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Table of Contents Topic of the Module.........................................................................................................................1 Goal of Module ................................................................................................................................1 Targeted Grade Level ......................................................................................................................1 Prerequisite ......................................................................................................................................1 Objectives ........................................................................................................................................2 Time Needed....................................................................................................................................3 Standards..........................................................................................................................................4 Glossary ....................................................................................................................................... 5-7 Science Content ...............................................................................................................................8 From The Beginning: Solar System Formation ...................................................................... 8-9 The Sun Is A Star.................................................................................................................. 9-10 Terrestrial Planet.......................................................................................................................10 Crater Face, Mercury .......................................................................................................... 11-12 Venus, The Hottest Planet................................................................................................... 12-13 The Greenhouse Effect .............................................................................................................14 Life On Earth ...................................................................................................................... 15-16 Earth’s Moon ...................................................................................................................... 16-17 Is There Life On Mars...............................................................................................................17 Mars, The Red Planet.......................................................................................................... 18-19 Gas Giants........................................................................................................................... 19-20 The Largest Planet, Jupiter ................................................................................................. 20-21 Jupiter’s Big Four ............................................................................................................... 21-22 The Rings Of Saturn ........................................................................................................... 23-24 Uranus Is Confused............................................................................................................. 24-25 Neptune Will RIP You To Shreds ...................................................................................... 25-26 Pluto Is Not A Planet .......................................................................................................... 26-27 Possible 10th Planet ...................................................................................................................28 How Does This All Work? ................................................................................................. 28-29 Kepler’s Laws Of Planetary Motion ................................................................................... 29-30 Other Solar Systems..................................................................................................................30 Frequently Asked Questions .................................................................................................... 30-33 Day One .........................................................................................................................................34 Materials Needed By The Teacher ..................................................................................... 35-39 Introduction: From the Beginning, Solar System Story...................................................... 39-41 Demonstration #1: Planetary Rotation................................................................................ 41-43 Demonstration #2: Planetary Orbital .................................................................................. 43-45 Activity #1: Diameter ......................................................................................................... 46-47 Demonstration #3: Distance................................................................................................ 47-48 Activity #2: Appearance and Atmosphere.......................................................................... 48-50 Activity #3: Crater Face Mercury ....................................................................................... 50-53 Activity #4: Simon Says Solar System Game..................................................................... 53-56 Worksheet-3rd Planet: Earth...................................................................................... Appendix C Worksheet-1st Planet: Mercury ................................................................................. Appendix C Day Two.........................................................................................................................................57 Materials Needed By The Teacher ...................................................................................... 58-62 Introduction: First Four Planets ................................................................................................62 Activity #5: The Greenhouse Effect ................................................................................... 63-64 Activity #6: Venus, The Hottest Planet .............................................................................. 64-66 Demonstration #4: Is There Life On Mars.......................................................................... 66-67 Activity #7: Mars, The Red Planet ..................................................................................... 67-68 Activity #8: Terrestrial Planet............................................................................................. 68-70 Activity #9: Terrestrial Planet Game ........................................................................................71 Worksheet-2nd Planet: Venus.................................................................................... Appendix C Worksheet-4th Planet: Mars ...................................................................................... Appendix C Day Three.......................................................................................................................................72 Materials Needed By The Teacher ..................................................................................... 73-77 Introduction: Planet Hand Signals ...........................................................................................77 Activity #10: Gas Giants..................................................................................................... 78-80 Activity #11: The Largest Planet, Jupiter ........................................................................... 80-81 Activity #12: The Rings Of Saturn ..................................................................................... 82-83 Activity#13: Terrestrial Versus Gas Giants..............................................................................83 Worksheet- 5th Planet: Jupiter................................................................................... Appendix C Worksheet-6th Planet: Saturn .................................................................................... Appendix C Day Four ........................................................................................................................................84 Materials Needed By The Teacher ..................................................................................... 85-89 Introduction: The Last Day.......................................................................................................89 Activity #14: Uranus........................................................................................................... 89-90 Activity #15: Neptune...............................................................................................................91 Activity #16: Pluto, Dwarf Planet....................................................................................... 92-93 Activity #17: Solar System Game....................................................................................... 93-94 Solar System Game Questions.................................................................................. Appendix E Worksheet- 7th Planet: Uranus .................................................................................. Appendix C Worksheet- 8th Planet: Neptune ................................................................................ Appendix C Worksheet- 9th Planet: Pluto ..................................................................................... Appendix C Resources and References........................................................................................................ 96-99 Planet Hand Signals .......................................................................................................Appendix A Materials Needed for entire Module .............................................................................. Appendix B Overhead Transparencies............................................................................................... Appendix C Student Workbook .........................................................................................................Appendix D Teacher’s Guidebook ..................................................................................................... Appendix E Solar System Game Questions/Answers.........................................................................Appendix F TOPIC OF THE MODULE Students will explore the nine planets and nine main features for each planet. Specifically, students will investigate the features of rotation; orbit; a planet's diameter; distance from the Sun; appearance; atmosphere; whether or not life can be sustained; whether or not a planet has moons and if so, how many; and interesting facts about each planet. Students will discuss the possible tenth planet in our solar system. Students will also discover that the universe is made up of many other solar systems, each with a Sun and planets rotating and orbiting around it. GOAL OF THE MODULE The goal of this module is to spark each student's interest in the fascinating and mysterious features of the planets in our solar system. This module provides students with a deeper understanding of each individual planet, being able to identify it in order, as well as describe main fun facts about each planet. TARGETED GRADE LEVEL This module is designed for third grade students. This module can be adapted for students in the first through fifth grade. PRE-REQUISITE SKILLS AND KNOWLEDGE There are no pre-requisite skills or knowledge needed to successfully complete this module. 1 OBJECTIVES At the end of the module, students will be able to: • Define a planet, moon and Sun. • Demonstrate and describe rotation and orbit. • Explain Kepler's Laws of Planetary Motion. • Explain, measure, and demonstrate the diameter of a circle and how it relates to our planet's diameters. • Describe the relative size of the planets as compared to the size of the Sun. • Identify and demonstrate each planet in the order from the Sun, using hand signals. • Draw and identify the planets by their appearance. • Describe a terrestrial and a gas giant planet. • Identify similarities and differences between terrestrial and gas giant planets. • Identify and explain how each planet is classified, as either a terrestrial or gas giant planet. • Determine if the planet has an atmosphere and if so, decide and explain why a planet can or cannot sustain life. • Determine which planets have moons and which planets do not have moons. • Explain why some planets have moons and others do not. • Explain why there are other solar systems in the universe. 2 TIME NEEDED The expected time line for this module is four days for one hour per day and an outline is presented below. Day Topics Discussed 1 Story explaining how the solar system was formed Discussion of planet Earth Rotation and orbit Discussion of planet Mercury Solar System Simon Says Game 2 Discussion of planet Venus Discussion of planet Mars Characteristics of terrestrial planets Terrestrial Planet Game 3 Review of terrestrial planets Characteristics of gas giants Discussion of planet Jupiter Discussion of planet Saturn Terrestrial versus Gas Giants Game 4 Discussion of planet Uranus Discussion of planet Neptune New Horizon Mission - Pluto Discussion of possible tenth planet Discussion of other solar systems Solar System Game 3 STANDARDS Coming To A Planet Near You aligns with the California State Science Content Standards and National Science Education Standards. California Science Content Standards for Grade 3: EARTH SCIENCE 4. Objects in the sky move in regular and predictable patterns. As a basis for understanding this concept: d. Students know that Earth is one of several planets that orbit the Sun and that the Moon orbits Earth. National Science Education Standards: PHYSICAL SCIENCE Content Standard B: * Position and Motion of Objects EARTH AND SPACE SCIENCE Content Standard D: *Objects in the sky * Changes in the Earth and Sky 4 GLOSSARY The following words and their definitions are commonly used throughout the module. Appearance: an object’s physical features or what an object looks like. Astronomical Unit: measures the distance from the Sun to a planet. 1 AU = 93 million miles away. Atmosphere: gaseous mass surrounding a celestial body. Asteroid: a piece of rock left over after the formation of the solar system about 4.6 billion years ago. Big Bang Theory: states that a tiny hot ball contained everything in the universe which exploded about 14 billion years ago. Comet: composed mainly of ice and dust leftovers from the early formation of the solar system referred to as “dirty ice balls.” Diameter: a straight line measuring the center of a circle, from end to end. Distance: the amount of space between two objects. Dwarf Planet: must orbit the Sun; must have nearly a round shape; and has not cleared away objects in its neighborhood. Erosion: a process which the surface is worn away by the action of water, waves, wind, or other means. Exo-Planet: a planet that orbits a star other than the Sun. Galaxy: a large group of stars, gas and dust held together by gravity. There are three main types of galaxies, the spiral, elliptical and irregular. 5 Gas Giants: outer planets including Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune. Gravity: a natural force of attraction between two objects. Light-year: equivalent to 5.88 trillion miles. Meteor: an object entering the Earth, also known as a shooting star. Meteorite: any part of the meteor that survives the Earth's atmosphere and lands on the surface of Earth. Meteoroid: chunks of debris prior to entering Earth's atmosphere. Moon: a small body orbiting around a planet. Nuclear fusion: a nuclear reaction in which nuclei combine to form more massive nuclei with the simultaneous release of energy. Orbit: to move or travel around in a curved path. For example, the Earth orbit around the Sun in 365.25 days. Period: the time it takes a planet to orbit around the Sun, also referred as orbit. Planet: must orbit the Sun; be massive enough that its own gravity pulls it into a nearly round shape; and be dominant enough to clear away objects in its neighborhood. Prograde rotation: counterclockwise rotation of most planets. Retrograde rotation: clockwise rotation which is considered in retrograde rotations compared to most planets. Venus, Uranus and Pluto all rotate in retrograde or in retrograde. Rover: a robotic machine that travels on the surface, such as Mars. 6 Rotate: to turn around in on its axis or in one place. Satellites: objects orbiting around planets, such as a moon. Solar System: a star with planets, asteroids and comets orbiting around it. Star: a glowing ball of burning gases. Sun: a medium size star. Synchronous Rotation: a body orbiting another, where the orbiting body takes as long to rotate on its axis as it does to make one orbit. Terrestrial planet: inner planets including Mercury, Venus, Earth, and Mars. Theory: an idea or explanation which has not yet been proven to be correct. Trans-Neptunian Object: Universe: . any object in the solar system that orbits the Sun at a greater distance on average than Neptune. all space, time, matter, and energy. 7 SCIENCE CONTENT From The Beginning: Solar System Formation There are many theories on how the universe was formed. The most widely accepted theory is the Big Bang theory. The Big Bang theory states 12-14 billion years ago, a tiny hot ball contained everything in the universe. Moments later the tiny ball exploded, releasing the universe which continues to expand. Over time, as the young universe grew larger, matter began to clump together, cooled, and formed hydrogen and helium gases. These gases clumped into clouds and after several hundred million years, these clouds began to form galaxies. Inside these galaxies, large groups of stars, gas, and dust are held together by gravity. Our solar system is located in the Milky Way galaxy. When our solar system began to form, 4.6 billion years ago, it was a rotating mass of stardust and gases. These gases came from a nearby star that exploded. As these gases spun around quickly, gravity began to pull it tighter together. The force of gravity collapsed the cloud, flattened it into a disk-like object, and created it to spin even faster. 