsneedtobealignedwiththelatitudeatwhichtheyreside(ineffect,theyneedtobetippedtowardtheSunatanangle).Tocorrectforlongitude,simplyshiftthesundialtoreadexactlynoonwhenindicatedonyourclock.Thisisespeciallyimportantforsundialsthatliebetweenlongitudinalstandardizedtimezones.

3. TheEquationofTimefromthelessonentitled:What’sintheSky?canbeusedtocorrectfortheSunrunningsloworfast.Remember,thiseffectisduetoboththeEarth’sorbitnotbeingaperfectcircleandthefactthatthetiltaxisisnotperpendiculartotheorbitpath.

4. Ifdaylightsavingstimeisineffect,thenthesundialtimelinemustbeshiftedtoaccommodateforthis.Mostshiftsareonehour.

LabTime


observations.


SimpleSundial

1. Thissundialtakesonlyacoupleminutestomake,andreadseasilyforbeginnerstudents.2. Cutoutthetemplatebelow.3. Cutyourindexcardintotwotrianglesbycuttingfromonecornertotheoppositediagonalcorner.Stackthe

twotrianglesandtapetogether.Thisiscalledyourgnomon.4. Tapethetriangletoyour12‐hourline,puttingtapeonbothsidesofthegnomonasyoustickittothepaper.5. Putthesundialinasunnyplacewhereitwon’tbedisturbed(likeinsideofasunnywindoworonatable

outdoors).6. Pointthesundialsothatthegnomonispointingnorth.Thisismosteasilydoneifyouorientyoursundialat

exactlynooninyourlocation.LineupthesundialwiththeSunsothattheshadowthegnomonmakeslinesupexactlywiththe12.

7. Tapethesundialdownsoitwon’tmoveorgetblownaway.8. Thegnomonmustbeexactlyperpendiculartothehourmarkers.Usearulerorabookedgetohelpyouline

thisup.

SimpleSundialTemplate

IntermediateSundial

1. Findasunnyspotthathasconcreteandgrassyarearightnexttoeachother.You’regoingtopoketheyardstickintothegrassanddrawontheconcretewithchalk,sobesurethattheconcretegoesinanapproximatelyeast‐westdirection.

2. Firstthinginthemorning,stickoneoftheyardsticksintothedirt,rightattheedgeoftheconcrete.3. Atthetopofthehour(likeat8a.m.or9a.m.),goouttoyouryardsticktomarkaposition.4. Laythesecondyardstickdownalongtheshadowthattheuprightyardstickmakesontheground.Usechalk

todrawtheshadow,andusetheyardsticktomakeyourlinestraight.


5. Labelthislinewiththehour.6. Setyourtimerandrunbackoutatthetopofthenexthour.7. Repeatsteps3‐6untilyoufinishmarkingyoursundial.8. Whenyou’vecompletedyoursundial,filloutthetablebelow.

IntermediateDataTable

Don’tforgettolabelyourunitsforcolumns2and3!

ExactTimeofDay ShadowLength

AnglethattheSunMovedfromLastHour


AdvancedSundial

Thissundialwillworkforalllongitudes,buthasalimitedrangeoflatitudes.Ifyouliveinthefarnorthorfarsouth,you’llneedtogetcreativeabouthowtomounttheCDsothatthegnomonispointedatthecorrectangle.Forexample,attheequator,theCDwilllieflat(whichiseasy!),butnearthenorthandsouthpoles,theCDwillbeupsidedown.

1. Cutoutthetimeline(below).2. Putalineofdouble‐sidedstickytapealongthebackofthetimeline.Extendthetapeabout¼”(onthe

bottomedge)soit’shangingoffthepaperalittle.3. FlipthetimelineoverandrolltheCDalongthisbottomedge,stickingthetimelinetotheedgeoftheCD.

ThetimelineshouldbefacinginwardtowardthecenteroftheCD,perpendiculartotheCDsurface.4. Nowit’stimetoplugupthecenterhole.YoucancutoutcirclesfromaCDandattachwithtape,orusea

smallpieceofclay.5. PushtheskewerthroughtheexactmiddleoftheCD.6. OpenuptheCDcase.7. Positionthenoonmarkeratthebottomandstickitusingapieceofdouble‐sidedstickytapeorhotglue.8. TheothersideoftheCDisgluedtotheCDcaseatthesameangleasyourlatitude.Forexample,ifIliveat

43onorth,IwouldusemyprotractoronthegroundalongthebaseoftheCDcaseandlifttheCDuntilthegnomonreadsat43o.PutadabofhotgluetoattachtheCDtothelidofthecase.

9. Gooutsideandpointthegnomonnorth(youmaywanttouseacompassforthisifit’snotnoon.)10. Thedialwillhaveashadowthatfallsonthetimeline.Youcanreadthetimerightoffthetimeline.11. Foradvancedstudents:Timelinecorrection:DoyourememberhowtheSunwasfastorslowinthe

Stargazer’sWallChartfromthelessonentitled:What’sintheSky?ThatwavylineiscalledtheEquationofTime,andyou’llneedittocorrectyoursundialifyouwanttobecompletelyaccurate.ThisisagreatdemonstrationforaScienceFairproject,especiallywhenyouaddamodeloftheSunandEarthtohelpyouexplainwhat’sgoingon.

Exercises(theseaccompanyeachsundialactivity)

1. Whatkindsofcorrectionsneedtobemadeforyoursundial?2. Whenwouldn’tyoursundialwork?3. Howcanyouimproveyoursundialtobemoreaccurate?



Lesson#12:SundialStudentWorksheet

Name______________________________________________________________________

Overview:UsingthepositionoftheSun,youcantellwhattimeitusbymakingoneofthesesundials.TheSunwillcastashadowontoasurfacemarkedwiththehours,andthetime‐tellinggnomonedgewillalignwiththepropertime.

WhattoLearn:Ingeneral,sundialsaresusceptibletodifferentkindsoferrors.Ifthesundialisn’tpointednorth,it’snotgoingtowork.Ifthesundial’sgnomonisn’tperpendicular,it’sgoingtogiveerrorswhenyoureadthetime.Latitudeandlongitudecorrectionsmayalsoneedtobemade.Somedesignsneedtobealignedwiththelatitudeatwhichtheyreside(ineffect,theyneedtobetippedtowardtheSunatanangle).Tocorrectforlongitude,simplyshiftthesundialtoreadexactlynoonwhenindicatedonyourclock.Thisisespeciallyimportantforsundialsthatliebetweenlongitudinalstandardizedtimezones.Ifdaylightsavingstimeisineffect,thenthesundialtimelinemustbeshiftedtoaccommodateforthis.Mostshiftsareonehour.

Materials

SimpleSundial

Indexcard Scissors Tape

IntermediateSundial

2yardsticksormetersticks Protractor Chalk Clock

AdvancedSundial

OldCD(thiscanalsobethetransparentCDatthetopofDVD/CDspindles) EmptyCDcase Skewer Stickytape Cardboardorsmallpieceofclay Protractor Scissors Tape Hotglue


SimpleSundial

1. Thissundialtakesonlyacoupleofminutestomake,andreadseasilyforbeginnerstudents.2. Cutoutthetemplatebelow.3. Cutyourindexcardintotwotrianglesbycuttingfromonecornertotheoppositediagonalcorner.Stackthe

twotrianglesandtapetogether.Thisiscalledyourgnomon.4. Tapethetriangletoyour12‐hourline,puttingtapeonbothsidesofthegnomonasyoustickittothepaper.5. Putthesundialinasunnyplacewhereitwon’tbedisturbed(likeinsideofasunnywindoworonatable

outdoors).6. Pointthesundialsothatthegnomonispointingnorth.Thisismosteasilydoneifyouorientyoursundialat

exactlynooninyourlocation.LineupthesundialwiththeSunsothattheshadowthegnomonmakeslinesupexactlywiththe12.

7. Tapethesundialdownsoitwon’tmoveorgetblownaway.8. Thegnomonmustbeexactlyperpendiculartothehourmarkers.Usearulerorabookedgetohelpyouline

thisup.

SimpleSundialTemplate

ExercisesAnswerthequestionsbelow:1. Whatkindsofcorrectionsneedtobemadeforyoursundial?2. Whenwouldn’tyoursundialwork?3. Howcanyouimproveyoursundialtobemoreaccurate?


IntermediateSundial

1. Findasunnyspotthathasconcreteandgrassyarearightnexttoeachother.You’regoingtopoketheyardstickintothegrassanddrawontheconcretewithchalk,sobesurethattheconcretegoesinanapproximatelyeast‐westdirection.

2. Firstthinginthemorning,stickoneoftheyardsticksintothedirt,rightattheedgeoftheconcrete.3. Atthetopofthehour(likeat8a.m.or9a.m.),goouttoyouryardsticktomarkaposition.4. Laythesecondyardstickdownalongtheshadowthattheuprightyardstickmakesontheground.Usechalk

todrawtheshadow,andusetheyardsticktomakeyourlinestraight.5. Labelthislinewiththehour.6. Setyourtimerandrunbackoutatthetopofthenexthour.7. Repeatsteps3‐6untilyoufinishmarkingyoursundial.8. Whenyou’vecompletedyoursundial,filloutthetablebelow.

