Friday, March 30, 2012

Day 11: Lunar Phases

These materials were handed out on Friday.

Lunar Phases (handout)

Create a model of the phases of the moon, using oreos, a lamp, and a softball.  Take a picture.

Template A
Template B
Template C


Diameter of the Moon Lab (to be completed 4/5 to 4/8)

Complete the activity shown at http://sunshine.chpc.utah.edu/labs/moon/lunar_phases_main.html and then show me your completed quiz results (print or call Mrs. Deutmeyer over)


============ Read through slides 80-end, which focus on the moon, phases, calendars, and retrograde motion.   We'll be discussing this tomorrow.
========



Thursday, March 29, 2012

Day 10: The Effect of the Moon

Moon Dance Take Home Essay for Unit 1:

Option 1: You are a contest designer on Jeopardy. Organize your information from unit 1 into a 5 x 5 matrix, providing clues and answers. You may organize this digitally, or with paper.
Option 2: You go to a school board meeting and find yourself embroiled in a controversy about scientific creationism and the beginning of the universe. Based on your study of astronomy, how can you deal with the controversy.

Wednesday, March 28, 2012

Day 9: Learning About the Solar System



 Read through the above powerpoint, and create a mind map, or post-it note outline, either with paper or online.

Big Idea:  How do conditions differ around the solar system?
Big Idea2:  Can we ever get out of here?

  • plate tectonics
  • weathering
  • gas planets vs rocky planets
  • distances in space
  • moons vs. asteroids
  • atmosphere.
On Friday, we will be having a 15 question short-answer quiz on the material from unit 1.
We will also be having a discussion about Moon Phases.  This is more visual for people when they bring oreos or ritz bits crackers.


Tuesday, March 27, 2012

Day 8: Size and Distances in the Solar System

Links of Note
Scaling the Solar System
Retrograde Motion
Parallax


Monday, March 26, 2012

Day 7: Understanding our place in the constellations

On Friday, we took a look at the idea of looking at one planet through the lens of another.  We also compared Copernican theory to Epicycles.   Today we'll try again, without the extensive vocabulary and the wordy explanations.


QUESTIONS TO ANSWER


When you get done with this, you will need to locate the distance to the seven primary stars in the asterism Ursa Minor using the program Stellarium. (If it's not on your computer, you can find it at http://www.stellarium.org ) We're going to make a model of the star constellation.

Friday, March 23, 2012

Day 6: Understanding Kepler and Ptolemy

Go to the Nebraska Astronomy Lab on the solar system models

 The applets that accompany this lab are found here.

KEPLERS' LAWS


UNIVERSAL GRAVITATION



Wednesday, March 21, 2012

Friday, March 9, 2012

Learning about Our Origins

Take the Quiz

The Origins Movie

The Interactive


The task:   Use the facts from this movie and the interactive to help create a video that tells me about what cosmology is and where you have questions.  Use the powerpoint below.

  • general relativity
  • special relativity
  • the space-time warping, which causes gravitational lensing
  • how far we can go
  • if we can find other planets in this effort

Things to consider in your definition:

Wednesday, March 7, 2012

Special Relativity

FYI:   http://www.accuweather.com/en/weather-news/aurora-possible-major-solar-flare-/62489


The background

Tutorial 1

Tutorial 2

Tutorial 3

Tutorial 4

Tutorial 5

Tutorial 6

GO through each tutorial and then summarize in one or two paragraphs.

Each of these tutorials focuses on a specific concept.  When you get done, you should be able to explain
*the twin paradox
*simultaneity
*length dilation
*time dilation
*special relativity

Hand in the seven paragraphs and the definitions INDIVIDUALLY when you are finished.

Monday, March 5, 2012

Galaxy Intro

Seeing Galaxies takes some practice, so going to here will be a good start.   It should take about 20 minutes to read through and see the galaxy types.

Next, go to the SDSS database, which took pictures for the first web site.   You will be learning about galaxies, and going through the first 2 exercises and the first 4 questions.  Take the time to collect the data on paper, and hand in what you have completed at the end of the hour.