8 Eventually the materials pulled to the center became extremely hot and dense. In the center, nuclear fusion reactions began to occur and the new star was formed. The dust and gas particles further out gathered into clumps, which became our planets. The SUN Is A STAR! A star is a glowing ball of burning gases, consisting of hydrogen, helium and some other heavier gases. The Sun is a star and is the largest object in our solar system. It makes up 99.9% of the mass of the entire solar system, with .01% for everything else, the planets, asteroids, comets, etc. Image of the Sun The Sun’s diameter is 864,938 miles, which is 10 times larger than Jupiter's diameter and about 109 times larger than Earth's diameter. The Sun is composed of six layers, each consisting of different temperatures. Our Sun is about 93 million 9 miles away from the Earth, roughly 1 Astronomical Unit or 1AU. Scientist developed Astronomical Unit or AU in order to measure the distance from the Sun to a planet. Students find it fascinating to learn that all those stars in the night sky are like our Sun. These stars look small because they are extremely far away from us. The Sun is only a medium size yellow star that is half way burnt out (4.6 billion years left). Without the Sun, planets would not have formed and life would not exist. Terrestrial Planets Terrestrial Planets Planets are classified into three categories, terrestrial planets, gas giant planets, and dwarf planets. There are four terrestrial planets, Mercury, Venus, Earth and Mars. Terrestrial planets are the rocky inner planets, which means closest to the Sun. These planets have a solid surface and are relatively small. These planets orbit faster than other planets around the Sun because they are closer to the Sun and have a shorter distance to travel. Terrestrial planets rotate slow on their axis, have few or no moons, and have no rings around them. During this module, students will learn the characteristics of terrestrial planets. TERRESTRIAL PLANETS FEATURES 1. Inner Planets 2. Rocky 3. Solid Surface 4. Small 5. Slow Rotation 6. Fast Orbit 7. Few/No Moons 8. No Rings 10 Crater Face, Mercury The first terrestrial planet is Mercury. Mercury is the first planet from the Sun and is the smallest terrestrial planet. Its surface is rocky with lots of craters. Craters are formed as different size objects are pulled to a planet by its gravity. As the object makes impact with the planet, a hole or crater is formed. Mercury experiences lots of craters because it is so close to the Sun. Image of Mercury This picture reveals Mercury's heavily bumpy surface with different size craters, areas of flat plains, and steep cliffs. A strip of Mercury is missing because Mariner 10, a fly by spacecraft, never took the picture of that area. Mercury's surface also reveals evidence of inactive volcanoes and ancient lava flows. Mercury rotates in 59 days and speeds around the Sun in 88 days, which causes Mercury’s days and nights to last about three months. Because Mercury rotates slow on its axis and orbits fast around the Sun, Mercury rotates 3 times for every 2 orbits. Therefore, Mercury receives sunlight for a whole Mercury year (88 days) and receives darkness for a whole Mercury year (88 days). This makes Mercury the second hottest and second coldest planet in our solar system. The temperatures on Mercury can reach up to 800 degrees Fahrenheit and as low as -280 degrees Fahrenheit. The higher temperature of a planet, the faster the gas particles move. If the gas particles move fast enough to escape velocity of the planet, then the gases escape to space. Mercury’s small mass and high temperatures have resulted in extremely small traces of an atmosphere. In this module, student’s worksheet concludes that Mercury has no atmosphere. Only one spacecraft, Mariner 10, has ever visited Mercury. A new NASA mission to Mercury called Messenger has been launched in January 2008 and will begin orbiting Mercury in March 2011. 11 During this module, students will compare Mercury with the characteristics of terrestrial planets. Students will draw Mercury and write Mercury's facts in their workbook. MERCURY 1. Rotation: 88 days 2. Orbit: 59 days 3. Diameter: 4,222 miles 4. Distance from the Sun: 36 million miles away 5. Appearance: Heavily cratered, rocky, yellow brown 6. Atmosphere: NO 7. Can we live on this planet? NO 8. Does this planet have moons? NO 9. Fun Facts: Mercury is the smallest terrestrial planet. Mercury is the 2nd hottest and coldest planet in our solar system. Mercury is also the fastest orbiting planet because it’s the closest to the Sun and has a shorter distance to travel. Venus, The Hottest Planet! Venus is the second terrestrial planet and the second planet from the Sun. Venus is Earth’s “sister planet” because they are similar in diameter. Venus’s diameter is 7,523 miles compared to Earth’s diameter 7,926 miles. But Venus is very different than Earth. Venus is very special because it rotates in retrograde. Image of Venus Scientists believe something hit Venus to make it rotate in retrograde, or it could be due to the Sun’s strong gravitational pull. Either way, Venus is one of the few planets that rotates in retrograde. Not only does it rotate in retrograde, it rotates the slowest of all the planets. It takes Venus 243 days to rotate once compared to Earth’s 1 day. While it rotates in retrograde, its orbit around the Sun is nearly circular, which is different compared to most of the planets elliptical or oval shape path. It takes Venus 225 days to orbit around the Sun. Venus has a rocky surface, which is extremely hot and dry. The surface reveals mountains, canyons, valleys, lava flows, lava domes, and numerous volcanoes located on flat plains. These volcanoes are called shield volcanoes because they are 12 created when lava forms underground and is released through the crust in areas called “hot spots.” Over long periods of time, these constant eruptions and lava flows create these shield volcanoes. One of Venus’s volcanoes called Maat Mons may be still active because of the young lava that surrounds it. This may reveal that Venus’s internal structure has an iron-rich core similar to Earth. Venus has really thick clouds of sulfuric acid in its atmosphere, which covers the surface. The gases in this thick atmosphere “trap” heat and prevent the heat from escaping. This causes a greenhouse effect, similar to Earth, but more intense. This greenhouse effect causes Venus to be the hottest planet in our solar system. Venus’s thick atmosphere and surface During this module, students will learn why Venus is so hot using hand signals and will fill-in facts in their workbook. VENUS 1. Rotation: 243 days 2. Orbit: 225 days 3. Diameter: 7, 523 miles 4. Distance from the Sun: 67 million miles away 5. Appearance: rocky surface with thick cloudy yellow atmosphere 6. Atmosphere: YES 7. Can we live on this planet? NO 8. Does this planet have any moons? NO 9. Fun Facts: Venus is the hottest planet in our solar system because its gases in its atmosphere trap heat, creating an intense greenhouse effect. Venus has the slowest retrograde rotation because scientists think something hit it or because of the powerful Sun’s gravity. Venus is also Earth’s “sister planet” because of their similar diameter. 13 The Greenhouse Effect The greenhouse effect is the rise in temperature that the planets (Venus and Earth) experience because certain gases in their atmosphere “trap” energy (sunlight) from the Sun. Some of these greenhouse gases include waterGreen vapor, carbon The dioxide, nitrous oxide and methane. Without these gases, heat would escape back into space and these planets wouldn’t be as warm as they are. For example, Earth would be a lot colder and reach a high of only 60 degrees Fahrenheit. When sunlight is emitted, the light is absorbed, reflected, or absorbed and reemitted back to space. As light finally enters Venus's thick atmosphere, it warms the surface. As the surface reemits the heat, it is “trapped” by Venus's gases in its atmosphere. Venus atmosphere is primarily composed of 97% carbon dioxide, a greenhouse gas that traps the heat from leaving. This heat is re-emitted and re-absorbed into the surface, making Venus hotter and hotter. This greenhouse effect prevents the heat from escaping, creating Venus to be the hottest planet in our solar system. Venus’s temperature can reach up to 870 degrees Fahrenheit. Because of Venus's extreme temperature, many spacecrafts are unable to last long once they enter Venus's thick atmosphere. Launched by the Soviet Union, Venera 9, was the first spacecraft to land on Venus, but it only lasted about a hour. 14 Life On Earth... Earth is the largest terrestrial planet. Earth is the only planet in our solar system that has LIFE on it that we know of. It has the most active surface, from volcanoes to hurricanes. For this module, we start with Earth because students are most familiar with it. Students will learn and memorize Earth’s nine facts. Earth’s rotation: Earth makes a complete rotation/spin on its axis in 23 hours and 56 minutes, or 24 hours which is equivalent to 1 day. Earth’s axis is tilted 23 ½ degrees. Because of this tilt, Earth experiences seasons. Earth’s orbit: Earth makes a complete elliptical orbit (on the same plane as the other planets), around the Sun in 1 year or 365 days. Earth’s diameter: Earth’s diameter is 500,000,000 inches or 7,926 miles. In order to visualize a diameter cut Earth in half and measure the center of the Earth’s circle. Earth’s distance from the Sun: Earth is the third planet from the Sun and is about 93 million miles away. 93 million miles is converted to 1 Astronomical Unit, 1 AU. Earth’s appearance: Students will observe a picture taken from space of Earth and will learn how to identify Earth's physical features, mostly made of water (70%) and land masses. Earth’s internal structure consists of the crust, mantle, outer core and inner core. Earths’ atmosphere: An atmosphere is all the gases that surround the planet. Earth’s atmosphere is thin and consists of 78% of nitrogen, 21% oxygen and 1% other. Earth's atmosphere not only provides life but protects Earth from dangerous solar rays. The atmosphere is divided into four layers (troposphere, stratosphere, mesosphere, and ionosphere). Most of the weather occurs in the first layer (troposphere). During this module, students will participate in a Simon Says game to demonstrate the definition of the six facts (rotation, orbit, diameter, distance, appearance, and 15 atmosphere) and also memorize Earth's nine facts. EARTH 1. Rotation: 1 day 2. Orbit: 1 year 3. Diameter: 7, 926 miles 4. Distance from the Sun: 93 million miles away = 1AU 5. Appearance: lots of blue water, white clouds, and patches of brown land. 6. Atmosphere: YES 7. Can we live on this planet? YES 8. Does this planet have moons? YES How many? 1 9. Fun fact: Earth is the only planet that has life on it that we know of. It is the most active planet in our solar system. Earth is the largest terrestrial planet but not the largest planet in our solar system. Earth’s Moon Earth and its Moon Earth's moon is the fifth largest moon in our solar system. Its diameter is 2,160 miles, less than 1/3 of Earth. The moon has no atmosphere and consists of a rocky surface with lots of craters. The dark areas of the moon are called maria (pronounced MARH ee uh). The maria are huge craters filled by ancient lava flows in the early stages of formation. The lava froze and formed rock. The light areas are highland craters called terrae (pronounced TEHR ee), representing the original crust of the moon. The moon is the brightest object at night but gives off no light of its own. Its surface reflects the light from the Sun. Depending on the relative position of Earth, moon and the Sun, there are different phases of the moon we see. The origin of Earth’s moon developed numerous theories. After the Apollo Mission (first landed on July 20, 1969), a new theory formed. 16 Earth's Moon This new theory is the most widely accepted theory called the Impact theory. The Impact theory suggests that another size planet, similar to Mars, hit Earth during its early formation. A huge chunk was knocked out of Earth and began orbiting around Earth. It came to be known as our moon and continues to orbit around Earth. The moon is about 239,000 miles away as it orbits around the Earth. The moon is close enough to experience and cause tides on Earth's water and land. The moon rotates and orbits around the Earth in about 30 days, creating a synchronous rotation. This synchronous rotation allows us to see only one side of the moon. Artist rendition of Impact Theory Is There Life On Mars? In 1976, does life exist on Mars was a popular question, especially after seeing this image captured by the Viking 1 spacecraft. Unfortunately, scientists have not found life on Mars. The face was a Martian mesa, a natural high land rock formation that gave an illusion of a face. “Face on Mars” taken by Viking 1 As the Viking 1 spacecraft was orbiting around Mars, it was taking pictures for possible landing sites for Viking 2, when it stumbled upon what appeared to be a human face. It became known as the “Face on Mars.” In 2001, Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) took a picture of the same spot but closer and revealed the true image. Viking 1 image 1976 MGS image This Martian mesa was 25 miles long and 2.6 miles wide. The “Face on Mars” is 17 located in the Cydonia region of Mars. Mars, The Red Planet! Mars is the fourth planet from the Sun and the fourth terrestrial planets. Mars has small traces of oxygen in its atmosphere that chemically reacts with the iron found in its surface, making the planet appear rusted. Because of its rusted appearance, Mars is known as the “Red Planet.” Although Mars has oxygen in its atmosphere, it is not enough to sustain life. Image of Mars Although Mars and Earth are not quite similar in size, they’re similar in other ways. Mars rotates 37 minutes more than Earth. Mars axis is tilted 25 degrees, 1.5 degrees more than Earth's tilt. Mars's tilt allows Mars to experience seasons, just like Earth. Besides Mars appearance being rusted, it has cloud-like features similar to Earth. Mars has dust storms and frozen polar caps. These polar caps are made of carbon dioxide frost and dry ice. Image of Earth and Mars Evidence such as channels, rivers, and valleys on its surface reveals that Mars use to have water on it but it dried up. Recent data from Mars Global Surveyor indicate that water may exist below the surface in rare places. In 1971, Mariner 9 was sent to orbit Mars. This spacecraft revealed the largest volcano in our solar system named Olympus Mons (370 miles in diameter and 17 miles high), a huge grand canyon (3,000 miles), and two moons (Phobos and Deimos). Other missions to Mars included sending robotic rovers to explore the surface. Some of these rovers’ names were Sojourner, Spirit and Opportunity. Launched in 2003, Spirit and Opportunity are still roaming the surface of Mars, confirming that there were once oceans of water on Mars's surface. 18 During this module, students will learn about possible life on Mars and record data in their workbook. MARS 1. Rotation: 1 day and 37 minutes 2. Orbit: 1.2 years 3. Diameter: 4,222 miles 4. Distance: 142 million miles 5. Appearance: red-brown rocky surface 6. Atmosphere: Yes 7. Can we live on this planet? No, but may be in the future. 8. Does this planet have moons? YES How many? 2 9. Fun Fact: Mars use to have water on it! Mars has very small traces of Oxygen in its atmosphere. Mars has the biggest volcano in our solar system called Olympus Mons. Mars is also known as the “Red Planet.” Gas Giant Planets Gas Giants The next four outer planets, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune, are Jovian planets or gas giants because they are huge and made of gases. These planets orbit slow around the Sun because they are further away and have more distance to travel. These planets rotate fast, have no solid surface, and have many moons, some consisting of over sixty. All of these planets have rings, but Saturn is the only 19 planet that has really thick rings that are visible when photographed. During this module, students will learn the characteristics of gas giant planets. GAS GIANT PLANETS FEATURES 1. Gaseous 2. Far from the Sun 3. Large Masses 4. No Solid Surface 5. Fast Rotation 6. Slow Orbit 7. Many Moons 8. Many Rings The Largest Planet, Jupiter! Jupiter is the fifth planet from the Sun and is the largest gas giant. Like all gas giants, Jupiter has fast rotation, in fact the fastest rotation (9hrs. 55min.). Like all gas giants, these planets orbit the slowest around the Sun because they are further away and have more distance to cover. Jupiter takes 12 years to orbit around the Sun. Jupiter’s appearance reveals a colorful display of red, white, orange, and tan horizontal lines with swirling gas clouds in its atmosphere. Image of Jupiter Another prominent feature is the Great Red Spot. This Red Spot is a constant tornado that has been spinning for hundreds of years. The diameter of the Red Spot has reached lengths up to three Earth's across. Jupiter is not only the largest gas giant but the largest planet in our solar system. Jupiter is very massive and has a strong gravitational pull. Because of this strong gravitational pull, Jupiter has 63 moons recorded and may still have more. During this module, students will draw and learn about Jupiter's facts in their workbook. JUPITER 1. Rotation: 9 hours and 55 minutes 2. Orbit: 12 years 20 3. Diameter: 88, 846 miles 4. Distance: 482 million miles 5. Appearance: Great Red Spot, swirling lines, gaseous 6. Atmosphere: Yes 7. Can we live on this planet? No 8. Does this planet have moons? YES How many? At least 63 9. Fun Fact: Jupiter is the BIGGEST planet in our solar system. Jupiter rotates the fastest and has crazy weather. Jupiter has a Great Red Spot which is a constant tornado. Jupiter's has some of the most unique and biggest moons in the solar system (Ganymede, Callisto, Io, Europa). Jupiter's BIG FOUR Jupiter is not only the BIGGEST planet but it has some of the BIGGEST moons. These moons are known as the Galilean Moons, from largest to smallest, Ganymede, Callisto, Io, and Europa. Each moon is extremely different. Ganymede is the largest moon (3,280 miles) in our solar system, even bigger than Mercury. Its surface is rocky with a thin ice crust. It has rocky interior surrounding a molten iron core and a thin oxygen atmosphere. Just like Earth's moon, Jupiter's moons have synchronous rotation and takes as long to rotate on it axis as it does orbit. Ganymede rotates and orbits around Jupiter in 7 days, thus Jupiter only see's one side of the moon. Top to bottom: Io, Europa, Ganymede, and Callisto Callisto is the most heavily cratered moon with a mixture of ice and rock throughout its interior. It has a thin carbon dioxide atmosphere. Callisto has a synchronous rotation as it rotates and orbits around Jupiter in 17 days. Io is the most volcanically active object in the solar system. This lava causes the 21 surface to change, leaving no craters. Io has a thin sulfuric dioxide atmosphere. It rotates and orbits in 2 days. Just like Earth's moon, Io experiences tides but heavier due to Jupiter's stronger gravitational pull. These tides can reach up to 300 feet. Scientists are extremely fascinated with Europa's surface because it is mostly made of ice water. Recent data indicates there may be an ocean beneath the surface and may have twice as much water than Earth. Water indicates a chance for life, especially on this moon. Europa has a very thin atmosphere and its surface reveals shallow cracks, valleys, ridges, and icy flows. Europa’s interior is hotter than its surface because of Jupiter’s strong gravitational pull as well as the gravitational pull of the other moons. This effect is known as tidal heating. During this module, students will review the seven largest moons in our solar system and why Jupiter attracts most of the moons. Seven Largest Moons: Moon: Diameter: What planet does the moon orbit around? 