IntermediateDataTable

Don’tforgettolabelyourunitsforcolumns2and3!

ExactTimeofDay ShadowLength

AnglethattheSunMovedfromLastHour



AdvancedSundial

Thissundialwillworkforalllongitudes,buthasalimitedrangeoflatitudes.Ifyouliveinthefarnorthorfarsouth,you’llneedtogetcreativeabouthowtomounttheCDsothatthegnomonispointedatthecorrectangle.Forexample,attheequator,theCDwilllieflat(whichiseasy!),butnearthenorthandsouthpoles,theCDwillbeupsidedown.

1. Cutoutthetimeline(below).2. Putalineofdouble‐sidedstickytapealongthebackofthetimeline.Extendthetapeabout¼”(onthe

bottomedge)soit’shangingoffthepaperalittle.3. FlipthetimelineoverandrolltheCDalongthisbottomedge,stickingthetimelinetotheedgeoftheCD.

ThetimelineshouldbefacinginwardtowardthecenteroftheCD,perpendiculartotheCDsurface.4. Nowit’stimetoplugupthecenterhole.YoucancutoutcirclesfromaCDandattachwithtape,orusea

smallpieceofclay.5. PushtheskewerthroughtheexactmiddleoftheCD.6. OpenuptheCDcase.7. Positionthenoonmarkeratthebottomandstickitusingapieceofdouble‐sidedstickytapeorhotglue.8. TheothersideoftheCDisgluedtotheCDcaseatthesameangleasyourlatitude.Forexample,ifIliveat

43onorth,IwouldusemyprotractoronthegroundalongthebaseoftheCDcaseandlifttheCDuntilthegnomonreadsat43o.PutadabofhotgluetoattachtheCDtothelidofthecase.

9. Gooutsideandpointthegnomonnorth(youmaywanttouseacompassforthisifit’snotnoon.)10. Thedialwillhaveashadowthatfallsonthetimeline.Youcanreadthetimerightoffthetimeline.11. Foradvancedstudents:Timelinecorrection:DoyourememberhowtheSunwasfastorslowinthe

Stargazer’sWallChartfromthelessonentitled:What’sintheSky?ThatwavylineiscalledtheEquationofTime,andyou’llneedittocorrectyoursundialifyouwanttobecompletelyaccurate.ThisisagreatdemonstrationforaScienceFairproject,especiallywhenyouaddamodeloftheSunandEarthtohelpyouexplainwhat’sgoingon.



Lesson#13:DiffractionTeacherSection

Overview:Studentswillplaywithdiffractiongratingstolearnabouthowtheywork,sotheycanmakeaSpectroscopeinthenextlesson.


Objectives:Scientistsusediffractiongratingstosplitincominglightsotheycanfigureoutwhatfuelsadistantstarisburning.Whenhydrogenburns,itgivesofflight,butnotinallthecolorsoftherainbow,onlyveryspecificcolorsinredandblue.It'slikehydrogen'sownpersonalfingerprint,orlightsignature.Wheneachelementburns,itgivesoffadifferentcombinationofcolors.


Feather CDorDVD Diffractiongrating Severallightsources,suchasacandle,laserpointer,neonlight,sodiumlight,fluorescentlight,

incandescentlight,glowstick,etc.

LabPreparation

1. Printoutcopiesofthestudentworksheets.2. ReadovertheBackgroundLessonReadingbeforeteachingthisclass.3. Watchthevideoforthisexperimenttoprepareforteachingthisclass.4. Rightbeforeclass,setupyourvariouslightsourcesaroundtheroom.Studentswillrotatebetween

differentstationsandrecordtheirresults.


Everplaywithaprism?Whensunlightstrikestheprism,itgetssplitintoarainbowofcolors.Prismsun‐mixthelightintoitsdifferentwavelengths(whichyouseeasdifferentcolors).Diffractiongratingsaretinyprismsstackedtogether.Thedirectioninwhichthebeamgetssplitanddiffracteddependsonthespacingofthediffractiongratingandalsothewavelengthoftheincominglight.

Thefeatherworksbecausetherearetiny“hairs”onthefeatherthatareactingliketinyprisms.

DiffractiongratingswerefirstdiscoveredbyJamesGregory,rightaroundthetimeNewtonperformedhisfamousprismexperimentswithbirdfeathers.Thefirstdiffractiongratingstookalongtimetoconstruct,astheywereindividualhairsstrungbetweenscrews.

Lesson

1. Adiffractiongratingbendsthelightandsplitsitintodifferentbeams.Youcanseethisverywellwhenyouuseamonochromaticlightsource,likealaser,insteadofamulti‐wavelengthlightsource.


2. Starteveryoneoffviewinganincandescentlightyouhaveatthefrontoftheroom.Havethestudentstrylookingthrougheachofthethreediffractiongratingsatthelightsources,andrecordingtheinformationinthedatatable.Thisistheirfirststation.Nowsplitthemintogroupsandhaveonestudentlabgroupperlightsource.

LabTime


observations.3. Takeafeatherandputitoveraneye.4. Stareatalightsourcethroughthefeather,likeanincandescentlight.5. YoushouldseetwoorthreelightsandarainbowX.6. AimtheCDsothelighthitstheCDandmakesrainbows.7. Lookatthelightsourcethroughthediffractiongrating.8. Drawwhatyouseeforallthree.Weretheythesame?9. Rotatearoundtheroomtoanewstationwhenyourteachercallsthetimetochange.You’llfinddifferent

lightsourceareasyourteacherhassetoutforyou.10. Completethetablebelowasyouviewthedifferentlightsourcesthroughyourdiffractiongratings.

Exercises

1. Whichlightsourcegavethemostinterestingresults?(Thisvarieswithdata.)2. Whathappenswhenyouaimalaserbeamthroughthediffractiongrating?(Itsplitsintothreebeamsof

light,asshowninthesecondvideo.)3. HowisaCDdifferentandthesameasadiffractiongrating?(ACDhasaspiraloffinely‐spaceddatatracks

whilethediffractiongratinghasaseriesofparallellines.TheCDsplitsthelightthesamewayasthediffractiongrating.TheCDsplitsthebeamintomorethanthreebeams.)

4. Whydoesthefeatherwork?(Therearetiny“hairs”onthefeatheractingliketinyprisms.)



Lesson#13:DiffractionStudentWorksheet

Name______________________________________________________________________

Overview:Whenlightpassesthroughdiffractiongratings,itsplits(diffracts)thelightintoseveralbeamstravelingindifferentdirections.Ifyou'veeverseenthe“iridescence”ofasoapbubble,aninsectshell,oronapearl,you'veseennature'sdiffractiongratings.

WhattoLearn:Everplaywithaprism?Whensunlightstrikestheprism,itgetssplitintoarainbowofcolors.Prismsun‐mixthelightintoitsdifferentwavelengths(whichyouseeasdifferentcolors).Diffractiongratingsaretinyprismsstackedtogether.Thedirectioninwhichthebeamgetssplitanddiffracteddependsonthespacingofthediffractiongratingandalsothewavelengthoftheincominglight.

Materials

Feather CDorDVD Diffractiongrating

LabTime

1. Takeafeatherandputitoveraneye.2. Stareatalightsourcethroughthefeather,likeanincandescentlight.3. YoushouldseetwoorthreelightsandarainbowX.4. AimtheCDsothelighthitstheCDandmakesrainbows.5. Lookatthelightsourcethroughthediffractiongrating.6. Drawwhatyouseeforallthree.Weretheythesame?7. Rotatearoundtheroomtoanewstationwhenyourteachercallsthetimetochange.You’llfinddifferent

lightsourceareasyourteacherhassetoutforyou.8. Completethetablebelowasyouviewthedifferentlightsourcesthroughyourdiffractiongratings.


DiffractionDataTable

LightSource DiffractiveObject(Feather,CD,orGrating?)

DrawWhatYouSee:



1. Whichlightsourcegavethemostinterestingresults?

2. Whathappenswhenyouaimalaserbeamthroughthediffractiongrating?

3. HowisaCDdifferentandthesameasadiffractiongrating?

4. Whydoesthefeatherwork?


Lesson#14:InfraredVisionTeacherSection

ThislabisaHomeworkLab.Demonstratethislabtothestudentsduringclass,andthensendthemhomewiththeirstudentworksheetstocompletethatnight.

Overview:Infraredlightisinthepartoftheelectromagneticspectrumthatisn’tusuallyvisibletohumaneyes,butusingthisniftytrick,youwilleasilybeabletoseetheIRsignalfromyourTVremote,remote‐controllerforanRCcar,andmore.