1.Ganymede 3,280 miles Jupiter 2.Titan 3,200 miles Saturn 3.Callisto 2,985 miles Jupiter 4.Io 2,255 miles Jupiter 5.Our Moon 2,160 miles Earth 6.Europa 1,950 miles Jupiter 7.Triton 1,683 miles Neptune 22 The Rings Of Saturn Saturn is the sixth planet from the Sun, the second largest planet, and the second largest gas giant. Like all gas giants, Saturn is made of gases. Image of Saturn But Saturn's gases are less dense than water and if Saturn was placed in a bathtub, it would actually float. Saturn is most famous for its fabulous rings, consisting of chunks of ice (ranging from the size of your fingernail to the size of school buses), rocks, and other dust particles. Although all gas giants have rings, they are not visible when photographed because they are too thin. Saturn’s rings are thick and can be captured in a photo. Rings of Saturn There have been different missions sent to Saturn. The newest mission was launched in 1997 and arrived in 2004. This spacecraft was called Cassini and it was to explore Saturn and its moons. Cassini was also designed to release a probe (Huygens) on Saturn's moon Titan. Titan is the second largest moon and is so far, the only moon with a unique thick, hazy atmosphere. Huygens analyzed Titan's thick atmosphere, which was composed of nitrogen, methane and possibly argon. During this module, students will draw and learn about Saturn's facts in their workbook. SATURN 1. Rotation: 10 hours and 13 minutes 2. Orbit: 29.4 years 3. Diameter: 74, 898 miles 4. Distance: 888 million miles 23 5. Appearance: Rings, gaseous 6. Atmosphere: Yes 7. Can we live on this planet? No 8. Does this planet have moons? YES How many? 47 9. Fun Fact: Saturn’s density is less dense than that of water. Therefore, Saturn is the only gas giant that could float in a bathtub of water, if such a thing existed. Saturn is known for its fabulous rings, which are made of ice, rock, and dust particles. Uranus Is CoNfUsEd??? Uranus (pronounced YUR-uh-nuhs or yu-RAY- nuhs) is the seventh planet from the Sun and is the third gas giant. Because Uranus is a gas giant, Uranus shows gas giant characteristics. Uranus has no solid surface because it’s made of gases, it rotates fast (17 hours), it revolves slow (84 years), it has rings but are thin, and it has lots of moons. But something strange happened to Uranus. Image of Uranus Uranus is the only planet that has a 90 degree tilt on its axis, thus it rotates on its side. Not only is it spinning sideways, but it is also spinning in retrograde. Scientists believe in the beginning of the solar system formation, Uranus was hit by a massive object, knocking Uranus on its side. Uranus’s appearance is light blue-green because of the methane gas in its atmosphere. Uranus has very few cloud bands and evidence suggest that underneath Uranus atmosphere lays rock and ice. During this module, students will draw and learn about Uranus's facts in their workbook. URANUS 1. Rotation: 17.2 hours 24 2. Orbit: 84 years 3. Diameter: 31, 763 miles 4. Distance: 1,784 million miles 5. Appearance: Green-blue smooth surface, thin rings 6. Atmosphere: Yes 7. Can we live on this planet? No 8. Does this planet have moons? YES How many? 27 9. Fun Fact: Uranus rotates on its side and goes in retrograde. Evidence suggests that rock and ice may exist underneath Uranus atmosphere. Like all the gas giants, Uranus has rings but you can't see them because they are thin. Neptune Will RIP You To Shreds! Neptune is slightly smaller than Uranus and is darker blue. Neptune's atmosphere is constantly changing, consisting of cloud like features and the Great Dark Spot, similar to the Red Spot, but appears in Neptune’s atmosphere. Neptune and its Dark Spot Although it is not as big as Jupiter’s Red Spot, it’s definitely about the size of Earth and could kill you upon entry. Neptune has the fastest winds in the solar system, reaching up to speeds of 1,200 miles per hour. That means if you try to enter Neptune’s atmosphere, the winds will rip you to shreds! Neptune is the eighth planet and the smallest gas giant. Because Neptune is a gas giant, its rotation is fast, orbit is slow, has young dark rings orbiting the planet, and has lots of moons. Neptune biggest moon is Triton. Triton has a thin atmosphere composed mostly of nitrogen. Triton is the only satellite that orbits in a direction opposite to that of its planet. It has a circular orbit and travels once around Neptune in 6 days. It is believed that Triton was a comet at some point and was captured by Neptune. In 25 10-100 million years, Neptune will collide with Triton. During this module, students will draw and learn about Neptune's facts in their workbook. NEPTUNE 1. Rotation: 16 hours and 17 minutes 2. Orbit: 165 years 3. Diameter: 30,775 miles 4. Distance: 2,794 million miles 5. Appearance: Dark blue, Dark Spot, gaseous 6. Atmosphere: Yes 7. Can we live on this planet? No 8. Does this planet have moons? YES How many? 13 9. Fun Fact: Neptune has the fastest winds in the solar system; reaching up to 1,200 mph. Neptune has a “Great Dark Spot,” which is a tornado. Pluto Is Not A Planet!?! In August 2006, the International Astronomical Union (IAU) defined a planet as follows: 1. it is in orbit around the Sun, 2. it has sufficient mass so that it assumes a hydrostatic equilibrium (nearly round) shape, 3. it has cleared the neighborhood around its orbit. The Closest Picture of Pluto A dwarf planet is classified by having two of these characteristics. IAU officially decided to reclassify Pluto as a dwarf planet, because of its highly elliptical orbit and it has not cleared the neighborhood around its orbit. Because Pluto is far away, it takes long to orbit around the Sun and has more distance to travel. It takes Pluto 250 years to orbit around the Sun. 26 As it travels around the Sun, its orbital path is highly elliptical. Because it is highly elliptical, Pluto has crossed Neptune's path of orbit and was closer to the Sun than Neptune during January 1979 through March 1999. Pluto's Highly Elliptical Orbit Pluto has never been photographed, nor visited. In August 2006, NASA created the New Horizon Mission, launched to Pluto. The expected arrival time is about nine years, with careful calculations for Pluto’s highly elliptical orbit around the Sun. In nine years, we will have our first official pictures of Pluto. Although, there are no photos, scientists have been able to calculate Pluto approximate mass (1,429 miles), and that it has a rocky ice surface, which reveals Pluto is neither a terrestrial nor a gas giant planet. Pluto is an odd ball dwarf planet. Pluto’s atmosphere sometimes freezes because Pluto gets extremely cold (-396 Fahrenheit). Pluto has three known moons, Charon, Nix, and Hydra. During this module, students will learn about Pluto's facts in their workbook. PLUTO 1. Rotation: 6 days and 9 hours 2. Orbit: 250 years 3. Diameter: 1, 429 miles 4. Distance: 3,647 million miles 5. Appearance: to be determined 6. Atmosphere: Yes 7. Can we live on this dwarf planet? No 8. Does this dwarf planet have moons? YES How many? 3 9. Fun Fact: Pluto is the coldest planet in our solar system (-378 to -396 degrees Fahrenheit). Pluto's atmosphere sometimes freezes because it is so cold. Pluto is the smallest planet and is even smaller than the seven largest moons. It has a weird elliptical orbit that at one time crossed Neptune’s path. NASA launched for the first time a trip to Pluto, known as the New Horizon Mission. In nine years we will have the first pictures of Pluto. There are three known dwarf planets, Pluto, Eris and Ceres. 27 Possible 10th Planet? Scientists are constantly learning and discovering new information. In 2005, a team led by Mike Brown, discovered a larger object in the outer limits of Kuiper Belt that is orbiting the Sun. The Closest Picture of Eris It seems bigger than Pluto (1,491 miles) and is considered a Trans-Neptunian Object (TNO). A trans-Neptunian object is any object in the solar system that orbits the Sun at a greater distance on average than Neptune. On August 2006, scientists officially named this object a dwarf planet called Eris. Eris orbits the Sun once every 557 years. So far, Eris has one moon named Dysnomia. Eris could be the coldest dwarf planet. It is so cold that its atmosphere freezes on top of its surface. In 290 years, Eris will be close enough to the Sun, so its ice will melt. How Does This All Work? Gravity! Gravity is the natural force of attraction between any two massive bodies. The Sun has a strong gravitational force, meaning it pulls objects towards it, because it is so massive. Artist Rendition of the Solar System The planets in our solar system are not completely pulled into the Sun because they have enough mass of their own or enough of a gravitational force of their own to resist being pulled in. Instead, planets orbit in an elliptical path around the Sun because of the Sun's stronger gravitational force. When two objects are near each other, the force of gravity is stronger than if they were farther away from each 28 other. Planets closest to the Sun have a stronger attraction or stronger gravity between them than planets farther out. These inner planets orbit fast around the Sun because they are closest to the Sun and they have a shorter distance to travel. The outer planets orbit slow around the Sun because they are further away from the Sun and have a longer distance to travel. Kepler’s Laws Of Planetary Motion A mathematician named Johannes Kepler used calculations to describe the planets orbital path around the Sun. First, he found that the orbits of the planets in our solar system are elliptical, not circular, and that the Sun is not located at the center of the orbits, but rather at one focus. Second, he found that the orbital speed of each planet is not constant, as had previously been thought, but rather that the speed of the planet depends on the planet's distance from the Sun. The closer the planet gets to the Sun the faster a planet travels. And third, Kepler found that planets closer to the Sun not only move faster but cover less distance. Thus, the farther a planet is, the more distance it has to cover. It wasn't until almost a century later, where Isaac Newton used Kepler's Laws of Planetary Motion and his Law of Universal Gravitation to explain Kepler's Laws. Newton basically explained the closer two objects are, the stronger the gravitational force. A planet that is closest to the Sun feels the Sun’s strong gravitational force than planets that are further, which makes the planet move faster when it is closer and slower when it is farther. Kepler's Three Laws Of Planetary Motion First Law: Kepler's first law says that planets move in elliptical (oval-shaped) orbits around the Sun. Second Law: Kepler's second law says that an imaginary line joining the Sun and its planet sweeps across equal areas of space in equal amounts of time. The planet moves slower when it is farther from the Sun and faster when it is near it. 29 Third Law: Kepler's third law says that the ratio of the squares of the revolutionary periods for two planets is equal to the ratio of cubes of their semimajor axes, represented in this equation. In other words, a planet's period (the time it takes to complete an orbit around its star) depends on its average distance from the star. The planets closer to the Sun have a shorter orbit because they have less distance to travel. The planets farther from the Sun have a longer orbit because they have more distance to travel. Other Solar Systems Students are extremely fascinated about the fact that there are other solar systems in the universe. Scientists have so far discovered 181 other solar systems, with 213 known planets. These planets are called exo-planets. They have never been seen but are detected by the slight wobble they induce to their star. Stars with planets orbiting them cause the star to slightly wobble because of the planets gravitationally pull. By measuring the wobble, scientists are able to calculate how massive a planet or planets are. It is easier to locate larger planets than smaller planets and planets that orbit fast around their star. Although new planets have been discovered, scientists have not been able to research if life exists on any of these planets. The most recent planetary solar system found was on May 3, 2007 called Corot-Exo-1 discovered by team Corot (Convection, Rotation & Planetary Transits). This solar system is about 1500 light years away. Other solar systems include 51 Pegasi, 70 Virginis, and Cancri A. Frequently Asked Questions By Students 1. How do the planets stay up? Basically asking, why do the planets orbit around the Sun? Planets orbit around the Sun because the Sun is bigger and has a stronger gravitational pull, meaning it pulls objects towards it. Because planets have their 30 own mass, they try to resist this pull. That’s why planets are not pulled into the Sun, but rather orbit around it. This stronger gravitational pull forces planets to orbit around the Sun. 2. What is inside of a planet? Depending on the planet, their internal structure is composed differently. Most terrestrial planets internal structure is composed of different amounts of elements, nickel and iron cores with rocky surfaces. For example, Earth is composed of a solid nickel and iron inner core, a liquid molten of nickel and iron outer core, a mantle that is dense and mostly made of solid silicate rock, and a thin silicate rock crust. On the other hand, gas giants are composed of gases, a possible core (not like Earth), metallic hydrogen fluid, and some consisting of different layers of gas clouds. For example, Jupiter has a possible core, fluid metallic hydrogen, fluid molecular hydrogen and different layers of gases, ammonium hydrosulfide clouds, ammonia crystals, and aerosols. 3. How old are the planets? Our solar system is about 4.6 Billion years old. Scientists have found meteorites, rocks that fall from the sky, that date back to 4.6 Billion years old. Most of the planets formed about the same time. 4. If our Sun is a star, then why doesn’t it look like the stars in the sky? The stars we see in our night sky are just like our Sun, in fact, some are a lot bigger. But these stars are extremely far away, making these stars seem small. The Sun is the closest star to Earth, much closer than others, so it appears bigger than other stars and appears different in shape. 5. Why do some planets have moons and others do not? Depending on its mass, some planets have a stronger gravitational pull. Thus, these planets can pull objects towards them, like moons. Mercury and Venus do not have a moon because they are too close to the Sun and the Sun pulls these possible objects away. Larger planets, like Jupiter and Saturn, have a stronger gravitational pull, so they are capable of pulling objects towards them and keeping them around them. This is why these planets have a number of moons. 6. Why do planets rotate? In the beginning, a rotating mass of stardust and gases began to form. Eventually the left-over’s swirled around and around until they clumped together to form our planets. Planets have been naturally rotating since the beginning, thus they rotate. 31 Their rotational speeds may be different depending on their early formation. For example, something hit Uranus so it has a severe tilt (98 degrees) as it rotates in retrograde, and is much faster than Earth’s rotation because it’s big. 7. Why does Mercury have so many craters but Earth does not? On planets like Venus, Earth and Mars, we do not see as many craters because objects burn up upon entry into the atmosphere or most of the craters have been eroded away by wind, rain, volcanic activity and other forces. On the gas giants, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune, we do not see any craters because there is no visible solid surface for the meteors to hit. Mercury is heavily cratered because it is closest to the Sun and experiences objects that are pulled to the Sun, which impact the planet. Mercury has no atmosphere or activity, so the craters remain. 8. Has there ever been a mission to Venus? There have been several missions to Venus by the Soviet Union and the United States. On October 22, 1975, Venera 9 was the first spacecraft to land on Venus. As it entered Venus’s thick atmosphere and extreme heat, it malfunctioned after fiftythree minutes. On December 9, 1978, the U.S. Pioneer Venus 2 entered Venus’s thick atmosphere and measured its density and chemical composition. 9. Have people walked on other planets? No, people have not walked on any other planet besides Earth. NASA sent robotic rovers to Mars that traveled along the surface and took pictures, but people haven't walked on Mars. Astronauts have only been to the moon which is not a planet. 10. Is there lava coming out of Mars? Even though Mars has the largest volcano, it is inactive. This means that there is no lava coming out of Olympus Mons. 11. How big is Olympus Mons? The diameter of Olympus Mons is about 340 miles wide, making up the entire chain of Hawaiian island volcanoes. It is even bigger than our biggest mountain, Mount Everest. 12. Why is Jupiter so big? Jupiter is so big because in the early formation, it was the first to gather up gas particles left behind. Because Jupiter is a cold planet, the gas molecules move slow and are very hard to escape speed. Even though Jupiter is big, it is made up of some of the lightest elements, hydrogen and helium. 32 13. What are the rings around planets and what are they caused by? Planetary rings are actually made up of thousands of small pieces of debris left over from the formation of the planets or moons that collided with the planet. This debris is made up of dust, rock and ice particles, which have spread out over time around the planets. At a great distance, sunlight reflected off the rings makes them appear to be solid. 14. If all gas giants have rings, why can’t we see them in a photograph? We are able to see Saturn’s rings because they are really thick. We can’t see the other gas giant's rings because they are much thinner than those of Saturn. 15. What will happen to the Sun? The Sun is half way burnt out, meaning it has another 4.6 billion years left. The Sun will explode, like stars that die. If the Sun dies out, the Earth will become extremely cold and life wouldn't be able to survive. But because of extreme pollution, in about 10,000 years, we might not have enough oxygen to support life on Earth. 16. Do other stars have planets? What kinds? Yes, there are stars with planets orbiting around it, just like our solar system. So far, scientists have found mostly gas giants. There are about 181 other solar systems with stars and planets orbiting around it. 17. How to scientist find other solar systems? In the middle 1990's, astronomers found other stars with planets orbiting around it. They didn't find the planets by taking pictures, but measured the gravitational pull from the other planets on the star. The first was reported in October 1995 by Michel Mayor and Didier Queloz. While observing star 51 Pegasi, they noticed a “wobble” in the star. In March 1999, Geoff Marcy and Paul Butler announced the detection of the first true other “solar system” in which they found evidence of 3 planets orbiting around a single star. The star is called Upsilon Andromeda. The real question becomes, is there other planets orbiting around a star that resembles Earth and if so, is there life? That question still remains a mystery… 33 DAY ONE Typically, a discussion of our solar system begins with Mercury which is the closest planet to the Sun. In Coming To A Planet Near You, the first planet discussed is Earth because students are most familiar with this planet and its characteristics. The discussion of planet Earth sets the format and features for the other planets. For each planet, students will examine the following information of each planet: • rotation • orbit • diameter • distance from the Sun • appearance • atmosphere • living conditions • moons • how many moons • fun facts Students will then be able to define, memorize, and record Earth's main features. Students will also explore Mercury and its characteristics, as well as participate in a Simon Says Solar System Game to reinforce the terms. Objectives 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. Define a planet, moon and the Sun. Demonstrate and describe rotation and orbit. Explain Kepler's Laws of Planetary Motion. Measure and demonstrate the diameter of a circle. Explain how the diameter of a circle relates to a planet's diameter. Describe the relative size of the planets as compared to the size of the Sun. Identify each planet in order from the Sun. Draw and identify the planets by their appearance. Determine if the planet has an atmosphere and if so, decide and explain why a planet can sustain life. Identify which planets have moons and which planets do not. 34 10. Explain why some planets have moons and others do not. Materials Needed To Be Prepared By The Teacher Prior To Teaching 1. Planet Costume: Cut a circle out of cardboard, about 20-26 inches in diameter. Punch two holes on the top of the circle. Tie a 30 inch string through the holes. You should be able to hang the costume around your neck to wear. Punch another two holes on the right and left corners. Tie another 20-26 inches string for the signs of the planets. Tie the string in the back. This allows you to flip the signs. Attach all eight planet signs to the board. 2. Signs for the planet costume: Write out the names of the planets on construction paper. If possible, laminate signs. Attach signs to the planet costume with tape. For Venus, write the letters backwards because Venus rotates backwards. 35 3. Picture of each planet: Obtain photos from the NASA website. http://www.nasa.gov/audience/foreducators/topnv /materials/listbytype/Solar.System.Lithograph.Set. html or refer to the resource page in this module. Make enough copies of each planet for each group. 4. Relative sizes for each planet: Look for different size balls. This website will give you the relative size of each planet based on the Sun (classroom width). http://www.exploratorium.edu/ronh/solar_system/i ndex.html 5. Yellow ball: representing the Sun, as big as possible. 6. Earth ball: 1 inch ball representing the Earth. 36 7. Transparency- Make a transparency of each worksheet for each planet. 8. Teacher's Guidebook: worksheets with the answers. 9. Model of a planet orbiting around the Sun: A model can be purchased at Lakeshore Learning found on the resource page. You can also make your own model with a large straform ball, small straform ball and a wire. Bend the wire tip about one inch and stick it in the bottom of the larger straform ball representing the Sun. On the other side of the wire bend the tip about one inch and stick it on the bottom of the smaller straform ball representing Earth. Sticking the wire in the bottom of the smaller straform ball (Earth) allows it to orbit around the larger straform ball (Sun). 37 10. Solar System Board: Use two pieces of cardboard and small pictures of the planets. Draw the orbital paths of the planets. Label the planets by initials and how long each planet’s orbital path takes. 11. Ball: Straform ball or any size ball. Cut the ball in half to show diameter of a circle. 12. Circle Packet: Have a ziplock bag with various size circles and rulers in it to measure the circles’ diameters. 13. Small Sun: classroom set of a small pictures or stickers of the Sun. 14. Balloon: Any size, any color. 15. Optional: Tape measure. 16. Optional: Star Wars theme song or any type of music for the Solar System Story. 38 Materials For Students 1. Student Workbook: Worksheets for the planets. 2. Crayons: Basic eight crayons. INTRODUCTION: FROM THE BEGINNING, SOLAR SYSTEM STORY Directions For The Teacher 1. Play Star Wars Music. 2. Begin by informing students on how our solar system was formed. Here is a four step example using hand signals to help demonstrate and explain the solar system formation. A. There was a large swirling mass of stardust and gases (Move hands around as if it was the dust and gases swirling around). B. And as the dust and gases rolled around, gravity began to pull it in the center (Move hands inwards towards the center). 39 C. This center became very dense and extremely hot. This center formed the Sun (Make a circle with your two hands representing the Sun.). D. The remaining stardust and gases swirled around and around, eventually clumping up together to form our planets (Leave one hand in the middle, representing the Sun. Move the other hand around, then into a fist, representing a planet.). 3. Ask the students, “Have you ever been to the snow and made a snow ball? What happens when you keep rolling that snow ball on the ground?” [Expected Response: It gets bigger.] 4. To make the connection, inform the students, “That's how the planets formed. The planets rolled around and around collecting all of the left over dust and gases.” 5. “Some planets became small, rocky and were close enough to withstand the Sun’s heat. Other planets became big, gaseous, and were far enough that the gases didn‘t burn away.” 6. Repeat hand signals, making the story as simple as possible. Practice the hand signals with students so that they can demonstrate how the solar system was formed. 7. Depending on the classroom structure, form students into groups of four. Assign each student a number from 1 to 4 within their groups. (Note: Assigning numbers to students in group, it’s easy for the teacher to pick someone from the group to get the materials or pass out supplies.) 8. In groups, have students explain briefly how the solar system was formed using hand signals. Students assigned to be #1, explain the first step. Students assigned to be #2, explain the second step. Student s assigned to be #3, explain the third step. Students assigned to be #4, explain the fourth step. 40 Walk around to listen and check for understanding. 9. Use a preferred signal (such as a bell, Mr. Foggy, hand clap) indicating students are to stop, look, and listen. Use the signal to gather students’ attention. 10. Ask the students, “What planet do we live on?” [Expected Response: Earth] 11. “Yes Earth, but wait, what is a planet?” Inform students, “A planet is a large circular mass that goes around a star.” 12. Draw a circle with a star in the middle. The star represents the Sun. (Note: Later we will review just how big the Sun really is compared to the Earth.) 13. Students usually ask, “Why did you put a star in the center?” Explain to the students, “The Sun is a star. A star is a glowing ball of gases. This star is just to remind you that the Sun is a star. This star is the largest object in our solar system.” 14. Ask the students, “How many planets do we have in our solar system?” 15. Next to the Sun, write the number of planets (1-4) all the way across the board. (This drawing will be used throughout Day 1). 16. Put a question mark next to number nine. Students usually ask, “Why did you put a question mark next to #9?” Inform students #9 is in questioning and we will investigate #9 later. 17. Circle number three and say, “Earth is the third planet from the Sun. Planets, like Earth, don't just stay still they move in two directions. DEMONSTRATION #1 – Planetary Rotation The intent of this first activity is for students to participate as well as describe how planets rotate. 41 Directions For The Teacher 1. Put on the planet Earth costume. 2. Inform students, “Planets move in two types of directions. The first type of direction is called rotation.” 3. Write the word rotation on the board. 4. Inform students, “Rotation of an object, like a planet, means that it spins in one place.” 5. Demonstrate rotation by standing in one place and spin around. 6. Inform students, “In fact, planets rotate towards their left.” Lift up your left hand and demonstrate by rotating to the left. 7. Select a student helper and place the planet Earth costume on the helper. Ask him/her to demonstrate how Earth rotates, by lifting up their left hand. 8. Ask the entire class to stand up and demonstrate how Earth rotates by lifting up their left hand. 9. Inform students, “At the end of the day, we will play a game. In order to win, you (students) need to know what rotate means and how to demonstrate it.” 10. Put the Earth costume back on. Inform the students, “Watch me very carefully.” 11. Pretend you are sleeping by closing your eyes. Wake up all of a sudden with your arms stretched out high. Put your hands down. Bring your left hand up and start to slowly rotate. While rotating, tell the students what you are doing at that time. 12. For example: I wake up, have breakfast, go to school, come home, do my homework, have dinner, and go to bed. While you’re pretending to sleep, stop exactly where you started and say, “It’s morning again.” 42 13. Ask the students, “How long did it take Earth to rotate?” [Expected Response: It took one day to rotate.] 14. Ask the students to hold up one finger and say, “It takes Earth one day to rotate.” 15. Ask students, “How many hours are in one day?” [Expected Response: 24 hours] 16. Ask students, “What does rotate mean?” [Expected Response: Spin or turn in one spot] 17. Students sometimes have a hard time or mix up rotation and orbit. So when the students understand rotation completely, move on to orbit. DEMONSTRATION #2 – Planetary Orbital Path The intent of this activity is for students to understand planets orbital path and distinguish the difference between rotation and orbit. Directions For The Teacher 1. Inform students, “We know that planets move in two directions. One direction a planet moves is rotation. Let’s look at the other way a planet moves.” 2. Inform students, “Planets also orbit.” 3. Write the word orbit on the board. 4. Inform students, “When planets orbit, it means that it travels around another object. The planets in our solar system travel or orbit around the Sun.” 5. Ask the students, “Planets, like Earth, orbit or go around what?” [Expected Response: The Sun] 6. While holding up the yellow ball, inform the students, “We will pretend this is our Sun. I couldn‘t find a ball large enough, so pretend it’s as big as the classroom.” 43 7. Place the yellow ball (Sun) in the center of the room. 8. Explain to the students, “In order to orbit, you have to face one direction at all times. I am going to choose this direction (for example; the back of the classroom) and always face that direction.” 9. While going around the Sun or around the entire class, make sure your shoulders are always facing the direction you choose (back of classroom). When making the turns around the corners, make sure the front of your body is always facing the back of the classroom, do not turn your shoulders. Your back should never face the direction you choose (back of classroom). Consistently facing the chosen direction will help students discover what it means to orbit. 10. Once students understand how objects orbit, demonstrate an orbital path again and this time intentionally move where you are not always facing the same direction. Ask the students, “Are my shoulders facing the same direction that I have chosen?” Students should say, “NO!” Correct yourself and ask the students, “What about now?” They should say, “Yes.” 11. Without asking the question, intentionally demonstrate an orbital path incorrectly to see if the class corrects your mistake. 12. Select a student helper to demonstrate orbit. Put the Earth costume on the helper. Make sure the student is facing one direction at all times and guide the student near the turns. 13. The teacher wears the Earth costume again. Inform students, “Watch me very carefully.” 14. Inform the students, “I am going to start on the first month January.” While orbiting around the class, make sure your shoulders are always facing one direction. 15. While reciting the months of the year in order (January, February, March, April, and so on), orbit around the Sun so that you complete one orbit in the 12 months. 44 16. Ask the students, “How long did Earth take to orbit around the Sun?” [Expected Response: One year] 17. Ask the students to hold up one finger and say, “It takes Earth one year to orbit around the Sun.” 18. Ask the students, “How many days are in one year?” [Expected Response: One year is 365 days.] 19. Ask students, “What does orbit mean again?” [Expected Response: Orbit means to go around an object.] 20. Inform students, “Planets do not orbit in a circle but in an oval shape or ellipse.” Draw an oval or ellipse on the board. 21. Refer back to the board with the Sun and numbers 1-9. Draw how Earth travels around the Sun in an elliptical path. 22. Bring out the model of a planet and the Sun. Demonstrate how the planet orbits around the Sun. 23. Demonstrate to the students on how to orbit in an elliptical path. 24. Inform the students, “You will be given a small sticker of the Sun. Place it on the floor in front of you. You have to orbit around the Sun, making sure your shoulders are always facing one direction.” 25. Have the students demonstrate how to orbit without the Sun. 26. Inform students, “We know that planets rotate and orbit around the Sun. Planets rotate and orbit around the Sun at the same time.” 27. Ask students, “How would rotating and orbiting at the same time look like?” 28. Select a helper to demonstrate what a planet looks like when it rotates and orbits at the same time. Review rotation and orbits if students have difficulty. 45 ACTIVITY #1 – Diameter The intent of this activity is for students to explain, measure, and demonstrate the diameter of a circle and how it relates to planets’ diameter. Directions For The Teacher 1. Bring out the ball that was pre-cut in half. Hold the ball as a whole rather than two halves. 2. Inform students, “If I were to cut this ball in half and measure the center of this ball, which is shaped like a circle, I would be measuring the diameter. 3. Write the word diameter on the board. 4. Diameter is a straight line which goes from one end of the circle to the other through the center. Draw a circle on the board and draw a line through the center of the circle to represent diameter. 5. With a ruler, measure the ball's diameter. For example: The ball's diameter is 2 inches. 6. From previously assembled groups, pick a number (1 - 4) and ask this student from each group to pick up the circle packet supplies for the activity. 7. In groups, have the students measure the diameters of different size circles. 8. After students become familiar with measuring the circles’ diameters in inches, inform the students, “Imagine I was able to grab Earth and cut it in half. If I wanted to measure Earth’s diameter, how many inches do you think it would be?” 9. Write the answer on the board. The answer is 500,000,000 inches. 10. Instead of writing that huge number, inform students that you’re going to convert or change it to miles. 11. Earth's diameter is 7,926 miles. Write this number on the board. 46 12. If appropriate, ask students, “What is a mile?” Explain to students, one mile is the same as the distance of about four long blocks.” 13. Explain to the students, “During the game, we need to know what diameter means and be able to demonstrate it.” 14. Demonstrate to students the game signal for diameter. The game signal is a big circle with your hands and extend your arms straight across. Inside the circle, we are measuring the center of the circle called diameter. 15. Make sure students have enough space. Have the students demonstrate diameter. DEMONSTRATION #3 – Distance The intent of this activity is for students to understand each planets distance and order from the Sun. Students will learn hand signals to demonstrate the order of each planet from the Sun. Directions For The Teacher 1. Ask the students, “What does distance mean?” [Expected Response: How far something is.] 2. Inform students, “Distance is the space between two objects which can be measured.” 3. Go back to the board with the Sun and the numbers 1- 9 representing the planets. 4. Inform students, “Earth is the third planet from the Sun.” Pretend you are measuring with a ruler the distance from Earth to the Sun on the board. 5. Bring out the yellow ball (Sun) and place it in the center of the room, if it's not already there. 47 6. Put on the Earth costume. 7. Inform students, “I am Earth and there is the Sun (point to the center of the room). I want the distance of Earth from the Sun. So I want to measure how far I am away from the Sun.” 8. Using a tape measure, have a student measure the distance from Earth to the Sun. Inform students, “I would need about 82 trillion tape measures to show you the distance from the Sun, which is a lot more than a million and a billion.” 9. Earth is actually 93 million miles away from the Sun. “I can't really be that far away, so I’ll imagine that I am.” 10. Describe to students an Astronomical unit. Astronomical units measures the planets distance from the Sun. One Astronomical Unit or 1AU is equal to Earth’s distance from the Sun. 1AU = 93 million miles away. AU was created so scientist didn’t have to write very large numbers. 