Objectives:WhenyoupressthebuttononyourremotecontroltoyourTV,you’reusinginfraredlight(IR)tocontrolyourTV.Infraredlighthasabitmoreenergythanmicrowavelight,butit’sstillinvisibletooureyes.However,snakescandetectIRandseetheredderhuesthatwecan’t.EverywarmbodygivesofflightintheIR,sosnakesusethistofindmiceinthecoolnight.

Materials(foryourdemonstrationonly):

Metalfryingpanorcookiesheet Plasticsheet Plasticbaggie Trashbag(whiteorblack,orboth) Woodencuttingboard Remote control for TV or stereo Camera (video or still camera)

LabPreparation

1. Printoutcopiesofthestudentworksheets.2. ReadovertheBackgroundLessonReadingbeforeteachingthisclass.3. Watchthevideoforthisexperimenttoprepareforteachingthisclass.4. Setupthecamerainthefrontoftheclassforeveryonetosee,andgetyourmaterialsouttodemonstrate

thelabsothekidscandotheirhomework.



Differentdetectorsaresensitivetodifferentcolors.Youreyeballsaresensitivetospecificcolorsinthe400‐700nm(nanometer)range,whichishowlongonewavelengthis.Ananometerisextremelytiny!

Thefrequencyofredlightisaround430trillionHz(Hertz,whichisonewavecyclepersecond).Ifyouweretocountthenumberofwavespassingacertainpointinonesecond,you’dcount430trillionwaves.Ifyoucounted750trillionwaves,thelightwouldbeviolet.Differentcolorshavedifferentfrequencies.

Lightenergy(alsocalledelectromagneticradiation)withthelowestamountsofenergyandlongestwavelengths(1mmto1km)areradiowaves.Theseareemittedbyradiogalaxieslikequasars,supernovaleftovers,andtheradiotoweratthetopofthehill.Radiowavesfromspacewithawavelengthgreaterthan100metersarereflectedbackintospacebyouratmosphere.RadiowavesaredetectedinspacebytheCOBEsatellite,theVLAinNewMexico,andtheAreciboObservatoryinSouthAmerica.

Thenextstepdowninwavesizeismicrowaves,whichhavemoreenergythanradiowavesbutareashorterwavelength.Thesearetheonesinsideyourmicrowavethatexcitethewatermoleculesinsideyourfoodsothatyourfoodheatsup.

Infrared(IR)hasslightlymoreenergyandanevensmallerwavelength(700nanometers,ornmto1mm),andyoucanfeelthislightaswarmthonyourskinwhenyoustepintotheSun.There’salotofinfraredradiationinspacearoundthestar‐formingcloudsandobjectswithatemperatureabove1000oC.SOFIAandtheInfraredObservatorybothdetectinfraredfromvariousstarsinspace.

Visiblelightoropticallightwavesarethevisiblerainbowyoucanseewithyoureyesafterarainyday.Thesewavelengthshavemoreenergyandshorterwavelengths(300to700nm)thaninfrared.TheHubbleSpaceTelescopeandEarth‐boundopticaltelescopeslookatstars,galaxies,andplanets.

Ultraviolet(UV)lighthasmoreenergyandshorterwavelengths(10nmto390nm)thanvisiblelight,andyou’llfindhotstarsemitlargelyinthisregionofthespectrum.TheozonelayerprotectsusfrommostoftheUV,butnotall.That’swhyyougetasunburnifyoudon’twearsunblock,andwhycolorsfadeinsunlight.SkyLab,AstrotelescopeandSOHOallsearchforUV.SOHOlooksdirectlyattheSun’scoronatogetamazingimagesinUV.

X‐rayshaveevenmoreenergyandshortwavelengths(0.01nmto10nm)thanUVlight,andyou’llfindtheseareemittedbyactiveblackholes,supernovaremnants,andveryhotstars(we’retalking1millionto100millionoC).Fortunatelyforus,thesearequicklyabsorbedintheupperatmosphereandmostnevermakeittothesurfaceofEarth.X‐raysgeneratedonearthareemittedbyelectronsoutsidethenucleusofanatom.ROSATlookedatclustergalaxiestodetectX‐raysources.

Deadlygammarayshavethemostamountofenergyandtheshortestfrequency(lessthan0.01nm),andyou’llfindtheseinareasofsuperflaresfrompulsars,supernovas,andradioactiveatoms.GammaraysarelikeX‐rays,inthattheybothcangothroughthickmaterials,andwouldrathergothroughyourdetectorthanintoittobedetected.GammaraysonEartharegeneratedinsidethenucleusofanatom.TheComptonObservatorylookedatquasarstodetectgammarays.

Lesson/LabTime

1. Thislabisgoingtobeassignedforhomeworkforthestudents.Youwillrunthroughthelaboncesotheyknowwhattodowhentheygethome.


2. Reviewtheinstructionsontheirworksheetsandthenbreakthestudentsintotheirlabgroups.3. Handeachgrouptheirworksheetstocompleteforhomework.4. Grabaremotecontrolandshowthestudentsthatitisindeedworking.Turnthedeviceonandoffusingthe

remote.5. Grabasheetofplastic,likeacuttingboard,andplaceitbetweenyourremoteandthedevice.Doesitturn

onwhenyouaimthebeamatit?Doestheplasticblockthebeam?6. Openupatrashbagandplaceonesideofthebagbetweenyourremoteandthedevice.Didthatblockthe

beam,ordidtheremoteturnonthedevice?7. Whatelsecanyoutry?Howaboutaclearbag?8. Aclearbagfilledwithwater?9. Asheetofpaper?10. Whataboutametalpan?Findsomethingthat’snotcoatedwithTeflon.Doesinfraredgothroughmetal?11. Whatifyoupointitatawhitewallbehindyou,pretendingthewhitewallisamirrorandaimingitsoitwill

reflectitbacktothedevice?12. Completethetablebelow.13. Now,let’smaketheinvisibleinfraredlightvisible.Takeyourcamera(eitherdigitalorvideocamerawill

work)andturniton.Putitonamodewhereyoucanseethroughtheviewscreen.Aimthecamerarightattheemitterfortheremote(usuallynearthetop)andpressabutton.Pointtheremoterightatthecameraandwatchthroughthecamera.Oureyesnormallycan’tseetheinfraredlight,butthecameracan!

14. Thecameracanalsoseetheotherwisedarkendoftheremote!Doesyourcamerahaveaspecialnightvisionmode,whereit’sespeciallysensitivetoinfraredlight?Ifso,tryit!

Exercises

1. Whatkindsofobjectsallowinfraredlighttopassthroughthem?(Checkdata.)2. Whydoesthecameraworkinmakingtheinfraredlightvisible?(Thecameraisaviewerthatletsusseethis

specialfrequencyoflight.Lightistechnicallywhatwecallelectromagneticradiation.Radiowaves,infrared,microwaves,X‐rays,andgammaraysareallelectromagneticradiation.Ifyoucouldseetheradiowaves,thenyoucouldseeradiotowersastheytransmit.Theywouldappeartolightup.Ifyoucouldseeallformsoflight,thennotonlycouldyouseetheradiotowers,butalsoyourcellphone,thedoctor’sX‐raycameras,andyourcarradiowouldallbelitupastheyoperated.It’sallmadeoutofthesamestuff,justnotallofitisvisibletooureyes.)



Lesson#14:InfraredVisionStudentWorksheet

Name______________________________________________________________________

Overview:Infraredlightisinthepartoftheelectromagneticspectrumthatisn’tusuallyvisibletohumaneyes,butusingthisniftytrick,youwilleasilybeabletoseetheIRsignalfromyourTVremote,remote‐controllerforanRCcar,andmore!

WhattoLearn:WhenyoupressthebuttononyourremotecontroltoyourTV,you’reusinginfraredlight(IR)tocontrolyourTV.Infraredlightisinvisibletooureyes.However,snakescandetectIRandseetheredderhuesthatwecan’t.EverywarmbodygivesofflightintheIR,sosnakesusethistofindmiceinthecoolnight.

Materials:

Youwillneedtheseitems:

Remote control for TV or stereo Camera (video or still camera)

Thisisjustasuggestedlistofobjects.Feelfreetofindyourown!

Metalfryingpanorcookiesheet Plasticsheet Plasticbaggie Trashbag(whiteorblack,orboth) Woodencuttingboard

LabTime

1. Grabaremotecontrolandverifythatitisindeedworking.Turnthedeviceonandoffusingtheremote.2. Grabasheetofplastic,likeacuttingboard,andplaceitbetweenyourremoteandthedevice.Doesitturn

onwhenyouaimthebeamatit?Doestheplasticblockthebeam?3. Openupatrashbagandplaceonesideofthebagbetweenyourremoteandthedevice.Didthatblockthe

beam,ordidtheremoteturnonthedevice?4. Whatelsecanyoutry?Howaboutaclearbag?5. Aclearbagfilledwithwater?6. Asheetofpaper?7. Whataboutametalpan?Findsomethingthat’snotcoatedwithTeflon.Doesinfraredgothroughmetal?8. Whatifyoupointitatawhitewallbehindyou,pretendingthewhitewallisamirrorandaimingitsoitwill

reflectitbacktothedevice?9. Completethetablebelow.10. Nowlet’smaketheinvisibleinfraredlightvisible.Takeyourcamera(eitherstillorvideocamerawillwork)

andturniton.Putitonamodewhereyoucanseethroughtheviewscreen.Aimthecamerarightattheemitterfortheremote(usuallynearthetop)andpressabutton.Pointtheremoterightatthecameraandwatchthroughthecamera.Oureyesnormallycan’tseetheinfraredlight,butthecameracan!