11. Teach students the game signal for distance. Place the Sun in the back of the room. Inform students, “You are a planet. Here is the Sun.” With two hands clasped together, point at the Sun. This is the hand signal for the distance from the Sun. 12. If a student points at the teacher, let the student know that the teacher is not the Sun. The Sun is at the back of the classroom. ACTIVITY #2 – Appearance and Atmosphere The intent of this activity is for students to actually see exciting photos of the planets and draw them in their workbook. Directions For The Teacher 1. Have the students sit up straight and close their eyes. 2. Inform students, “Imagine you are an astronaut inside a spaceship blasting into outer space. You look down to see Earth.” 3. While their eyes are closed, walk around and put a picture of Earth at each 48 group's desk. 4. When students open their eyes, have groups look at the picture of Earth. Students will describe in their workbook the appearance of Earth, if Earth has an atmosphere, can we live on this planet, and does Earth have any moons. 5. Have a picture of Earth in front of the classroom and ask the students, “What do you think the blue represents?” [Expected Response: Oceans/water] 6. “What does the white represent?” [Expected Response: Clouds] 7. “What does the brown/green represent?” [Expected Response: Land] 8. Pick a number (1- 4) and ask the student from the group to pick up a workbook for each group member. 9. Ask students to turn to the table of contents and locate Earth. Earth is on page 4. 10. Inform students, “We are going to draw Earth's appearance. Appearance means what the object, like a planet, looks like.” 11. Ask students, “What colors will I use?” [Expected Response: Blue, brown/green, white] 12. Ask students, “Would I use bright red?” [Expected Response: No] “Why not?” [Expected Response: Earth is not red.] 13. Have students draw the appearance of Earth. 14. Working in groups, students complete questions 1-8 on page 4 in their workbook. 15. When students reach question 6, which deals with Earth’s atmosphere, students will have questions. 16. Use your signal and wait for all eyes. Describe atmosphere. “Watch me carefully.” Start to swing your arms around. “I feel this stuff around me, I can‘t see it, but I can feel it.” Blow into your hands. Blow up a balloon. Let the balloon go, releasing the gas. 49 17. Ask the students, “What is the stuff all around us?” [Expected Response: air or gas] 18. Write atmosphere on the board. 19. Inform students, “Earth has an atmosphere and it’s made up of gases. These gases make up our air. Our atmosphere has oxygen gases, so we can breathe and live. Other planets have gases that are toxic and we can't live on it.” 20. Use the transparency for Earth which replicates the questions that students have completed. Discuss answers and ask students to check their workbook to make sure they have the correct answers. 21. For question 8, ask students, “What is a moon?” 22. Inform students, “A moon is a mass orbiting around a planet.” 23. Describe the appearance of the moon and the theory on how our moon formed. For example, “During the early formation of Earth, a large size object (the size of Mars) hit Earth and caused a huge piece of Earth to break off. This debris became the moon.” Finish the workbook and read the Fun Facts also located on page 4. 24. Explain and demonstrate the game signals for appearance and atmosphere. 25. For appearance, have students step forward with one foot and bring up their hands towards their face, almost pointing to their face. Appearance means what a planet looks like. 26. For atmosphere, have students swing their hands around. Swinging their hands around represents the gases they can feel that are all around them. Make sure students have enough room, so they won’t hit each other. Atmosphere means the gases that surround a planet. ACTIVITY #3 – Crater Face Mercury The intent of this activity is for students to review the nine characteristics for Mercury and complete the information in their workbook. Directions For The Teacher 50 1. Going back to the board, point to and circle number one. Inform students, Mercury is the first planet from the Sun. 2. Put on the Mercury costume. 3. Start rotating and ask the students, “What is Mercury doing?” [Expected Response: Mercury is rotating] 4. Ask the students, “How long did Earth take to rotate?” [Expected Response: One day] 5. Inform students, “Watch how long it takes Mercury to rotate.” Start rotating slowly and count 1 day, 2 days, and mumble until you stop at where you started and shout out 59 days. Mercury rotates in 59 days.” 6. Pick two student helpers to represent planets. Put the Sun in the middle of the classroom. 7. Create two orbital paths around the Sun by using ropes. 8. The first orbital path should be really close to the Sun, while the other orbital path should be as far as you can. 9. Give the two helpers the signs #1 Mercury and #9 Pluto. 10. The student with the #1 sign should be closest to the Sun. The student with the #9 sign should be farthest from the Sun. 11. Ask students to predict, “Who will go around the Sun faster, #1 which is closer to the Sun, or #9 which is farthest from the Sun?” 12. Have the two student helpers walk on the two different lengths of rope with one foot in front of the other. The student helper who is holding the #1 Mercury sign will walk along the shorter rope representing the orbital path. The student helper who is holding the #9 Pluto sign will walk along the longer rope representing the orbital path. 13. #1 Mercury, should complete its orbit around the Sun, much faster than #9. 14. Have the two student helpers repeat walking the orbital paths. Inform students that they will keep track of how many times #1 Mercury goes around the Sun. 51 15. Have your two student helpers orbit around the Sun again. Write tally marks on the board on how many times it takes #1 Mercury to orbit. Once #9 finally makes one orbit, stop recording. 16. The student helper closest to the Sun (#1) should complete their orbit faster and more times, than the person farthest from the Sun (#9). 17. Then, compare the two rope lengths. These two different size ropes represent a short orbital path (Mercury) and a long orbital path (Pluto). 18. Students should notice the orbital path closest to the Sun has a shorter length to travel than the orbital path of the distant planet. 19. Inform students, “ #1 Mercury, not only has a shorter length but because it is so close to the Sun, the Sun has a stronger gravitational pull and makes Mercury orbit the fastest.” 20. Working in groups, ask students to answer this question. “If Mercury is closest to the Sun than Earth, would you expect it to orbit faster or slower than Earth? Keep in mind how long it takes Earth to orbit around the Sun” 21. The answer is Mercury will orbit faster than Earth. Because Mercury is closest to the Sun, Mercury orbits the fastest and has a shorter orbital path to travel than planets further away. Mercury orbits in 88 days. 22. Go back to the board with the Sun in the center and the numbers 1- 9 written. 23. Write next to the circled #1, M for Mercury and below it write 88 days. 24. Ask the students, “How long did it take Earth to orbit around the Sun?” [Expected Response: It took one year] 25. Write on the board next to #3, E for Earth and below it write one year = 365 days. 26. Draw the orbital path of Mercury, which is an ellipse. 27. Draw the orbital path of Earth, which is also an ellipse. 28. Take out the pictures of Mercury and pass them to each group. Have students look at a picture of Mercury. 52 29. Have students describe and draw Mercury's appearance on page 2 of the workbook. The description of appearance should be bumpy, rough, and lots of holes on it. 30. Students usually ask: “What are all those holes on Mercury?” 31. Explain to the students what craters are and why Mercury has so many. For example: The Sun is very massive and has a strong gravitational pull. That’s why planets orbit around it. But the Sun also attracts other objects such as rocks, comets, asteroids, etc. Mercury experiences impacts of different size objects that are pulled to the Sun. Poor Mercury, it's the closest to the Sun and gets hit more, leaving holes all over called craters. Craters are the holes left over from the impact. Mercury has no atmosphere to blow these craters away. 32. In groups, ask students to predict if we can live on Mercury, and does this planet have any moons? 33. Mercury has no atmosphere and no moons. It has no atmosphere because the Sun pulls or burns the gases away, we can't live on it (no oxygen), and it has no moons because if any object orbits Mercury, it will be pulled away by the Sun. 34. Use Mercury’s transparency on the overhead to check and correct answers. ACTIVITY #4 – Simon Says Solar System Game The intent of this activity is to serve as an assessment of the terms, definition, and characteristics of the planets discussed. Directions For The Teacher 1. Explain to the students the rules of the Simon Says Solar System Game. 2. Rules for the Simon Says Solar System Game: If Simon says to do something, you follow the direction. If Simon doesn't say to do something, and you do, you are out and will sit down. If you do the wrong demonstration for the term, you are also out and will sit down. 3. Inform students, “It is just a game, so be honest. It's important that your 53 friends and fellow classmates can trust you.” 4. While participating in the game, no one should be talking because it not only distracts the other players, but students will complain that they didn't hear the term. 5. Discuss the terms, definitions, and demonstrations before starting the game. Display the transparency with the terms. Explain to the students, that they have to imagine they are actually a planet. These characteristics are actually things planets do. Simon Says Solar System Game Rotation- spin in one spot. Lift up your left hand and turn in one spot. Orbit- travels around an object (Sun). Students will make a small circle around an object on the floor (for example: the sticker Sun), without turning their back. 54 Diameter- measuring the center of a circle (planet). Explain to students, “If their hands made a circle, diameter would be measuring the center.” Distance- measuring how far a planet is from the Sun. With two hands together, students will point to the Sun. Appearance- what the planet looks like. Students will step forward and use their hands to point to their face. Atmosphere- the gases that surrounds a planet. Students will swing their hands around, feeling the gases between their hands. 6. Have the students stand up, push in their chairs, and stand behind their desk. 7. Give each student a small picture of the Sun or a sticker of the Sun. Have students place it on the floor so they can orbit around it. 8. Make sure students have enough distance, so when they swing their hands around, they will not hit anyone. 55 9. Practice the Simon says game over and over, so that students can learn the correct terms with the definitions. It's more important that the students are participating in the game rather than sitting, so “practice” the game again and again. 10. Start the Simon Says Solar System Game. Ask students a variety of questions testing their understanding of the planets. • Simon Says show me atmosphere. • Simon Says show me distance • Show me appearance. Oops… Simon didn’t say. • Simon Says show me rotation • Simon Says show me orbit. • Show me diameter. Oops… Simon didn’t say. 11. During the game, walk around and ask a series of questions testing students understanding of the definitions. • What does rotate mean? • What does orbit mean? • What does appearance mean? • What does atmosphere mean? • What does diameter mean? • What does distance from the Sun mean? 56 DAY TWO Students will learn about terrestrial planets and the common characteristics for the four terrestrial planets. Students will then be able to define and record Venus and Mars main features. Students will also learn the Greenhouse Effect hand signals and be able to explain why Venus is so hot. Objectives 1. 2. 3. 4. Define a planet, moon and the Sun. Demonstrate and describe rotation and orbit. Explain Kepler's Laws of Planetary Motion. Explain, measure, and demonstrate the diameter of a circle and how it relates to our planet's diameters. 5. Describe the relative size of the planets as compared to the size of the Sun. 6. Identify and demonstrate with hand signals for each planet in order from the Sun. 7. Draw and identify the planets by their appearance. 8. Describe a terrestrial planet. 9. Identify similarities of terrestrial planets. 10. Identify which planets are terrestrial. 11. Determine if the planet has an atmosphere, and if so decide if the planet can sustain life. 12. Determine which planets have moons and which planets do not have moons. 13. Explain why some planets have moons and others do not. 57 Materials Needed To Be Prepared By The Teacher Prior To Teaching 1. Planet Costume: Cut a circle out of cardboard, about 20-26 inches in diameter. Punch two holes on the top of the circle. Tie a 30 inch string through the holes. You should be able to hang the costume around your neck to wear. Punch another two holes on the right and left corners. Tie another 20-26 inches string for the signs of the planets. Tie the string in the back. This allows you to flip the signs. Attach all eight planet signs to the board. 2. Signs for the planet costume: Write out the names of the planets on construction paper. If possible, laminate signs. Attach signs to the planet costume with tape. For Venus, write the letters backwards because Venus rotates backwards. 3. Picture of each planet: Obtain photos from the NASA website. http://www.nasa.gov/audience/foreducators/topnv /materials/listbytype/Solar.System.Lithograph.Set. html or refer to the resource page in this module. Make enough copies of each planet for each group. 58 4. Relative sizes for each planet: Look for different size balls. This website will give you the relative size of each planet based on the Sun (classroom width). http://www.exploratorium.edu/ronh/solar_system/i ndex.html 5. Yellow ball: representing the Sun, as big as possible. 6. Earth ball: 1 inch ball representing the Earth. 7. Transparency- Make a transparency of each worksheet for each planet. 8. Teacher's Guidebook: worksheets with the answers. 59 9. Model of a planet orbiting around the Sun: A model can be purchased at Lakeshore Learning found on the resource page. You can also make your own model with a large straform ball, small straform ball and a wire. Bend the wire tip about one inch and stick it in the bottom of the larger straform ball representing the Sun. On the other side of the wire bend the tip about one inch and stick it on the bottom of the smaller straform ball representing Earth. Sticking the wire in the bottom of the smaller straform ball (Earth) allows it to orbit around the larger straform ball (Sun). 10. Solar System Board: Use two pieces of cardboard and small pictures of the planets. Draw the orbital paths of the planets. Label the planets by initials and how long each planet’s orbital path takes. 11. Face on Mars: Picture of the “Face On Mars” found on the resource page of this module. 60 12. Two balls: any size as long as both balls are similar in size. 13. Terrestrial Planet Transparency 14. Terrestrial Planet Board 15. 2 ropes: small (4ft.), big (16-20ft.) 16. Signs: 1st sign should read #1 Mercury and the 2nd sign should read #9 Pluto. Laminate these signs and glue a popsicle stick on the back of the sign. This will help students to hold up the sign. 61 Materials For The Students 1. Student Workbook: Worksheets for the planets. 2. Crayons: Basic eight crayons. 3. Rocks: any types of rocks INTRODUCTION: FIRST FOUR PLANETS 1. Review the characteristics of Mercury. 2. Ask the students, “What's the first planet from the Sun?” [Expected Response: Mercury] 3. “What are some of the characteristics of Mercury?” [Expected Response: Heavily cratered, rocky surface, 2nd smallest planet, fastest orbit] 4. Demonstrate the hand signal for Mercury. (Students will learn all the hand signals of each planet in order from the Sun during the discussion of each planet.) All planet hand signals are found in Appendix A. 5. When the teacher asks students, “Show me what the first planet is,” students should use their hand signal to demonstrate, M is for Mercury. 6. Inform students that the second planet from the Sun is Venus. 7. Teach the hand signal for Venus. 62 ACTIVITY #5 – The Greenhouse Effect The intent of this activity is for students to understand, explain, and demonstrate how the greenhouse effect works and why Venus is so hot. Directions For The Teacher 1. Inform students, “Sit up straight and close your eyes. I want you to imagine it is very hot here on Earth. So hot, that you are sweating just sitting here. Open your eyes. How hot do you think Earth is? 90 degrees, 99 degrees, 110 degrees...Not hotter than 120 degrees or else we would burn.” 2. Inform students, “Venus is the hottest planet in our solar system. It reaches up to 864 degrees.” [Note: Some students will think Mercury is the hottest planet because it is closest to the Sun. Mercury is the second hottest planet reaching up to 800 degrees, but Venus is slightly higher in temperature because of one important difference or effect.] 3. Explain why Venus is so hot because of the greenhouse effect. A sample dialogue is provided with hand signals below. 4. For example: Venus is so extremely hot because of its really thick atmosphere. 5. Ask students, “What does atmosphere mean?” [Expected Response: Gases that surround a planet] 6. Venus has a thick atmosphere and the gases (carbon dioxide) in its atmosphere “trap” heat from escaping. 7. Teach the hand signals for why Venus is so hot, known as the greenhouse effect. Example dialogue is provided. 8. In groups, students “Pair Share.” In pairs, ask students to share with their partner why Venus is so hot. Venus is the hottest planet in our solar system. Venus has a really thick atmosphere and its gases, carbon dioxide, trap the heat (light) from escaping. Finally as the sunlight reaches its way through the thick atmosphere, the surface absorbs the heat. 63 As the surface re-emits (gives off the heat), it is trapped by the thick atmosphere. The heat is re-emitted, back and forth, making Venus hotter and hotter. Put your left hand across representing the atmosphere again. Use your right hand as the sunlight. Demonstrate how once the heat enters, it's trapped by the thick atmosphere. Move right hand underneath the left hand and bounce your right hand back and forth, representing the heat (sunlight) that can't escape. ACTIVITY # 6– VENUS, The Hottest Planet! The intent of this activity is for students to become aware of each unique individual planet by reviewing the nine characteristics and complete their workbook. Directions For The Teacher 1. Put on the Venus costume, the sign should be written backwards. 2. Students will notice that the sign is written backward and point out your mistake. Ignore their comments for the moment. Ask the students, “Planets move in two directions, what are the names of the two directions?” [Expected Response: Rotate and orbit] 3. Write the word rotate and orbit on the board. 4. Ask students to define rotate and orbit while you write their definitions on the board. 5. Ask the students, “How long did it take Earth to rotate?” [Expected Response: 1 day] “How long did it take Earth to orbit?” [Expected Response: 1 year] [Note: If needed, re-demonstrate rotate and orbit.] 64 6. Refer back to your “supposed” mistake of writing Venus backwards. 7. Inform students, “Venus rotates not only the slowest 248 days, but something happened to Venus when it rotates! 8. Scientist believe that one day Venus was rotating normally (lift up left hand while demonstrating rotation) when all of a sudden a huge object hit it. It forced Venus to start rotating in retrograde (lift up right hand while rotating). Retrograde means to rotate backwards, towards the right. 9. Other scientists believe the Sun is so big and powerful that it’s forcing Venus to go in retrograde. Either way, Venus rotates in retrograde. That's why my sign is backwards.” 10. Ask students to show you, by using their hands, what the first planet is? 11. Because Mercury is the closest planet to the Sun, it orbits the fastest around the Sun (88 days). 12. Bring out the solar system board, with the Sun at a fixed point with the elliptical orbital paths. Put the data for Mercury on the board (88 days). 13. Ask students, “Why does Mercury orbit the fastest around the Sun?” [Expected Response: Mercury is the closest and the Sun has a strong gravitational pull on it. Mercury also has a shorter distance to travel.] 14. Ask students to show you, by using their hands, the second planet from the Sun. 15. Venus is the second planet, so it orbits the second fastest around the Sun (225 days). Put the data for Venus on the board. 16. Earth is the third planet, so it orbits the third fastest around the Sun (1 year). Put the data for Earth on the board. 17. Show the picture of Venus surface. Then show the picture of Venus with its thick atmosphere. In groups, students explore and discuss what Venus really looks like and draw this planet’s appearance on page 3 in their workbook. 65 18. Use Venus transparency and review the questions in students’ workbooks. 19. While reading the Fun Facts for Venus from the student workbook, bring out the model representing Venus and Earth. 20. Ask the students, “What's similar between these two balls. [Expected Response: Same size] 21. Ask the students, “How many of you have sisters?” Venus is called Earth’s sister planet because it’s not the exact same size as Earth but Venus is similar in size. Venus is slightly smaller than Earth. 22. Using hand signals, review the first two planets in order from the Sun. 23. Teach the hand signal for Earth. DEMONSTRATION#4– Is There Life On Mars? The intent of this activity is for students to become fascinated about the mysteries of Mars, introduce space flight, rovers, and explain why people think there is life on Mars. Directions For The Teacher 1. Inform students that this next picture was taken from the surface of Mars as a spacecraft orbited around the planet. Show a photo of Mars from the NASA website (see resource page). 2. Explain what the face on Mars is. 3. This picture is not an alien or a body. Scientist sent a spacecraft and as it was taking pictures it took a picture of what appeared to be a face. This 66 structure was a mesa, a natural high land rock formation and as sunlight hit the surface, the illusion of a face appeared. The face of Mars is just rock formation and nothing more. 4. NASA sent spacecrafts and rovers, robotic machines that roam the surface of Mars, to look for signs of life. ACTIVITY # 7– Mars, the Red Planet! The intent of this activity is for students to become aware of the similarities between Mars and Earth and why many scientists are so fascinated with the surface of Mars. Students will review the nine characteristics and complete their workbook. Directions For The Teacher 1. Bring out a ball that represents the relative size of Mars, as compared to Mercury, Venus, and Earth and assuming the Sun is as big as the classroom. 2. Inform students, about each planets size. Mercury is one of the smallest planets, but not smaller than Pluto. Venus and Earth are sister planets because they are similar in size. And even though Mars is not similar in size and is rather smaller than Earth, Mars has Earth-like qualities. 3. Show the picture of Earth’s surface and the picture of Mars’ surface. 4. Ask the students, “Which side is Earth and which side is Mars?” [Expected Response: Earth is the planet with blue sky or blue atmosphere.] 5. “Yes, like Earth, Mars has a very rocky surface.” 6. Mars is the most visited planet by spacecraft (and not astronauts) because of its Earth-like qualities. 7. The rovers sent to Mars revealed there use to be water on it, but it dried up. Scientists really don’t know why the water disappeared and are still investigating this idea. 67 8. Mars rotates 37 minutes more than Earth, has a tilt less than two degrees more than Earth so it experiences seasons, has a very rocky surface like Earth, has polar caps like Earth (made of carbon dioxide and dry ice), and has the largest volcano in our solar system called Olympus Mons. 9. Mars is also known as the “Red Planet.” Rovers revealed Mars soil is composed of iron. This iron, mixed with small traces of oxygen found in its atmosphere, makes Mars’ appearance rusted, or looking red. Mars has small traces of oxygen but not enough to sustain life. 10. In groups, students will examine, describe, and draw the appearance of Mars on page 4 of the student workbook. 11. Use Mars transparency on the overhead and have the students’ check and complete the answers for Mars. 12. Explain why Mars has two moons. For example, “Although Mars is not that big, it is farther away from the Sun and is able to keep its moons. Mars moons were not formed the same way our moon formed. Scientist believe Mars moons were captured by pieces broken off a larger object such as another planet. 13. Teach the hand signal for Mars. ACTIVITY # 8 – Terrestrial Planets The intent of this activity is for students to categorize the first four planets with common characteristics and identify what makes these planets terrestrial. Directions For The Teacher 1. Ask students to show you the first four planets from the Sun, by using the planet hand signals. 2. Explain to the students, “The first four planets, Mercury, Venus, Earth and Mars are known as terrestrial planets because they all have common 68 characteristics. The characteristics of all terrestrial planets are the following: TERRESTRIAL PLANETS 1. INNER PLANETS 2. ROCKY 3. SOLID SURFACE 4. SMALL MASSES 5. SLOW ROTATION 6. FAST ORBIT 7. FEW/NO MOONS 8. NO RINGS 3. Place the terrestrial planets transparency on the overhead. Sample dialogue is provided below. 4. Inform students, “These planets are all inner planets because they are closest to the Sun.” 5. These planets are called terrestrial planets because they are all (bring out the rock) rocky. 6. Select a number (1-4) from the group and ask this person from each group to get four rocks and pass it around to all of the group members. 7. Explain the “two finger test.” Pretend that your two fingers are your legs and you have to land on the rock. Ask students, “What do you notice about the surface of the rock? [Expected Response: Solid, hard surface] 8. Select a number (1-4) from the group to collect the rocks. 9. Although, we think of Earth being a big planet, it is actually quite small compared to the other planets we will discuss. So the first four planets are relatively small in size as compared to the other planets in the solar system. 10. Inform students, “When we do our hand signals of the planets in order, we use one hand because they are small planets.” 11. Now planets do not just stay still, they move. “What are the two directions that they move?” [Expected Response: Rotation and orbit] 69 12. In groups, discuss if terrestrial planets rotate slow or fast. Hint: Think about the first four planets rotation, especially Venus and Mercury's rotation, are they fast or slow? [Expected Response: Terrestrial planets rotate slow] 13. Bring out the Solar System Poster Board. 14. Ask students, “What is the fastest orbiting planet?” [Expected Response: Mercury] 15. Ask students, “Why is Mercury the fastest orbiting planet?” [Expected Response: Because it's closest to the Sun, shorter distance to travel, and the Sun has a stronger gravitational pull.] 16. Mercury is the first planet, so its orbit is the first fastest. 17. Venus is the second planet, so its orbit is the second fastest. 18. Earth is the third planet, so it's the third fastest. 19. Mars is the fourth planet, so it's the fourth fastest. 20. Another characteristic of these is that they orbit fast around the Sun. So terrestrial planets orbit around the Sun really fast because they have less distance to travel. 21. Ask students, “Do these terrestrial planets have lots and lots of moons?” [Expected Response: No] “Why not?” [Expected Response: The Sun has a stronger gravitational pull than terrestrial planets.] 22. Ask students, “In fact, does Mercury have a moon?” [Expected Response: No] “Does Venus have a moon?” [Expected Response: No] “Does Earth have a moon?” [Expected Response: Yes, just one] “Does Mars have a moon?” [Expected Response: Yes, only two] “So terrestrial planets have few or no moons.” 23. Ask students, “During our discussions, have I ever mentioned rings around a planet?” [Expected Response: No] Terrestrial planets have no rings. 70 ACTIVITY # 9 – Terrestrial Planets Game The intent of this activity is to serve as an assessment of terrestrial planets and their hand signals. Directions For The Teacher 1. Part One: In pairs, students will practice the first four planets in order from the Sun by using their planet hand signals. 2. Part Two: The teacher poses questions about terrestrial planets. In pairs, students discuss possible answers. The teacher will randomly call students to answer. Suggested Questions: • What does rotate mean? • What is one characteristic of a terrestrial planet? • Name all four terrestrial planets in order from the Sun? • Show me all four terrestrial planets in order from the Sun by using the hand signals. • Why is Venus so hot? • Why does Mercury have so many craters? 71 DAY THREE Students will learn about gas giant planets and the common characteristics for the four gas giant planets. Students will then be able to define and record Jupiter and Saturn’s main features. Students will also participate in the Terrestrial versus Gas Giants Game. Objectives 1. Define a planet, moon and the Sun. 2. Demonstrate and describe rotation and orbit. 3. Determine how fast a planet will orbit based on its distance from the Sun. 4. Explain, measure, and demonstrate the diameter of a circle and how it relates to our planet's diameters. 5. Describe the relative size of the planets as compared to the size of the Sun. 6. Identify and demonstrate with hand signals for each planet in order from the Sun. 7. Draw and identify the planets by their appearance. 8. Describe gas giants. 9. Identify similarities about gas giant planets. 10. Identify which planets are gas giants. 11. Determine if the planet has an atmosphere, and if so decide if the planet can sustain life. 12. Determine which planets have moons and which planets do not have moons. 13. Explain why some planets have moons and others do not. 72 Materials Needed To Be Prepared By The Teacher Prior To Teaching 1. Planet Costume: Cut a circle out of cardboard, about 20-26 inches in diameter. Punch two holes on the top of the circle. Tie a 30 inch string through the holes. You should be able to hang the costume around your neck to wear. Punch another two holes on the right and left corners. Tie another 20-26 inches string for the signs of the planets. Tie the string in the back. This allows you to flip the signs. Attach all eight planet signs to the board. 2. Signs for the planet costume: Write out the names of the planets on construction paper. If possible, laminate signs. Attach signs to the planet costume with tape. For Venus, write the letters backwards because Venus rotates backwards. 3. Picture of each planet: Obtain photos from the NASA website. http://www.nasa.gov/audience/foreducators/topnv /materials/listbytype/Solar.System.Lithograph.Set. html or refer to the resource page in this module. Make enough copies of each planet for each group. 73 4. Relative sizes for each planet: Look for different size balls. This website will give you the relative size of each planet based on the Sun (classroom width). http://www.exploratorium.edu/ronh/solar_system/i ndex.html 5. Yellow ball: representing the Sun, as big as possible. 6. Earth ball: 1 inch ball representing the Earth. 7. Transparency- Make a transparency of each worksheet for each planet. 8. Teacher's Guidebook: worksheets with the answers. 74 9. Model of a planet orbiting around the Sun: A model can be purchased at Lakeshore Learning found on the resource page. You can also make your own model with a large straform ball, small straform ball and a wire. Bend the wire tip about one inch and stick it in the bottom of the larger straform ball representing the Sun. On the other side of the wire bend the tip about one inch and stick it on the bottom of the smaller straform ball representing Earth. Sticking the wire in the bottom of the smaller straform ball (Earth) allows it to orbit around the larger straform ball (Sun). 10. Solar System Board: Use two pieces of cardboard and small pictures of the planets. Draw the orbital paths of the planets. Label the planets by initials and how long each planet’s orbital path takes. 11. Gas Giant Transparency 75 12. Gas Giant Board 13. Terrestrial Versus Gas Giant Transparency 14. Terrestrial Versus Gas Giant Board: Cut a poster board in half and label the two columns terrestrial and gas giants. Draw a line in the middle separating the two categories. Print out a copy of pg.11 found in students’ workbook of the eight characteristics for each category. Cut, laminate, and attach Velcro to all sixteen characteristics. Attach Velcro to the board. Students have to sort and match each characteristic to the correct category. 15. Huge Exercise Ball: to represent Jupiter. 16. Light Blue And Dark Blue Balloons: representing Uranus and Neptune. 76 17. Optional: A spinner, dice, popsicle sticks (1- 4) to randomly call team member’s number. Materials For The Students 1. Student Workbook: Worksheets for the planets. 2. Crayons: Basic eight crayons. 3. Small water balloon taped to tray: Should be taped because students will play with it. 4. Optional: Small cup with ice to taste the rings of Saturn. INTRODUCTION: PLANET HAND SIGNALS 1. Ask students, “Show me hand signals for the first planet, second, third, and fourth planet from the Sun.” 2. Ask students, “These planets are called what?” [Expected Response: Terrestrial planets] 3. Review the characteristics of terrestrial planets. 4. Explain to the students, “The next four planets that we will discuss are called gas giant planets or gas giants.” 77 ACTIVITY # 10 – Gas Giants The intent of this activity is for students to become familiar with the four gas giants and the characteristics of gas giant planets. Directions For The Teacher 1. Inform the students, “The next four planets are called gas giant planets.” 2. Place the gas giant transparency on the overhead. 3. Explain to the students, “The next four planets, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune are known as gas giant planets because they all have common characteristics. The characteristics of all gas giant planets are the following: GAS GIANTS 1. OUTER PLANETS 2. GASEOUS 3. NO SOLID SURFACE 4. LARGE MASSES 5. FAST ROTATION 6. SLOW ORBIT 7. LOTS OF MOONS 8. RINGS 4. Inform students, the gas giant planets are all outer planets because they are farthest from the Sun. 5. Distribute a balloon taped to a tray to each group. 6. Ask students, “What's inside these balloons.” [Expected Response: Gas or air] 7. Inform students, “The gas giant planets are made of only gases, that’s why they are called gas giants.” 8. Have the students do the two finger test, to describe the surface of a gas giant planet. 78 9. Ask students, “How would you describe the surface of a gas giant planet?” [Expected Response: squishy, gaseous with no solid surface (if the rubber wasn’t there).] 10. Ask students, “So if you tried to land on it, you couldn’t. You wouldn’t fall right through the planets but you would actually just sink… sink… sink… until you hit a possible core. 11. Ask students, “Why do you think these planets are called giants?” [Expected Response: These planets are huge.] 12. Inform student, “These planets are massive and there is one really big planet.” 13. Explain to the students, “When we use the hand signals for the gas giant planets, we will use two hands because they are so massive.” 14. Inform students, “These planets rotate the fastest; in fact the next planet rotates the fastest.” 15. Inform students, “These planets orbit slowly around the Sun because these planets are the farthest away from the Sun. They all have a long distance to travel and since they are very far from the Sun, the Sun has a weaker gravitational pull.” 16. Inform students, “These planets have lots of moons because they are so big and are far from the Sun.” 17. Inform students, “All of the gas giant planets have rings around them. Some rings we can see when they are photographed because they are too thin. 18. Review the characteristics of gas giant planets by stating, “The next four planets we will discuss have these characteristics. 19. Inform students, “Let’s look at the characteristics of the terrestrial and gas giant planets. Use overhead for Terrestrial Versus Gas Giants transparency. TERRESTRIAL VERSUS GAS GIANTS 1. INNER PLANETS 1. OUTER P LANETS 79 2. ROCKY 3. SOLID SURFACE 4. SMALL MASSES 5. SLOW ROTATION 6. FAST ORBIT 7. FEW/NO MOONS 8. NO RINGS 20. 2. GASEOUS 3. NO SOLID SURFACE 4. LARGE MASSES 5. FAST ROTATION 6. SLOW ORBIT 7. LOTS OF MOONS 8. MANY RINGS Explain that these characteristics are almost complete opposites. ACTIVITY #11 – The Largest Planet, Jupiter The intent of this activity is for students to learn about Jupiter, to discuss the nine characteristics, and examine the crazy weather on this planet. Directions For The Teacher 1. Display the Gas Giants characteristics on the transparency. 2. Show the small balls representing all four terrestrial planets and compare them with the big exercise ball, which represents Jupiter. 3. Inform students, “This big ball represents the size of Jupiter, if the Sun was as big as the classroom. Notice how big it is as compared to this small ball representing Earth. Jupiter is the biggest planet in our solar system.” 