11. Thecameracanalsoseetheotherwisedarkendoftheremote!Doesyourcamerahaveaspecialnightvisionmode,whereit’sespeciallysensitivetoinfraredlight?Ifso,tryit!

InfraredDataTable

Item/ObjectTested GuessFIRST!WilltheInfraredLight

PassThrough?

WhatHappened?(Diditpassthroughornot?)

ExercisesAnswerthequestionsbelow:1. Lookoveryourdatatable.Whatkindsofobjects(plastic,metal,natural,etc.)allowinfraredlighttopass

throughthem?

2. Whydoesthecameraworkinmakingtheinfraredlightvisible?


Lesson#15:UVLightTeacherSection

Overview:UV(ultra‐violet)lightisinvisible,whichmeansyouneedmorethanyournakedeyeballtoexperimentwithit.OurSungivesofflightintheUV(actually,itgivesofflightintheentirespectrum).WhichiswhytoomuchexposuretotheSungivesyouasunburn–it’sfromtheUVrays.


Objectives:Thisisaphotochemicalexperimentthattestsachemical’sresponsetosunlight.


5UVbeads(thesechangecolorswhenexposedtotheSun) Tape(double‐sidediseasier) Sunblock Sunglasses(askthekidstobringapair) Sunnyday Water Pieceoffabric Clearplasticbag

LabPreparation

1. Printoutcopiesofthestudentworksheets.2. ReadovertheBackgroundLessonReadingbeforeteachingthisclass.3. Watchthevideoforthisexperimenttoprepareforteachingthisclass.4. Cutuparagordishclothforthefabricsincethekidsonlyneeda2”square.


UV‐sensitivematerialshaveapigmentinsidethatchangescolorwhenexposedtoUVlightfromeithertheSunorlightsthatemitinthe350nm–300nmwavelength.(UVAishigh‐energy:400‐320nm,andUVBislowenergy:320‐280nm).Ifyouhavefluorescentblacklights,usethem.(Doregularincandescentbulbswork?Ifnot,youknowtheyemitlightoutsidetherangeofthebeads!)

Whenlighthitsthepigmentmolecule,itabsorbstheenergyandactuallyexpandsasymmetrically(oneendofthemoleculeexpandsmorethantheother).Differentexpansionamountswillgiveyouadifferentcolor.Althoughit’sabitmorecomplicatedthanthat,younowhavethebasicidea.Yourbeadswillchangecolorsthousandsoftimesbeforetheywearout,soenjoythesesuper‐inexpensiveUVdetectors.

Anoteaboutsunblock:YoucantestdifferentSPFlevelsofsunblock,buthere’sthemainideabehindtheratings:thenumberforSPFisthenumberofminutesittakestogetthesameSunexposurethanifyouweren’twearinganyforoneminute.Forexample,SPF30willgiveyouthesameSunexposureafter30minutesthatyouwouldnormallygetifyouweren’twearinganyafterjustoneminute.


Lesson

1. Stars,includingourSun,produceallkindsofwavelengthsoflight,evenUV.2. TheUVbeadswe’regoingtouseinourexperimentaremadefromachemicalthatreactswithlight.Ittakes

theUVlightfromtheSunandthenre‐emitsitinadifferentwavelengththat’svisibletous.3. WhenaparticleofUVlightsmacksintoanatom,itcollideswithanelectronandmakestheelectronjumpto

ahigher,moreenergeticstatethatisabitfurtherfromthecenteroftheatomthanit’scomfortablebeing.That’showenergygetsabsorbedbyanatom.

4. Theamountofenergyanelectronhasdetermineshowfarfromtheatomithastobe.Theelectronprefersbeinginitslowerstate,soitrelaxesandjumpsbackdown,transferringablipofenergyawayasitdoes.ThisblipofenergyisthelightweseeemittedfromtheUVbeads.ThisprocesscontinuesaslongasweseeacolorcomingfromtheUVbeads.

LabTime


observations.3. Placeapieceoftapeonthedatatable,andstickyourbeadstothetape,oneineachbox.4. Walkoutsidewithyourdatatableandrecordyourobservations.5. Walkbackindoorsandcoverthebeads,blockingoutalllight.Peekatthemeveryminuteortwotofindout

whenthey’vereturnedtotheirunexposedcolor.6. NowprepareyoursecondroundoftestingbydoingthefollowingbeforeexposingthebeadstotheSun:

a. Placeabeadinsideabaggie.b. Placeasecondbeadinsideabaggiefilledwithwater.c. Smearacleanbaggiewithsunblockandplaceathirdbeadinside.d. Placeapairofsunglassesoverafourthbead.e. Placeafifthbeadunderapieceoffabric.

7. Walkyour5beadsoutsideandrecordyourobservationsinthedatatablebelow.8. Bringyourbeadsbackinsideandreturnthemtotheirunexposedcolor.9. Prepareyourthirdroundoftestingbyexposingyourbeadsto:

a. Afluorescentlampb. Anincandescentlampc. Flashlightd. Glowsticke. Computerscreenf. Reflectedsunlightusingamirrorg. Candleflame(pleasebecarefulwiththis!)h. Anyotherlightsourceyouhaveaccessto

10. Recordyourobservationsinthedatatable.

Exercises

1. Whatkindsoflightsourcesdidn’tworkwiththeUVbeads?(Checkdata.)


2. DidyoursunblockreallyblockouttheUVrays?(Checkdata.)3. WhichwasthebestprotectionagainstUVrays?(Checkdata.)



Lesson#15:UVLightStudentWorksheet

Name______________________________________________________________________

Overview:Stars,includingourSun,produceallkindsofwavelengthsoflight,includingUV(ultra‐violet).That’sthewavelengththatgivesyousunburns.We’regoingtofindoutthebestwaytoprotectyoufromtheharmfulrays.

WhattoLearn:TheUVbeadswe’regoingtouseinourexperimentaremadefromachemicalthatreactswithlight.IttakestheUVlightfromtheSunandthenre‐emitsitinadifferentwavelengththat’svisibletous.

Materials

5UVbeads(thesechangecolorswhenexposedtotheSun) Tape(double‐sidediseasier) Sunblock Sunglasses Sunnyday Water Pieceoffabric Clearplasticbag

LabTime

1. Placeapieceoftapeonthedatatable,andstickyourbeadstothetape,oneineachbox.2. Walkoutsidewithyourdatatableandrecordyourobservations.

UVLightDataTable1

Bead ColorInside ColorWheninSunlight HowLongDidItTaketoReturntoIndoorColor?

(measureinseconds)

1

2

3

4

5


3. Walkbackindoorsandcoverthebeads,blockingoutalllight.Peekatthemeveryminuteortwotofindoutwhenthey’vereturnedtotheirunexposedcolor.

4. NowprepareyoursecondroundoftestingbydoingthefollowingbeforeexposingthebeadstotheSun:a. Placeabeadinsideabaggie.b. Placeasecondbeadinsideabaggiefilledwithwater.c. Smearacleanbaggiewithsunblockandplaceathirdbeadinside.d. Placeapairofsunglassesoverafourthbead.e. Placeafifthbeadunderapieceoffabric.

5. Walkyour5beadsoutsideandrecordyourobservationsinthedatatablebelow.

UVLightDataTable2

Bead ColorInside ColorWheninSunlight

1:Baggie

2:Baggie+Water

3:Sunblock

4:Sunglasses

5:Fabric

6. Bringyourbeadsbackinsideandreturnthemtotheirunexposedcolor.7. Prepareyourthirdroundoftestingbyexposingyourbeadstosomeofthefollowing:

f. Afluorescentlampg. Anincandescentlamph. Flashlighti. Glowstickj. Computerscreenk. Reflectedsunlightusingamirrorl. Candleflame(pleasebecarefulwiththis!)m. Anyotherlightsourceyouhaveaccessto

8. Recordyourobservationsinthedatatablebelow.


UVLightDataTable3

LightSource

ColorInside ColorWhenExposed HowLongDidItTaketoChangeColorwhenExposed?


1. Whatkindsoflightsourcesdidn’tworkwiththeUVbeads?

2. DidyoursunblockreallyblockouttheUVrays?

3. WhichwasthebestprotectionagainstUVrays?


Lesson#16:StarWobbleTeacherSection

Overview: Howdoastronomersfindplanetsarounddistantstars?Ifyoulookatastarthroughbinocularsoratelescope,you’llquicklynoticehowbrightthestaris,andhowdifficultitistoseeanythingotherthanthestar,especiallyasmallplanetthatdoesn’tgenerateanylightofitsown!Astronomerslookforashift,orwobble,ofthestarasitgetsgravitationally”yanked”aroundbytheorbitingplanets.Bymeasuringthiswobble,astronomerscanestimatethesizeanddistanceoflargerorbitingobjects.