4. Inform students, “Jupiter is the fifth planet from the Sun.” 5. Demonstrate the hand signal for Jupiter and inform students that we need two hands for gas giants because they are so big. 6. Ask students, “Do gas giants rotate fast or slow?” [Expected Response: Fast] 7. Inform students, “Jupiter rotates the fastest only 9 hours and 55 minutes, less than 10 hours. Because Jupiter rotates really fast, it has the craziest 80 weather formed by clouds.” 8. In groups, examine a picture of Jupiter. Discuss the appearance of Jupiter and review the colors needed for their drawing. 9. Students may ask, “What is that red spot?” 10. Inform students, “Jupiter has a huge tornado that's been swirling around for over hundreds of years. It is called the Great Red Spot. The Great Red Spot is so big that three Earth's can fit across it.” 11. Show the close-up picture of Jupiter’s Red Spot. 12. Have the students draw Jupiter on page 6 and answer all questions in their workbook. 13. After putting Jupiter’s transparency on the overhead, discuss the answers. 14. Ask students, “What does atmosphere mean?” [Expected Response: Gases surrounding the planet] 15. Inform students, “Gas giants are ONLY made of gases and have no solid surface.” 16. Ask students, “Does Jupiter have an atmosphere?” [Extended Response: Yes, it's only made up gases] 17. Inform students, “There is no oxygen. So can we live on this planet?” [Expected Response: No] 18. When explaining that all gas giants have rings, some observant students might ask, “Why can't we see rings around Jupiter.” 19. Inform students, “that Jupiter's rings are very, very thin, and can't be seen when photographed.” 20. The next planet's rings are very, very thick and can be seen. 81 ACTIVITY #12 – The Rings Of Saturn The intent of this activity is for students to become aware of Saturn and its fabulous rings by reviewing the same nine characteristics. Directions For The Teacher 1. Show a picture of Saturn. 2. Inform students, “Saturn is a very distinctive planet. What features can we see that the other planets have but can’t be seen when photographed?” [Extended Response: The rings] 3. Sketch a picture of Saturn on the board. 4. Inform students, “The rings are made of: rock, dust, and ICE.” 5. Inform students, “We are going to taste the rings of Saturn.” Pass out a small piece of ice in small paper cups. Ask students to put the ice in their mouths. Ask students, “What is one of the things that make up Saturn’s rings that we ate?” [Expected Response: Ice] 6. Show a picture of Saturn’s rings. 7. Explain the different sizes of rocks and ice found in the rings. Some of the rocks and ice are as small as your thumbnail while some of the rocks and ice are as big as a school bus. You wouldn't want to be inside the rings because the rocks and ice are crashing, breaking, and hitting each other, and it is very dangerous.” 8. Have students draw Saturn's appearance on page 6 in their workbook and answer question 1-8. 9. Using the transparency for Saturn, discuss the characteristics of Saturn. Explain how sometimes people think Saturn's the biggest planet because of the rings, but if you take away the rings, it would be a little bit smaller than Jupiter. 10. Saturn is the only planet that is less dense than water and could float in 82 water. 11. In a small tub filled half way with water, place a small balloon with Saturn written on it, in the water. Watch Saturn float in water! Ask students, “What is Saturn doing?” [Expected Response: floating] 12. Demonstrate the hand signal for Saturn. ACTIVITY #13 – Terrestrial Versus Gas Giants The intent of this activity is for students to categorize each planet by their characteristics, either terrestrial or gas giant. Directions For The Teacher 1. Distribute a Terrestrial Versus Gas giant board to each group of four. 2. The Terrestrial Versus Gas Giant Board consists of two columns with eight characteristics for each column. The eight characteristics are identical to students’ workbook pg. 11 and are Velcroed on the board. TERRESTRIAL VERSUS GAS GIANTS 1. INNER PLANETS 2. ROCKY 3. SOLID SURFACE 4. SMALL MASSES 5. SLOW ROTATION 6. FAST ORBIT 7. FEW/NO MOONS 8. NO RINGS 1. OUTER P LANETS 2. GASEOUS 3. NO SOLID SURFACE 4. LARGE MASSES 5. FAST ROTATION 6. SLOW ORBIT 7. LOTS OF MOONS 8. MANY RINGS 3. Students will receive the eight characteristics for each category. Each student will pick two characteristics. Students will take turns reading their characteristics and as a group, decide what category (terrestrial or gas giants) it belongs under. 4. Students will check their answers on page 11. 83 DAY FOUR Students will review terrestrial and gas giant planets, learn about dwarf planets, and discuss other solar systems in the universe. Students will also participate in the Solar System Game. Objectives 1. 2. 3. 4. Define a planet, moon and Sun. Demonstrate and describe rotation and orbit. Explain Kepler's Laws of Planetary Motion. Explain, measure, and demonstrate the diameter of a circle and how it relates to our planet's diameters. 5. Describe the relative size of the planets as compared to the size of the Sun. 6. Identify and demonstrate with hand signals for each planet in order from the Sun. 7. Draw and identify the planets by their appearance. 8. Identify which planets are terrestrial and which planets are gas giants. 9. Describe a terrestrial and gas giant planets. 10. Identify similarities and differences between terrestrial and gas giant planets. 11. Determine if the planet has an atmosphere, and if so decide if the planet can sustain life. 12. Determine which planets have moons and which planets do not have moons. 13. Explain why some planets have moons and others do not. 14. Explain that there are other solar systems in the universe. 84 Materials Needed To Be Prepared By The Teacher Prior To Teaching 1. Planet Costume: Cut a circle out of cardboard, about 20-26 inches in diameter. Punch two holes on the top of the circle. Tie a 30 inch string through the holes. You should be able to hang the costume around your neck to wear. Punch another two holes on the right and left corners. Tie another 20-26 inches string for the signs of the planets. Tie the string in the back. This allows you to flip the signs. Attach all eight planet signs to the board. 2. Signs for the planet costume: Write out the names of the planets on construction paper. If possible, laminate signs. Attach signs to the planet costume with tape. For Venus, write the letters backwards because Venus rotates backwards. 3. Picture of each planet: Obtain photos from the NASA website. http://www.nasa.gov/audience/foreducators/topnv /materials/listbytype/Solar.System.Lithograph.Set. html or refer to the resource page in this module. Make enough copies of each planet for each group. 85 4. Relative sizes for each planet: Look for different size balls. This website will give you the relative size of each planet based on the Sun (classroom width). http://www.exploratorium.edu/ronh/solar_system/i ndex.html 5. Yellow ball: representing the Sun, as big as possible. 6. Earth ball: 1 inch ball representing the Earth. 7. Transparency- Make a transparency of each worksheet for each planet. 8. Teacher's Guidebook: worksheets with the answers. 86 9. Model of a planet orbiting around the Sun: A model can be purchased at Lakeshore Learning found on the resource page. You can also make your own model with a large straform ball, small straform ball and a wire. Bend the wire tip about one inch and stick it in the bottom of the larger straform ball representing the Sun. On the other side of the wire bend the tip about one inch and stick it on the bottom of the smaller straform ball representing Earth. Sticking the wire in the bottom of the smaller straform ball (Earth) allows it to orbit around the larger straform ball (Sun). 10. Solar System Board: Use two pieces of cardboard and small pictures of the planets. Draw the orbital paths of the planets. Label the planets by initials and how long each planet’s orbital path takes. 11. Gas Giant Transparency 87 12. Gas Giant Board 13. Terrestrial Versus Gas Giant Transparency 14. Terrestrial Versus Gas Giant Board: Cut a poster board in half and label the two columns terrestrial and gas giants. Draw a line in the middle separating the two categories. Print out a copy of pg.11 found in students’ workbook of the eight characteristics for each category. Cut, laminate, and attach Velcro to all sixteen characteristics. Attach Velcro to the board. Students have to sort and match each characteristic to the correct category. 15. Huge Exercise Ball: to represent Jupiter. 16. Light Blue And Dark Blue Balloons: representing Uranus and Neptune. 88 17. Optional: A spinner, dice, popsicle sticks (1- 4) to randomly call team member’s number. Materials For The Students 1. Student Workbook: Worksheets for the planets. 2. Crayons: Basic eight crayons. 3. Small water balloon taped to tray: Should be taped because students will play with it. INTRODUCTION: THE LAST DAY 1. Show the solar system board and start with the hand signals for the planets, Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn. 2. Review terrestrial and gas giant board and their characteristics. 3. The 7th planet from the Sun is Uranus and it is classified as a gas giant. 4. Demonstrate the hand signal for Uranus and then show the light blue balloon which will represent Uranus. 89 ACTIVITY #14 – Uranus The intent of this activity is for students to become aware of Uranus and its sideways rotation by discussing the nine characteristics. Directions For The Teacher 1. Show the light blue balloon. 2. Inform students, “This balloon will represent Uranus. Uranus is light blue because it is made of methane gases, giving it a blue color. It is smooth and has no appearance of cloud formation.” 3. Scientist believe deep inside the planet is frozen water. 4. Uranus rotation is unlike any planet we discovered. Demonstrate Uranus rotation with the balloon. Uranus has a severe tilt making it appear to rotate sideways. 5. Explain why Uranus has a severe tilt. For example: When planets were first forming, Uranus was hit by a large object and forced Uranus’ tilt to become at a 98 degree angle. Not only does it appear to rotate on its side but it rotates in retrograde. 6. Like all gas giants, Uranus has rings but its rings are thin, dark, and usually can’t be seen when photographed. 7. Draw a sketch of Uranus and its thin rings on the board. Make sure the rings are vertical, representing Uranus severe tilt. 90 8. In groups, students examine a picture of Uranus and draw it in their workbook. Students answer questions 1-8 on their workbook page 8. 9. Use Uranus’s transparency on the overhead to check and correct answers. ACTIVITY #15 – Neptune The intent of this activity is for students to learn about Neptune, discuss the nine characteristics, and examine the planet’s Dark Spot. Directions For The Teacher 1. Show the Dark Blue balloon. 2. Inform the students, “This balloon will represent Neptune.” 3. Draw a dark spot approximately 3 inches anywhere on the balloon. 4. Inform the students, “Neptune also has a giant dark spot, like Jupiter’s Red Spot.” 5. Ask the question, “What was that Giant Red Spot on Jupiter?” [Expected Response: A tornado] “What do you think Neptune’s Giant Dark Spot is?” [Expected Response: It is also a tornado]. “Yes, it’s a tornado.” 6. Neptune is slightly smaller than Uranus, but spins faster. In fact, Uranus has the fastest winds in the solar system. Neptune can rip you to shreds if you entered its atmosphere. Its speeds reach up to 1,200 mph. 7. Unlike Uranus, Neptune has visible clouds in its atmosphere. 8. In groups, have students examine a picture of Neptune and draw it in their workbook. Ask students to answer questions 1-8 in their workbook page 9. 9. Use Neptune’s transparency on the overhead to correct and check answers. 10. Demonstrate to the students the hand signal for Neptune. 91 11. Give nine student helpers each a picture of a planet. Inform students, “This is the Sun.” Hold up the yellow straform ball that represents the Sun. Have students rearrange themselves in order from the Sun. While reviewing, go over each planet’s hand signal. ACTIVITY #16 – Pluto, Dwarf Planet! The intent of this activity is for students to learn that Pluto is no longer considered a planet but a “dwarf planet.” It is still part of the main planets in our solar system. Students will become familiar with other dwarf planets found in our solar system. Directions For The Teacher 1. Inform students, “Pluto is an odd ball because it’s neither a terrestrial planet nor a gas giant. It is rocky and icy.” 2. On August 17, 2006, the International Astronomical Union redefined the term “planet.” Pluto no longer qualifies as a planet. 3. Inform students, “Pluto is the ninth dwarf planet in our solar system. A dwarf planet must orbit the Sun; must have nearly a round shape; and has not cleared away objects in its neighborhood. 4. Pluto was demoted because of its highly elliptical orbit. 92 5. Demonstrate on the Solar System Board, Pluto's highly elliptical orbit as compared to other planets. This orbit should not be on the same plane as the other planets but should go off the board. 6. Bring out a small ball to represent Pluto, compared to the other balls representing relative planet sizes. The ball representing Pluto should be more than ½ of Mercury. 7. Inform students, “Pluto is the smallest and coldest dwarf planet compared to the other eight planets. Why do you think Pluto is the coldest?”[Expected Response: It's the farthest from the Sun] 8. Ask students to demonstrate the planets in order using their hand signals. 9. Inform students, “Pluto is the farthest planet, so it orbits the slowest. Pluto takes 250 years to go around the Sun. So the farther the planet, the slower it will be because it not only has more distance to travel but the Sun has a less gravitational force on the planet.” 10. Inform students, “Let’s look at a picture of Pluto. But wait, scientists have never been to Pluto. So we really do not know what it looks like.” 11. Inform students, “In January of 2005, a U.S. mission was sent to space to observe Pluto. This mission is called the NEW HORIZON. In 9 years, the spacecraft will reach Pluto and then we will have a picture of Pluto for the very first time. So in nine years, look in the newspaper and discover Pluto's appearance for the first time.” 12. Ask students to complete questions 1- 8 in the student workbook. 13. Use Pluto’s transparency on the overhead to check and complete answers. 14. Inform students, “Technology is constantly advancing and scientists gather newer information all the time. This newer information enhances, modifies, or completely changes what we had previously thought. Such as, Pluto was once a planet and is now a dwarf planet.” 15. Inform students, “With this constantly changing technology, scientist have detected other solar systems, with planets orbiting stars. Scientists have also 93 detected something beyond Pluto, rotating and orbiting around our Sun. 16. NASA's Hubble Space Telescope has categorized this object as a dwarf planet, named Eris. 17. Answer any questions students have about Eris, dwarf planets, or other solar systems. Information can be found in the Science Content. ACTIVITY #17 – Solar System Game The intent of this activity is for students to demonstrate their knowledge of the solar system by continuing to work in groups, using the strategy Numbered Heads Together. Directions For The Teacher Steps to Numbered Heads Together 1. Number students from 1 to 4 within their teams. 2. Call out a question or problem. (Example: What is the closest planet to the Sun?) 3. Students in teams put their heads together to discuss the answer. They must make sure everyone on their team knows the answer. 4. Randomly call a number from 1 to 4 using a spinner, draw popsicle sticks out of a cup, or roll a die. 5. On each team, the student whose number was called writes the answer on the team response board. They may not receive any help from their team at this point! They place the response board face down when ready. 6. When all teams are ready, have the designated student stand and hold up their response board to show their answer. Check each team's answer for accuracy. 7. All groups that held up the right answer will receive a point. 8. Repeat with additional questions as time allows. 94 9. Suggested Questions found in appendix E. 95 RESOURCES AND REFERENCES The following references were helpful in designing this module. Books Andrew Bridges, The Inside Story Of Mars, 2007, Sally Ride Science, ISBN: 09753920-8-5 Beth Geiger, The Inside Story Of Saturn and The Inside Story Of Jupiter, 2007, Sally Ride Science, ISBN: 1-933798-08-4 and ISBN: 1-933798-07-6 Eric Chaisson and Steve McMillan, Astronomy Today 4th edition, 2002, Prentice Hall, ISBN: 0-13-091542-4 Giovanni Caprara, The Solar System, 2003, A Firefly Guide, ISBN:1-55297-679-3 Matt Hutson, The Inside Story Of The Sun, 2007, Sally Ride Science, ISBN: 1933798-06-8 Poor Pluto! 