Objectives:Dopplerspectroscopyisonewayastronomersfindplanetsarounddistantstars.Ifyourecallthelessonwherewecreatedourownsolarsysteminacomputersimulation,yourememberhowthestarcouldbeinfluencedbyasmallerplanetenoughtohaveatinyorbitofitsown.Thistinyorbitiswhatastronomersaretryingtodetectwiththismethod.


Severalbouncyballsofdifferentsizesandweights,softenoughtostabwithatoothpick Toothpicks Smallscaletomeasuretheweightoftheballs

LabPreparation

1. Printoutcopiesofthestudentworksheets.2. Watchthevideoforthisexperimenttoprepareforteachingthisclass.3. Ifyouonlyhaveonescale,thenwritedowntheweightoneachballwithamarkerbeforeclassstartssoyou

don’thaveatonofstudentswaitingtouseonescale.

Lesson

1. Nearlyhalfoftheextrasolar(outsideoursolarsystem)planetsdiscoveredwerefoundbyusingthismethodofdetection.It’sveryhardtodetectplanetsfromEarthbecauseplanetsaresodim,andthelighttheydoemittendstobeinfraredradiation.OurSunoutshinesalltheplanetsinoursolarsystembyonebilliontimes.

2. ThismethodusestheideathatanorbitingplanetexertsagravitationalforceontheSunthatyankstheSunaroundinatinyorbit.Whenthisisviewedfromadistance,thestarappearstowobble.Notonlythat,thissmallorbitalsoaffectsthecolorofthelightwereceivefromthestar.Thismethodrequiresthatscientistsmakeveryprecisemeasurementsofitspositioninthesky.

LabTime


observations.


3. Weigheachoftheballsandmakeanoteinthedatatable.4. Taketheheaviestballandspinitonthetable.Canyougetittospininplace?That’slikeaSunwithoutany

planetsaroundit.5. Insertatoothpickintotheball.Nowinserttheendofthetoothpickintothesmallestweightball.Nowspin

theoriginalball.Whathappened?6. Completethetablebelow.

Exercises

1. Forhomeworktonight,findouthowmanyextrasolarplanetsscientistshavedetectedsofar.2. Alsoforhomework,findoutthenames(theywillprobablybeastringofnumbersandletterstogether)of

the3mostrecentextrasolarplanetdiscoveries.



Lesson#16:StarWobbleStudentWorksheet

Name______________________________________________________________________

Overview:Howdoastronomersfindplanetsarounddistantstars?Ifyoulookatastarthroughbinocularsoratelescope,you’llquicklynoticehowbrightthestaris,andhowdifficultitistoseeanythingotherthanthestar,especiallyasmallplanetthatdoesn’tgenerateanylightofitsown!Astronomerslookforashift,orwobble,ofthestarasitgetsgravitationally“yanked”aroundbytheorbitingplanets.Bymeasuringthiswobble,astronomerscanestimatethesizeanddistanceoflargerorbitingobjects.

WhattoLearn:Dopplerspectroscopyisonewayastronomersfindplanetsarounddistantstars.Ifyourecallthelessonwherewecreatedourownsolarsysteminacomputersimulation,yourememberhowthestarcouldbeinfluencedbyasmallerplanetenoughtohaveatinyorbitofitsown.Thistinyorbitiswhatastronomersaretryingtodetectwiththismethod.

Materials

Severalbouncyballsofdifferentsizesandweights,softenoughtostabwithatoothpick Toothpicks

LabTime

1. Doesyourballhaveanumberwrittenonit?Ifso,that’stheweight,andyoucanskipmeasuringtheweightwithascale.

2. Ifnot,weigheachoneandmakeanoteinthedatatable.3. Taketheheaviestballandspinitonthetable.Canyougetittospininplace?That’slikeaSunwithoutany

planetsaroundit.4. Insertatoothpickintotheball.Nowinserttheendofthetoothpickintothesmallestweightball.Nowspin

theoriginalball.Whathappened?5. Completethetablebelow.


StarWobbleDataTable

WeightofBall#1 WeightofBall#2 HowMuchDiditWobble?(Useascaleof1to5,

with5beingthemostwobble)


1. Forhomeworktonight,findouthowmanyextrasolarplanetsscientistshavedetectedsofar.

2. Alsoforhomework,findoutthenames(theywillprobablybeastringofnumbersandletterstogether)ofthe3mostrecentextrasolarplanetdiscoveries.


Lesson#17:SpaceTelescopesTeacherSection

Overview:NASA’sGreatObservatoriesconsistoffourspacetelescopes,eachdesignedtolookattheuniverseinonesmallpartoftheelectromagneticspectrum:infrared,visible,X‐ray,andgammarays.


Objectives:There’sacommonmisconceptionaboutgravityandspace,inthatmostfolksbelievesatellitesdon’tmoveinorbit.Thetruthis,satellitesmustmaintainaveryspecificvelocityinordertomaintaintheirstableorbits.


Fivedifferentsizesofsmallballs:marbles,pingpong,rubberbouncy,etc. Tape Sheetofpaper

LabPreparation

1. Printoutcopiesofthestudentworksheets.2. ReadovertheBackgroundLessonReadingbeforeteachingthisclass.3. Watchthevideoforthisexperimenttoprepareforteachingthisclass.4. VisittheNASAGreatObservatorywebsitetolearnmoreabouttheprogrambeforeclass.


TheHubbleSpaceTelescopewaslaunchedbythespaceshuttlein1990,andisthebest‐knownobservatory.Hubbleorbits380milesabovethesurfaceoftheEarthandhassentthousandsofphotostoscientistsonEarthtostudy.Hubbleoperatesinthevisiblepartofthespectrum.

TheComptonObservatorywasthesecondtobelaunchedin1991,andholdstherecordforheaviestastrophysicalpayloadever(17tons).Comptoncollectedinformationinthegammaraypartofthespectrum,whichmeantitlookedatsomeofthemostviolentpartsoftheuniversetorecorditsdata.Itwassafelyde‐orbitedin2000.

TheChandraObservatorywaslaunchedin1999,andcurrentlystudiesX‐raysfromblackholes,quasars,darkmatter,supernovas,andhigh‐temperaturegases.Chandraholdstherecordforthebestmirrors:Theyarethemostaccuratelyshaped,preciselyaligned,smoothestmirrorsevercreated.Chandra’salignmentissoprecisethatyoucanuseittoreadanewspaperfromahalfmileaway.

TheSpitzerSpaceTelescopewasthefourthtobelaunchedintotheprogramin2003.Spitzerspecializesinthermalinfraredlight,mostofwhichisblockedbytheEarth’satmosphereandnevermakesittothesurfaceoftheEarth.Sothisscopeisseeingthingswe’veneverbeenabletobefore.Sinceviewingintheinfraredmeansthatyoucanseethroughdustandgasparticles,Spitzerisabletoshowusthingsthatwouldnormallybehiddentousifweweretoviewthemoptically.Spitzerlooksforcoolerspaceobjects(thermallyspeaking)suchassmallstars,extrasolarplanets,andgiantmolecularclouds.

Lesson


1. Manypeoplethinkthatsatellitesdon’tmoveinorbit.Nothingcouldbefurtherfromthetruth!IfyoudropaballonEarth,itfalls16feetthefirstsecondyoureleaseit.Ifyouthrowtheballhorizontally,itwillalsofall16feetinthefirstsecond,eventhoughitismovinghorizontally…itmovesbothawayfromyouanddowntotheground.

2. Nowconsideranotherobject,likeabulletshothorizontally.Ittravelsalotfasterthanyoucanthrow–about2,000feeteachsecond.Butitwillstillfall16feetduringthatfirstsecond.Gravitypullsonallobjects(liketheballandthebullet)thesameway,nomatterhowfasttheygo.

3. Whatifyoushootthebulletfasterandfaster?Gravitywillstillpullitdown16feetduringthefirstsecond.4. RememberthatthesurfaceoftheEarthisround.Canyouimaginehowfastwe’dneedtoshootthebullet

sothatwhenthebulletfalls16feetinonesecond,theEarthcurvesawayfromthebulletatthesamerateof16feeteachsecond?

5. Answer–thatbulletneedstotravelnearly5milespersecond.Thisishowsatellitesstayinorbit–goingjustfastenoughtokeepfromfallinginwardandnottoofastthattheyflyoutoforbit.Satellitesneedtoconstantlycourse‐correcttokeepontrack.

6. IfwelauncharocketstraightintotheskytobeinorbitaroundtheEarth,unlesswegivethatrocketahorizontalvelocityaswell,it’sgoingtocrashrightbacktoEarth.EverythingthatorbitstheEarthhasaspecificspeedatwhichittravelsinordertomaintainitsstableorbit.


LabTime


observations.3. Curlyourpaperintoaconeshapesooneendiswiderthantheother.Itshouldlooklikeanicecreamcone.4. Tapetheconeintoplaceusingyourtape.Youmightneedacoupleofpieces.5. Holdtheconewiththesmallenddown.6. Yourjobistoplaceyourmarbleontheinsideedgeoftheconenearthetopandrotatetheconesothatthe

marblestaysnearthetopedgewithoutfallingdowninsideorflyingoutofthetop.

Exercises

1. Whathappenswhenyourmarblesatellitemovestooslowly?(ItcrashesbacktoEarth.)2. Whathappenswhenthemarblesatelliteorbitstoofast?(Thesatelliteleavesorbit.)3. Whateffectdoeschangingthemarblemasshaveonyoursatellitespeed?(Theheavierthemarble,the

fasteryouhavetomakeitmoveinordertokeepitsorbitstable.)4. Howisthismodelliketherealthing?(Yourmarbleisyoursatelliteandthetopoftheconeistheorbitit

makesaroundtheEarth.)



Lesson#17:SpaceTelescopesStudentWorksheet

Name______________________________________________________________________

Overview:NASA’sGreatObservatoriesconsistoffourspacetelescopes,eachdesignedtolookattheuniverseinonesmallpartoftheelectromagneticspectrum:infrared,visible,X‐ray,andgammarays.EachtelescopeisasatellitethatorbitstheEarthinaveryspecificway.

WhattoLearn:There’sacommonmisconceptionaboutgravityandspace,inthatmostfolksbelievesatellitesdon’tmoveinorbit.Thetruthis,satellitesmustmaintainaveryspecificvelocityinordertomaintaintheirstableorbits.

Materials

Fivedifferentsizesofsmallballs:marbles,ping‐pong,rubberbouncy,etc. Tape Sheetofpaper

LabTime

1. Curlyourpaperintoaconeshapesooneendiswiderthantheother.Itshouldlooklikeanicecreamcone.2. Tapetheconeintoplaceusingyourtape.Youmightneedacoupleofpieces.3. Holdtheconewiththesmallenddown.4. Yourjobistoplaceyourmarbleontheinsideedgeoftheconenearthetopandrotatetheconesothatthe

marblestaysnearthetopedgewithoutfallingdowninsideorflyingoutofthetop.5. Placeyoursmallsatellitesinorderfromlightesttoheaviest.Entertheminthisorderinthedatatable

below.Recordhowfastyouhadtocircletheconetokeepthesatelliteinorbitintheobservationscolumn.Didyouhavetomovethesatelliteslower,faster,orsomethinginbetween?

SpaceTelescopesDataTable

Item/Object Observations



1. Whathappenswhenyourmarblesatellitemovestooslowly?

2. Whathappenswhenthemarblesatelliteorbitstoofast?

3. Whateffectdoeschangingthemarblemasshaveonyoursatellitespeed?

4. Howisthismodelliketherealthing?


Astronomy2EvaluationTeacherSection

Overview:Kidswilldemonstratehowwelltheyunderstandimportantkeyconceptsfromthissection.


Objectives:Studentswillbetestedonthekeyconceptsofsolarastronomy:

Objectsintheskymoveinregularandpredictablepatterns.Thepatternsofstarsstaythesame,althoughtheyappeartomoveacrosstheskynightly,anddifferentstarscanbeseenindifferentseasons.

ThepositionoftheMoonchangesduringthecourseofthedayandfromseasontoseason. ThephasesoftheMoonandthelunarcycle. TheEarthisoneofseveralplanetsthatorbittheSun,andtheMoonorbitstheEarth. ThesolarsystemconsistsofplanetsandotherbodiesthatorbittheSuninpredictablepaths. Oursolarsystemincludesrockyterrestrialplanets(Mercury,Venus,Earth,andMars),gasgiants(Jupiter

andSaturn),icegiants(UranusandNeptune),andassortedchunksoficeanddustthatmakeupvariouscometsandasteroids.

Twoplanets(CeresandPluto)havebeenreclassifiedafterastronomersfoundoutmoreinformationabouttheirneighbors.

TheOortCloudholdsanestimated1trillioncomets.TheKuiperBeltholdschunksoficeanddust,likecometsandasteroidsaswellaslargerobjectslikedwarfplanetsErisandPluto.

Theappearance,generalcomposition,relativepositionandsize,andmotionofobjectsinthesolarsystem,includingplanets,planetarysatellites,comets,andasteroids.

HowtouseastronomicalunitsandlightyearsasmeasuresofdistancebetweentheSun,stars,andEarth. ThepathofaplanetaroundtheSunisduetothegravitationalattractionbetweentheSunandtheplanet. TheSun,anaveragestar,isthecentralandlargestbodyinthesolarsystemandiscomposedprimarilyof

hydrogenandhelium.TheSunusesnuclearreactionstogenerateitsenergy. ThepositionoftheSunintheskychangesduringthecourseofthedayandfromseasontoseason. Starsarethesourceoflightforallbrightobjectsinouterspace.TheMoonandplanetsshinebyreflected

sunlight,notbytheirownlight. Visiblelightisasmallbandwithinaverybroadelectromagneticspectrum. Whitelightisamixtureofmanywavelengths(colors),includinginfrared,ultra‐violet,visible,andmore.

Differentinstrumentsdetectandmeasuredifferentwavelengthsoflight. Galaxiesareclustersofbillionsofstars,andmayhavedifferentshapes.TheSunisoneofmanystarsinour

ownMilkyWaygalaxy.Starsmaydifferinsize,temperature,andcolor. Gravitationallensingoccurswhenblackholesandothermassiveobjectsbendlight.

Materials(onesetforentireclass)

Flashlight Twodifferentsizesofballs

LabPreparation

1. Printoutcopiesofthestudentworksheets,labpractical,andquiz.


2. Haveatubofthematerialsinfrontofyouatyourdesk.Kidswillcomeupwhencalledanddemonstratetheirknowledgeusingthesematerials.

Lesson

Thestudentsaretakingtwoteststoday:thequizandthelabpractical.Thequiztakesabout20minutes,andyou’llfindtheanswerkeytomakeiteasytograde.

LabPractical

Studentswilldemonstrateindividuallythattheyknowhowtobuildasimpletelescopeandexplainhowandwhyitworks.Whileotherkidsarewaitingfortheirturn,theywillgetstartedontheirhomeworkassignment.Yougettodecidewhethertheydotheirassignmentindividuallyorasagroup.


Astronomy2Evaluation

StudentWorksheet

Overview:Today,you’regoingtotaketwodifferenttests:thequizandthelabpractical.You’regoingtotakethewrittenquizfirst,andthelabpracticalattheendofthislab.Thelabpracticalisn’tapapertest–it’swhereyougettoshowyourteacherthatyouknowhowtodosomething.

LabTest&Homework

1. Yourteacherwillaskyoutosharehowmuchyouunderstandaboutastronomy.Sincescienceissomuchmorethanjustreadingabookorcirclingtherightanswer,thisisanimportantpartofthetesttofindoutwhatyoureallyunderstand.

2. Whileyouarewaitingforyourturntoshowyourteacherhowmuchofthisstuffyoualreadyknow,yougettochoosewhichhomeworkassignmentyouwanttocomplete.Theassignmentisduetomorrow,andhalfthecreditisforcreativityandtheotherhalfisforcontent,soreallyletyourimaginationflyasyouworkthroughit.Chooseone:a. WriteashortstoryorskitaboutastronomyfromtheperspectiveoftheSunoralightparticleitself.

You’llreadthisaloudtoyourclass.b. MakeaposterthatteachesamainconceptofeithertheSun,amoon,aplanet,oraparticular

spacecraft.Whenyou’refinished,you’lluseittoteachtoaclassofyoungerstudentsanddemonstratetheprinciplesthatyou’velearned.

c. WriteandperformapoemorsongabouttheSun,amoon,aplanet,oraparticularspacecraft.Thiswillbeperformedtoyourclass.


Astronomy2QuizTeacher’sAnswerKey

1. Nametwowaysyoucanfindablackhole.LookforX‐rayemissionsorstarsthatappeartoorbitsomething

thatisn’tthere.

2. Whatisagalaxy?Galaxiesareclustersofbillionsofstars,andmayhavedifferentshapes.TheSunisoneof

manystarsinourownMilkyWaygalaxy.

3. HowmanyphasesdoestheMoonhaveandwhatarethey?Eightphases:Newmoon,firstquarter,fullmoon,

thirdquarter,waxingcrescent,waningcrescent,waxinggibbous,andwaninggibbous.

4. Whichplanetsdonothaveamagneticfield?VenusandMars.

5. CanyouseetheMoonduringthedaytime?Yes!

6. HowmanyAUsistheEarthfromtheSun?One.TheEarth‐Sundistanceof93millionmilesisoneAU.

7. WhatistheSunmadeoutof,andhowmuchofeach?It’s74%hydrogenand24%helium,withtraceamounts

ofoxygen,carbon,iron,andneon.

8. Canweseealllight?Ifnot,whichkindcanweseewithoureyes?Nowecanonlyseeasmallpartofthe

electromagneticspectrum:visibleoropticallight.

9. HowhotistheSun?OurSunisaG‐typestar,andrecentmeasurementsindicatethatourSunisbrighterthan

85%ofthestarsinourowngalaxy.15millionoCinthecore,andasurfacetemperatureofabout5500oC.

10. HowdoestheSunmakeenergy?TheSunusesnuclearreactionstogenerateitsenergy.

11. Whicharelightsourcesandwhichareseenbyreflectedlight?

1. Stars__lightsource________________________________2. TheMoon__reflectedlight________________________________3. Venus_reflectedlight_________________________________4. Pluto__reflectedlight________________________________5. Comets__reflectedlight________________________________6. Asteroids__reflectedlight________________________________7. TheSun__lightsource________________________________


Astronomy2QuizStudentQuizSheet

Name__________________________________________________________

1. Nametwowaysyoucanfindablackhole.

2. Whatisagalaxy?

3. HowmanyphasesdoestheMoonhaveandwhatarethey?

4. Whichplanetsdonothaveamagneticfield?

5. CanyouseetheMoonduringthedaytime?

6. HowmanyAUsistheEarthfromtheSun?

7. WhatistheSunmadeoutof,andhowmuchofeach?

8. Canweseealllight?Ifnot,whichkindcanweseewithoureyes?

9. HowhotistheSun?

10. HowdoestheSunmakeenergy?


11. Whicharelightsources(LS)andwhichareseenbyreflectedlight(RL)?

a. Stars__________________________________

b. TheMoon__________________________________

c. Venus__________________________________

d. Pluto__________________________________

e. Comets__________________________________

f. Asteroids__________________________________

g. TheSun__________________________________


Astronomy2LabPracticalTeacher’sAnswerKey

Thisisyourchancetoseehowwellyourstudentshavepickeduponimportantkeyconcepts,andifthereareanyholes.Yourstudentsalsowillbeworkingontheirhomeworkassignmentasyoudothistestindividuallywiththestudents.

Materials(onesetforentireclass)

Lamp Twoballsofdifferentsizes(likeatennisballandapingpongball) Sheetsofpaper Pencil

LabPractical:AskthestudentNote:Answersgiveninitalics!

ShowhowtheMoon'sappearancechangesduringthefour‐weeklunarcycle.Studentwillturnonthelampandorbitaroundyouwithaball,namingthedifferentphasesofthemoonastheyappeartoyou.

Onasheetofpaper,drawthesolarsystem.IncludetheSun,eightplanets,andtheAsteroidBelt.Approximatethescaleoftheplanetsanddistancesbetweenthem.StudentswilldrawthelargestobjecttobetheSun.Thenextfourarenearlythesamesizedotsandbunchedupwithinthefirsthalfinchofthepaper.Jupiteristhelargestplanetcircle,Saturnisthesecondlargestplanetcircle,andthespacingbetweenthetwoicegiantsislargerthanthespacebetweenthetwogasgiants.TheAsteroidBeltisbetweenMarsandJupiter.(Seetablebelowforexactdistancesforreference.)

Planet/Object DistancefromtheSun DistancefromtheSunMercury 0.11inches 2mm

Venus 0.21inches 5mm

Earth 0.30inches 7mm

Mars 0.45inches 11mm

Jupiter 1.56inches 3.9cm

Saturn 2.87inches 7.2cm

Uranus 5.77inches 14.6cm

Neptune 9.05inches 22.9cm


TheScientificMethod

Throughoutthiscourse,you’llseeembeddedvideos,liketheonebelow.You’llfindthevideosineachexperimentincludestep‐by‐stepexplanationsandquickdemonstrationsyoucandowithyourstudents.Thesevideosareagreatwaytohelpyouintroducethetopicinakid‐friendlyway.

Oneoftheproblemskidshaveishowtoexperimentwiththeirgreatideaswithoutgettinglostinthejumbleofresultdata.Sooftenstudentswillnothaveanyclearideasaboutwhatchangecausedwhicheffectintheirresults!Studentsoftenhavetroublecommunicatingtheirideasinwaysthatnotonlymakesensebutarealsoacceptablebysciencefairsorothertechnicalcompetitionsdesignedtogetkidsthinkinglikearealscientist.Anotherproblemtheyfaceisstrugglingtoapplythescientificmethodtotheirscienceprojectinschool,forscoutbadges,oranyothertypeofreportwhereit’simportantthatotherfolksknowandunderstandtheirwork.

Thescientificmethodiswidelyusedbyformalscienceacademiaaswellasscientificresearchers.Formostpeople,it’sarealjumptofigureoutnotonlyhowtodoadecentproject,butalsohowtogoaboutformulatingascientificquestionandinvestigateanswersmethodicallylikearealscientist.Presentingtheresultsinameaningfulwayvia“exhibitboard”…well,that’sjustmoreofastretchthatmostkidsjustaren’treadyfor.Thereisn’tawholelotofusefulinformationavailableonhowtodoitbythepeoplewhoreallyknowhow.That’swhyI’mgoingtoshowyouhowusefulandeasyitis.

Thescientificmethodisaseriesof5stepsthatscientistsusetodotheirwork.But,honestly,youuseiteveryday,too!ThefivestepsareObservation,Hypothesis,Test,CollectData,andReportResults.Thatsoundsprettycomplicated,butdon’tworry,theyarejustbigwords.Letmetellyouwhatthesewordsmeanandhowtoplaywiththem.

Step1:Observationmeanswhatdoyousee,orhear,orsmell,orfeel?Whatisitthatyou’relookingat?Isthatwhatitusuallydoes?Isthatwhatitdidlasttime?Whatwouldhappenifyoutriedsomethingdifferentwithit?Observationisthebeginningofscientificresearch.Youhavetoseeortouchorhearsomethingbeforeyoucanstarttodostuffwithit,right?

Step2:Onceyouobservesomething,youcanthenformahypothesis.Allhypothesisreallymeansis“guess.”Ahypothesisisaneducatedguess.Tonightatdinner,whensomeoneasksyou,“Doyouwantpeasorcarrots?”Say,“IhypothesizethatIwouldlikethecarrots.”Everyonewillthinkyou’reagenius!Basicallyyou’resaying“IguessthatIwouldlikethecarrots.”Hypothesesaren’trightorwrong,theyarejustyourbestguess.

Step3:Toseeifyourguessiscorrect,youneedtodothenextstepinthescientificmethod:test.Thetestisjustwhatitsoundslike:runningexperimentstoseewhetherornotyourhypothesisiscorrect.

Step4:Asyoudoyourtests,youneedtocollectdata.Thatmeanscollectingthenumbers,themeasurements,thetimes,thedataoftheexperiment.Onceyoucollectyourdata,youcantakealookatit,orinotherwords,analyzeit.

Step5:Onceyouanalyzeyourdatayoucanreportyourresults.Thatbasicallymeanstellsomeoneaboutit.Youcanputyourdatainachartoragraphorjustshoutitfromtherooftops!

Here’sagreatwaytorememberthe5steps.Rememberthesentence“OrangeHipposTakeClassesRegularly.”Thefirstletterineachwordofthatgoofysentenceisthesameasthefirstletterineachstepofthescientificmethod.That’scalledamnemonicdevice.Makeupyourownmnemonicdevicestorememberallsortsofstuff.


“OK,sothat’swhatthewordsmean.HowdoIusethateveryday?”

Well,I’mgladyouaskedthatquestion.Ifyouhadcerealforbreakfastthismorning,youdidthescientificmethod.Onthetableyouhadabowlofcerealwithnomilkinit.Asyoulookedatyourdrycereal,youmadeanobservation,“Ineedmilk!”Atthatpoint,youmadeahypothesis,“There’smilkinthefridge.”Youcan’tbesurethere’smilkinthefridge.Someonemighthaveuseditup.Itmighthavegonebad.Aliensmayhaveusedittogasuptheirmilk‐poweredspaceship.Youjustdon’tknow!Soyouhavetodoatest.

Whatwouldbeagoodtesttoseeifthereismilkinthefridge?Openthefridge!Nowonceyoumovetheweek‐oldspaghettiandthegreenJell‐O(atleastyouhopeit’sJell‐O)outoftheway,youcanseeifthereismilkornot.Soyoucollectyourdata.Thereismilkorthereisn’tmilk.Nowyoucanfinallyreportyourresults.Ifthereismilk,youcanhappilypouritonyourcereal.Ifthereisn’tanymilk,youreportyourresultsbyshouting,“Hey,Mom...Weneedmilk!”Scientificmethod,notsohardisit?

You’llgetfamiliarwiththescientificmethodbydoingtheactivitiesandexperimentsinyourlessons.Mostscientistsdon’tusethefullversionofthescientificmethod,whichactuallyincludesseveraladditionalstepstotheonesI’veoutlinedabove.You’llfindthefull‐blownversionofthescientificmethodinthebackofthisbook.I’veincludedacopyofaspecialprojectwhichwonfirstprizeatasciencefair.You’llfindthiscompleteprojectexplainseverydetailandhowitusesthefullversionofthescientificmethodsoyoucanseehowtodoitforyourselfonanyprojectyouchoose.


VocabularyfortheUnitAsteroid.ObjectinorbitaroundtheSun,intermediateinsizebetweenmeteoroidsandplanets.

Asteroidbelt.Theregionofthesolarsysteminwhichmostasteroidshavetheirorbits,betweenMarsandJupiter.

Blackholes.TheleftoversofaBIGsupernova.Whenastarexplodes,itcollapsesdownintoawhitedwarforaneutronstar.However,ifthestarislargeenough,thereisnothingtokeepitfromcollapsing,soitcontinuestocollapseforever.Itbecomessosmallanddensethatthegravitationalpullissogreatthatlightitselfcan’tescape.

Centerofmass.Meanpositionofthemassesthatcompriseasystemorlargerbody:fortwobodies,thecenterofmassisapointonthelinejoiningthem.Forabinarystarsystem,themotionofeachstarcanbecomputedaboutthecenterofmass.

Comet.Smallbodyinthesolarsystem,inorbitaroundtheSun.SomeofitsfrozenmaterialvaporizesduringthecloserpartsofitsapproachtotheSuntoproducethecharacteristictail,rightbehindthehead.

Conjunction.Closestapparentapproachoftwocelestialobjects.PlanetaryconjunctionswereonceconsideredimportantomensforeventsonEarth.

Constellation.Agroupofstarsthatseemedtosuggesttheshapeofsomegod,person,animalorobject.Nowatermusedtodesignatearegionofthesky.Thereare88constellations.

Darkmatter:Matterinthecosmosthatisundetectablebecauseitdoesn’tglow.Darkmatter,someofitintheformofas‐yet‐undiscoveredexoticparticles,isthoughttocomprisemostoftheuniverse.

Eclipse.Blockingoflightfromonebodybyanotherthatpassesinfrontofit.Eclipsescanbetotalorpartial.

Eclipsepath.NarrowpathontheEarth’ssurfacetracedbytheMoon’sshadowduringaneclipse.

Eclipsingbinarystar.Binarystarwhosemutualorbitisviewedalmostedge‐onsothatlightobservedisregularlydecreasedeachtimeonestareclipsestheother.

Ecliptic.PaththattheSunappearstofollow,againstthestarsonthecelestialsphere,duringthecourseofayear.

Eclipticplane.PlanedefinedbytheEarth’sorbitaroundtheSun.

Electromagneticwave:Astructureconsistingofelectricandmagneticfieldsinwhicheachkindoffieldgeneratestheothertokeepthestructurepropagatingthroughemptyspaceatthespeedoflight,c.ElectromagneticwavesincluderadioandTVsignals,infraredradiation,visiblelight,ultravioletlight,xrays,andgammarays.

Ellipse.Typeofclosedcurvewhoseshapeisspecifiedintermsofitsdistancefromoneortwopoints.Acircleisaspecialformofellipse.Inappearance,anellipseisoval‐shaped.

Escapespeed:Thespeedneededtoescapetoinfinitelygreatdistancefromagravitatingobject.ForEarth,escapespeedfromthesurfaceisabout7milespersecond;forablackhole,escapespeedexceedsthespeedoflight.

Equinox.TwodayseachyearwhentheSunisaboveandbelowthehorizonforequallengthsoftime.


Eventhorizon:Asphericalsurfacesurroundingablackholeandmarkingthe“pointofnoreturn”fromwhichnothingcanescape.

Field:Awayofdescribinginteractingobjectsthatavoidsactionatadistance.Inthefieldview,oneobjectcreatesafieldthatpervadesspace;asecondobjectrespondstothefieldinitsimmediatevicinity.Examplesincludetheelectricfield,themagneticfield,andthegravitationalfield.

Galaxiesarestarsthatarepulledandheldtogetherbygravity.

Globularclustersaremassivegroupsofstarsheldtogetherbygravity,usuallyhousingbetweentensofthousandstomillionsofstars(thinkNewYorkCity).

Gravitationallensingisonewaywecan“see”ablackhole.Whenlightleavesastar,itcontinuesinastraightlineuntilyankedonbythegravityofablackhole,whichbendsthelightandchangesitscourseandshowsupasstreaksormultiple,distortedimagesonyourphotograph.

Gravitationaltimedilation:Theslowingoftimeinregionsofintensegravity(largespacetimecurvature).

Gravitationalwaves:Literally,“ripples”inthefabricofspacetime.Theypropagateatthespeedoflightandresultintransientdistortionsinspaceandtime.

Gravity:AccordingtoNewton,anattractiveforcethatactsbetweenallmatterintheuniverse.AccordingtoEinstein,ageometricalpropertyofspacetime(spacetimecurvature)thatresultsinthestraightestpathsnotbeingEuclideanstraightlines.

Latitude.Coordinateusedtomeasure(indegrees)theangulardistanceofapointorcelestialobjectsaboveorbelowanequator.

Lightyear.Distancethatlighttravelsin1year.

Longitude.Coordinateusedtospecifythepositionofapointordirectionaround(orparallelto)anequator.

TheKuiperBeltisanicyregionthatextendsfromjustbeyondNeptune(from3.7billionmilesto7.4billionmilesfromtheSun).Thisiswheremostcometsandasteroidsfromoursolarsystemhangout.

NeutronstarswithHUGEmagneticfieldsareknownasmagnetars.

Magneticfield.Regionsurroundingamagnetorelectriccurrent,inwhichmagneticforcecanbedetectedinsucharegion,high‐speedelectricallychargedparticleswillgenerallymovealongcurvedpathsandradiateenergy.

Magneticpole.OneofthetworegionsonEarthtowhichacompassneedlewillpoint.Polesalsoexistonmagnets,andthemagneticfieldsofsomeelectriccurrentscanhaveanequivalentbehavior.

Magnetosphere.Regionsurroundingstarorplanet(includingEarth)inwhichamagneticfieldexists.

Meridian.Greatcircle,onthecelestialsphereortheEarth,thatpassesthroughbothnorthandsouthpolesandanobserver’szenithorlocation.

Meteor.Glowingtrailintheupperatmosphere,producedbymeteoroidburningupasitmovesathighspeed.


Meteorshower.NumerousmeteorsseeninashorttimespanastheEarthmovesthroughacloudofmeteoroids,probablyremnantsofacometandstillfollowingthecomet’sorbit.

Meteorite.RemnantofameteoroidthathasbeenpartiallyerodedinpassagethroughtheEarth’satmospherebeforehittingthesurface.Termnowalsoappliedtosimilarbodiesthatcollidewiththesurfacesoftheotherplanetsandtheirsatellites,producingcraters.

Meteoroid.Largerock(butmuchsmallerthanminorplanets)movinginanorbitinthesolarsystem.MeteoroidsthatenterintheEarth’satmospherearetermedmeteorsormeteorites,dependingontheirbehavior.

Neutronstarsareformedfromstarsthatgosupernova,butaren’tbigandfatenoughtoturnintoablackhole.

TheOortCloudliesjustbeyondtheKuiperbelt,housinganestimated1trillioncomets.

Orbit.Pathtracedoutbyoneobjectaroundanother.

ThevisiblesurfaceoftheSuniscalledthephotosphere,andismademostlyofplasma(remembertheplasmagrapeexperiment?)thatbubblesuphotandcoldregionsofgas.

Dyingstarsblowoffshellsofheatedgasthatglowinbeautifulpatternscalledplanetarynebula.

Pulsarsareatypeofneutronstarthatspinsveryfast,spewsjetsofhigh‐energyX‐rayparticlesoutthepoles,andhaslargemagneticfields.

Oursolarsystemincludesrockyterrestrialplanets(Mercury,Venus,Earth,andMars),gasgiants(JupiterandSaturn),icegiants(UranusandNeptune),andassortedchunksoficeanddustthatmakeupvariouscomets(dustysnowballs)andasteroids(chunksofrock).

Spacetime:Thefour‐dimensionalcontinuuminwhichtheeventsoftheuniversetakeplace.Accordingtorelativity,spacetimebreaksdownintospaceandtimeindifferentwaysfordifferentobservers.

Spacetimecurvature:ThegeometricalpropertyofspacetimethatcausesitsgeometrytodifferfromordinaryEuclideangeometry.Thecurvatureiscausedbythepresenceofmassiveobjects,andotherobjectsnaturallyfollowthestraightestpossiblepathsincurvedspacetime.Thisistheessenceofgeneralrelativity’sdescriptionofgravity.

Spacetimeinterval:Afour‐dimensional“distance”inspacetime.Unlikeintervalsoftimeordistance,whicharedifferentforobserversinrelativemotion,thespacetimeintervalbetweentwoeventshasthesamevalueforallobservers.

Specialtheoryofrelativity:Einstein’sstatementthatthelawsofphysicsarethesameforallobserversinuniformmotion.

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