2007, Scholastic, ISBN-10:0-545-04881-8, ISBN-13:978-0-54504881-1 Ralph M. Feather, Astronomy, 2008, McGraw Hill, ISBN: 978-0-07-877830-8 Tam O’Shaughnessy, The Inside Story Of Earth, 2007, Sally Ride Science, ISBN: 1-933798-09-2 The Planets: A Journey Through the Solar System, 2006, Quercus, ISBN: 1-84724514-5 Universe: A Journey From Earth To The Edge Of The Cosmos, 2006, Quercus, ISBN: 1-8724-143-3 Websites Formation of the Solar System http://www.jpl.nasa.gov 96 Picture of the Sun http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/images/sun/sun_soho_browse.jpg Picture of Terrestrial Planets http://cseligman.com/text/planets/terrestrialsize.jpg Picture of Mercury http://www.nasa.gov/worldbook/mercury_worldbook.html Picture Venus http://www.nasa.gov/worldbook/venus_worldbook.html http://www.dtm.ciw.edu/akir/Images/Venus/venus.mariner.gif http://www.solarviews.com/browse/venus/venus2.jpg Picture of Earth http://www.nasa.gov/worldbook/earth_worldbook.html http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:The_Earth_seen_from_Apollo_17.jpg http://www.wonderquest.com/FullEarth.htg/FullEarth1.jpg Picture of Mars http://www.nasa.gov/worldbook/mars_worldbook.html http://rst.gsfc.nasa.gov/Sect19/br_earth-mars-front.jpg http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Face_on_Mars http://alexis.m2osw.com/images/mars_face.jpg Picture of Gas Giant Planets http://motivate.maths.org/conferences/conf42/Talk_images/outer_planets_m all_2.jpg Picture of Jupiter http://www.nasa.gov/worldbook/jupiter_worldbook.html http://d.villafruela.free.fr/dictionaire/J/img_J/jupiter.jpg http://www.the-solar-system.net/galilean-moons.html Picture of Saturn http://www.nasa.gov/worldbook/saturn_worldbook.html http://hpd.botanic.hr/ast/astronomija/sunsust/saturn/saturn.jpg Picture of Uranus 97 http://www.nasa.gov/worldbook/uranus_worldbook.html http://www.sarkanniemi.fi/oppimateriaali/tahtiakatemia/kuvat/aurinkokunta/ uranus.jpg http://www.bnsc.gov.uk/assets/channels/education/ae/Uranus_from_Hubble.j pg Picture of Neptune http://www.nasa.gov/worldbook/neptune_worldbook.html http://www.het.brown.edu/people/ian/ph21/neptune.jpg Pluto http://www.nasa.gov/worldbook/pluto_worldbook.html http://www.nasa.gov/vision/universe/solarsystem/hubble_pluto.html http://pluto.jhuapl.edu/science/everything_pluto/16_plutoOrbit.html Solar System Lithographs http://www.nasa.gov/audience/foreducators/tonav/materials/listbytape/By_T ype_Lithographs_landingpage.html Relative Sizes of Planets http://www.exploratorium.edu/ronh/solar_system/index.html Solar System http://www.nineplanets.org/ http://pds.jpl.nasa.gov/planets/ http://www.enchantedlearning.com/subjects/astronomy/planets/ http://starchild.gsfc.nasa.gov/docs/StarChild/solar_system_level1/planets.ht ml http://www.nineplanets.org/overview.html http://www.solarviews.com/eng/solarsys.htm http://solarsystem.nasa.gov/planets/index.cfm http://www.space.com/planets/ http://www.windows.ucar.edu/ http://www.gps.caltech.edu/~mbrown/planetlila/ Kids Astronomy websites: www.kidsastronomy.com http://spaceplace.nasa.gov/en/kids/ http://imagine.gsfc.nasa.gov/ 98 http://starchild.gsfc.nasa.gov/docs/StarChild/StarChild.html http://www.kidsastronomy.com/solar_system.htm http://spaceplace.nasa.gov/en/kids/ Interactive Universe http://www.history.com/genericContent.do?id=5449 Let’s Plan It: Getting Your System In Order www.science-fest.org OTHER Lakeshore Learning Materials 2695 E. Dominguez St. Carson, CA 90895 www.lakeshorelearning.com The Universe (Season 1 and Season 2) www.historychannel.com Planets- Eyewitness DVD Video ISBN: 978-0-7566-3890-0 99 Appendix A Planet Hand Signals Planet Hand Signals M is for Mercury. Use three fingers to make an “M.” Mercury is the first planet from the Sun. V is for Venus. Use two fingers to make a “V.” Venus is the second planet from the Sun. E is for Earth. Use three fingers to make an “E.” Earth is the third planet from the Sun. M is for Mars. Use four fingers to make another version of an “M.” Mars is the fourth planet from the Sun. J is for Jupiter. Use two hands to make a “J” and Jupiter is a gas giant and gas giants are huge. Jupiter is the fifth planet from the Sun. S is for Saturn. Use two hands to make an “S.” Saturn is the sixth planet from the Sun. U is for Uranus. Use two hands to make a “U.” Uranus is the seventh planet from the Sun. N is for Neptune. Use two hands to make an “N.” Neptune is the eighth planet from the Sun. P is for Pluto. Use one hand to make a “P.” Pluto is the small and is neither a terrestrial nor gas giant. Pluto is a dwarf planet and the ninth from the Sun. Appendix B Materials Needed For Module Materials Needed To Be Prepared By The Teacher Prior To Teaching Day 1-4 uses Materials #1-10 and Student Materials #1-2 throughout the module. Extra materials for each day are included. 1. Planet Costume: Cut a circle out of cardboard, about 20-26 inches in diameter. Punch two holes on the top of the circle. Tie a 30 inch string through the holes. You should be able to hang the costume around your neck to wear. Punch another two holes on the right and left corners. Tie another 20-26 inches string for the signs of the planets. Tie the string in the back. This allows you to flip the signs. Attach all eight planet signs to the board. 2. Signs for the planet costume: Write out the names of the planets on construction paper. If possible, laminate signs. Attach signs to the planet costume with tape. For Venus, write the letters backwards because Venus rotates backwards. 3. Picture of each planet: Obtain photos from the NASA website. http://www.nasa.gov/audience/foreducators/topnv /materials/listbytype/Solar.System.Lithograph.Set. html or refer to the resource page in this module. Make enough copies of each planet for each group. 4. Relative sizes for each planet: Look for different size balls. This website will give you the relative size of each planet based on the Sun (classroom width). http://www.exploratorium.edu/ronh/solar_system/i ndex.html 5. Yellow ball: representing the Sun, as big as possible. 6. Earth ball: 1 inch ball representing the Earth. 7. Transparency- Make a transparency of each worksheet for each planet. 8. Teacher's Guidebook: worksheets with the answers. 9. Model of a planet orbiting around the Sun: A model can be purchased at Lakeshore Learning found on the resource page. You can also make your own model with a large straform ball, small straform ball and a wire. Bend the wire tip about one inch and stick it in the bottom of the larger straform ball representing the Sun. On the other side of the wire bend the tip about one inch and stick it on the bottom of the smaller straform ball representing Earth. Sticking the wire in the bottom of the smaller straform ball (Earth) allows it to orbit around the larger straform ball (Sun). 10. Solar System Board: Use two pieces of cardboard and small pictures of the planets. Draw the orbital paths of the planets. Label the planets by initials and how long each planet’s orbital path takes. Student Materials 1. Student Workbook: Worksheets for the planets. 2. Crayons: Basic eight crayons. Extra for Day 1 11. Ball: Straform ball or any size ball. Cut the ball in half to show diameter of a circle. 12. Circle Packet: Have a ziplock bag with various size circles and rulers in it to measure the circles’ diameters. 13. Small Sun: classroom set of a small pictures or stickers of the Sun. 14. Balloon: Any size, any color. 15. Optional: Tape measure. 16. Optional: Star Wars theme song or any type of music for the Solar System Story. Extra for Day 2 11. Face on Mars: Picture of the “Face On Mars” found on the resource page of this module. 12. Two balls: any size as long as both balls are similar in size. 13. Terrestrial Planet Transparency 14. Terrestrial Planet Board 15. 2 ropes: small (4ft.), big (16-20ft.) 16. Signs: 1st sign should read #1 Mercury and the 2nd sign should read #9 Pluto. Laminate these signs and glue a popsicle stick on the back of the sign. This will help students to hold up the sign. Student Materials 3. Rocks: any types of rocks Extra for Day 3 &4 11. Gas Giant Transparency 12. Gas Giant Board 13. Terrestrial Versus Gas Giant Transparency 14. Terrestrial Versus Gas Giant Board: Cut a poster board in half and label the two columns terrestrial and gas giants. Draw a line in the middle separating the two categories. Print out a copy of pg.11 found in students’ workbook of the eight characteristics for each category. Cut, laminate, and attach Velcro to all sixteen characteristics. Attach Velcro to the board. Students have to sort and match each characteristic to the correct category. 15. Huge Exercise Ball: to represent Jupiter. 16. Light Blue And Dark Blue Balloons: representing Uranus and Neptune. 17. Optional: A spinner, dice, popsicle sticks (1- 4) to randomly call team member’s number. Student Materials 3. Small water balloon taped to tray: Should be taped because students will play with it. 4. Optional: Small cup with ice to taste the rings of Saturn. Appendix C Overhead Transparencies 1ST PLANET: MERCURY 1. Rotate: 3. Diameter: 88days 2. Orbit: 59 days 4,222 miles 4. Distance from the Sun: 36 million miles 5. Appearance/Surface: Heavily cratered, rocky, and yellowbrown. 6. Atmosphere: Yes No 7. Can we live on this planet? Yes No 8. Does this planet have any moons? Yes And if so, how many moons? ___________ No 9. Fun Facts: Mercury is the smallest terrestrial planet. Mercury is the 2nd hottest and coldest planet in our solar system. Mercury is also the fastest orbiting planet because it’s the closest to the Sun and it has a shorter distance to travel. Terrestrial Planet pg. 1 2nd PLANET: VENUS 1. Rotate: 243 days 2.Orbit: 225 days (IN RETROGRADE) 3. Diameter: 7,523 miles 4. Distance from the Sun: 67 million miles 5. Appearance/Surface: Rocky surface with thick cloudy yellow atmosphere. 6. Atmosphere: Yes 7. Can we live on this planet? No Yes No 8. Does this planet have any moons? Yes No And if so, how many moons?____________ 9. Fun Facts: Venus is the hottest planet in our solar system because its gases in its atmosphere trap heat creating an intense greenhouse effect. Venus has the slowest retrograde rotation because scientists think something hit it or because of the powerful Sun’s gravity. Venus is also Earth’s “sister planet” because of their similar diameter. Terrestrial Planet pg. 2 3rd PLANET: EARTH 1. Rotate: 3. Diameter: 1 day 2. Orbit: 1 year 9, 726 miles 4. Distance from the Sun: 93 million miles = 1 AU 5. Appearance/Surface: blue water, white clouds, and brown patches of land. 6. Atmosphere: Yes OR 7. Can we live on this planet? No Yes OR 8. Does this planet have any moons? Yes And if so, how many moons? 1 No OR No 9. Fun Facts: Earth is the only planet that has life on it that we know of. It is the most active planet in our solar system. Earth is the largest terrestrial planet but not the largest planet in our solar system. Terrestrial Planet pg. 3 4th PLANET: MARS 1. Rotate: 1 day and 37 minutes. 2. Orbit: 3. Diameter: 1.2 years 4,222 miles 4. Distance from the Sun: 142 million miles 5. Appearance/Surface: red-brown rocky surface 6. Atmosphere: Yes 7. Can we live on this planet: No Yes 8. Does this planet have any moons? Yes And if so, how many moons? 2 No No 9. Fun Facts: Mars use to have water on it! Mars has very small traces of Oxygen in its atmosphere. Mars has the biggest volcano in our solar system called Olympus Mons. Mars is also known as the “Red Planet.” Terrestrial Planet pg. 4 5th PLANET: JUPITER 1.Rotate: 9 hours and 55 minutes 3. Diameter: 2. Orbit: 12 years 88, 846 miles 4.Distance from the Sun: 483 million miles 5.Appearance/Surface: Great Red Spot, swirling stripes of gases 6. Atmosphere: Yes 7. Can we live on this planet: No Yes 8. Does this planet have any moons? Yes And if so, how many moons? At least 63 No No 9. Fun Facts: Jupiter is the BIGGEST planet in our solar system. Jupiter rotates the fastest and has crazy weather. Jupiter has a Great Red Spot which is a constant tornado. Jupiter's has some of the most unique and biggest moons in the solar system (Ganymede, Callisto, Io, Europa). Gas Giants pg. 5 6th PLANET: SATURN 1.Rotate: 10 hours and 13 minutes 2. Orbit: 3. Diameter/Size: 29.4 years 74, 898 miles 4.Distance from the Sun: 888 million miles 5.Appearance/Surface: Rings, smooth gaseous, yellowish, 6. Atmosphere: Yes 7. Can we live on this planet: No Yes 8. Does this planet have any moons? Yes And if so, how many moons? 31 No No 9. Fun Facts: Saturn’s density is less dense than that of water. Therefore, Saturn is the only gas giant that could float in a bathtub of water, if such a thing existed. Saturn is known for its fabulous rings, which are made of ice, rock, and dust particles. Gas Giants pg. 6 7th PLANET: URANUS 1.Rotate: 17. 2 hours 2. Orbit: 84 years (SIDEWAYS and IN RETROGRADE) 3. Diameter: 31, 763 miles 4.Distance from the Sun: 1,784 million miles 5.Appearance/Surface: Green-blue smooth surface, 6. Atmosphere: Yes 7. Can we live on this planet: No Yes 8. Does this planet have any moons? Yes And if so, how many moons? 27 No No 9. Fun Facts: Uranus rotates on its side and goes in retrograde. Evidence suggests that rock and ice may exist underneath Uranus atmosphere. Like all the gas giants, Uranus has rings but you can't see them because they are thin. Gas Giants pg. 7 8th PLANET: NEPTUNE 1.Rotate: 16 hours and 17 minutes 2. Orbit: 165 years 3. Diameter: 30,775 miles 4.Distance from the Sun: 2,794 million miles 5.Appearance/Surface: Darker blue, Great Dark Spot, small cloud formation 6. Atmosphere: Yes OR 7. Can we live on this planet: No Yes OR No 8. Does this planet have any moons? Yes OR No And if so, how many moons? 13 9. Fun Facts: Neptune has the fastest winds in the solar system; reaching up to 1,200 mph. Neptune has a “Great Dark Spot,” which is a tornado. Gas Giants pg. 8 9th PLANET: PLUTO 1.Rotate: 6 days and 9 hours 2. Orbit: 3. Diameter: 250 years 1,485 miles 4.Distance from the Sun: 3,647 million miles 5.Appearance/Surface: Haven’t been there yet/ No Pictures 6. Atmosphere: Yes 7. Can we live on this planet: No Yes No 8. Does this planet have any moons? Yes No And if so, how many moons? 3 9. Fun Facts: Pluto is the coldest planet in our solar system (-378 to -396 degrees Fahrenheit). Pluto's atmosphere sometimes freezes because it is so cold. Pluto is the smallest planet and is even smaller than the seven largest moons. It has a weird elliptical orbit that at one time crossed Neptune’s path. NASA launched for the first time a trip to Pluto, known as the New Horizon Mission. In nine years, we will have the first pictures of Pluto. There are three known dwarf planets, Pluto, Eris and Ceres. Odd-Ball pg. 9 Appendix D Student Workbook An Astronomer’s Guide Through The Solar System Student Workbook Name:____________________________ Table of Contents 1st Planet: Mercury………………………………………….pg. 1 2nd Planet: Venus……………………………………………pg. 2 3rd Planet: Earth……………………………………………..pg. 3 4th Planet: Mars……………………………………………..pg. 4 5th Planet: Jupiter……………………………………….…...pg. 5 6th Planet: Saturn……………………………………………pg. 6 7th Planet: Uranus………………………...…………………pg. 7 8th Planet: Neptune…………………….……………………pg. 8 9th Dwarf Planet: Pluto……………...………………………pg. 9 Glossary………………………………………………..pg. 10-11 Terrestrial Versus Gas Giants……………………………...pg. 12 Seven Largest Moons in the Solar System………………..pg. 13 1ST PLANET: MERCURY 1. Rotate: 3. Diameter: 2. Orbit: 4,222 miles 4. Distance from the Sun: 36 million miles 5. Appearance/Surface: 6. Atmosphere: Yes No 7. Can we live on this planet? Yes No 8. Does this planet have any moons? Yes No And if so, how many moons? ____________ 9. Fun Facts: Mercury is the smallest terrestrial planet. Mercury is the 2nd hottest and coldest planet in our solar system. Mercury is also the fastest orbiting planet because it’s the closest to the Sun and it has a shorter distance to travel. Terrestrial Planet pg. 1 2nd PLANET: VENUS 1. Rotate: 2.Orbit: (IN RETROGRADE) 3. Diameter: 7,523 miles 4. Distance from the Sun: 67 million miles 5. Appearance/Surface: 6. Atmosphere: Yes 7. Can we live on this planet? No Yes No 8. Does this planet have any moons? Yes No And if so, how many moons?____________ 9. Fun Facts: Venus is the hottest planet in our solar system because its gases in its atmosphere trap heat creating an intense greenhouse effect. Venus has the slowest retrograde rotation because scientists think something hit it or because of the powerful Sun’s gravity. Venus is also Earth’s “sister planet” because of their similar diameter. Terrestrial Planet pg. 2 3rd PLANET: EARTH 1. Rotate: _______________ 2. Orbit: ____________________ 3. Diameter: _________________________________________ 4. Distance from the Sun: = 1 AU 5. Appearance/Surface:_________________________________ 6. Atmosphere: Yes OR 7. Can we live on this planet? No Yes OR No 8. Does this planet have any moons? Yes OR And if so, how many moons? ____________ No 9. Fun Facts: Earth is the only planet that has life on it that we know of. It is the most active planet in our solar system. Earth is the largest terrestrial planet but not the largest planet in our solar system. Terrestrial Planet pg. 3 4th PLANET: MARS 1. Rotate: 3. Diameter: 2. Orbit: 4,222 miles 4. Distance from the Sun: 142 million miles 5. Appearance/Surface: 6. Atmosphere: Yes 7. Can we live on this planet: No Yes No 8. Does this planet have any moons? Yes No And if so, how many moons?____________ 9. Fun Facts: Mars use to have water on it! Mars has very small traces of Oxygen in its atmosphere. Mars has the biggest volcano in our solar system called Olympus Mons. Mars is also known as the “Red Planet.” Terrestrial Planet pg. 4 5th PLANET: JUPITER 1.Rotate:_________________ 3. Diameter: 2. Orbit: 88, 846 miles 4.Distance from the Sun: 483 million miles 5.Appearance/Surface: 6. Atmosphere: Yes 7. Can we live on this planet: No Yes No 8. Does this planet have any moons? Yes No And if so, how many moons?____________ 9. Fun Facts: Jupiter is the BIGGEST planet in our solar system. Jupiter rotates the fastest and has crazy weather. Jupiter has a Great Red Spot which is a constant tornado. Jupiter's has some of the most unique and biggest moons in the solar system (Ganymede, Callisto, Io, Europa). Gas Giants pg. 5 6th PLANET: SATURN 1.Rotate: 10 hours and 13 minutes 2. Orbit: 3. Diameter/Size: 74, 898 miles 4.Distance from the Sun: 888 million miles 5.Appearance/Surface: 6. Atmosphere: Yes 7. Can we live on this planet: No Yes No 8. Does this planet have any moons? Yes No And if so, how many moons? ____________ 9. Fun Facts: Saturn’s density is less dense than that of water. Therefore, Saturn is the only gas giant that could float in a bathtub of water, if such a thing existed. Saturn is known for its fabulous rings, which are made of ice, rock, and dust particles. Gas Giants pg. 6 7th PLANET: URANUS 1.Rotate: 17. 2 hours 2. Orbit: (SIDEWAYS and IN RETROGRADE) 3. Diameter: 31, 763 miles 4.Distance from the Sun: 1,784 million miles 5.Appearance/Surface: 6. Atmosphere: Yes 7. Can we live on this planet: No Yes No 8. Does this planet have any moons? Yes No And if so, how many moons?____________ 9. Fun Facts: Uranus rotates on its side and goes in retrograde. Evidence suggests that rock and ice may exist underneath Uranus atmosphere. Like all the gas giants, Uranus has rings but you can't see them because they are thin. Gas Giants pg. 7 8th PLANET: NEPTUNE 1.Rotate: 16 hours and 17 minutes 2. Orbit: 3. Diameter: 30,775 miles 4.Distance from the Sun: 2,794 million miles 5.Appearance/Surface: 6. Atmosphere: Yes OR 7. Can we live on this planet: No Yes OR No 8. Does this planet have any moons? Yes OR No And if so, how many moons?____________ 9. Fun Facts: Neptune has the fastest winds in the solar system; reaching up to 1,200 mph. Neptune has a “Great Dark Spot,” which is a tornado. Gas Giants pg. 8 9th PLANET: PLUTO 1.Rotate: 6 days and 9 hours 2. Orbit: 3. Diameter: 1,485 miles 4.Distance from the Sun: 3,647 million miles 5.Appearance/Surface: Haven’t been there yet/ No Pictures 6. Atmosphere: Yes 7. Can we live on this planet: No Yes No 8. Does this planet have any moons? Yes No And if so, how many moons?____________ 9. Fun Facts: Pluto is the coldest planet in our solar system (-378 to -396 degrees Fahrenheit). Pluto's atmosphere sometimes freezes because it is so cold. Pluto is the smallest planet and is even smaller than the seven largest moons. It has a weird elliptical orbit that at one time crossed Neptune’s path. NASA launched for the first time a trip to Pluto, known as the New Horizon Mission. In nine years we will have the first pictures of Pluto. There are three known dwarf planets, Pluto, Eris and Ceres. Odd-Ball pg. 9 Glossary Appearance: an object’s physical features or what an object looks like. Astronomical Unit: measures the distance from the Sun to a planet. 1 AU = 93 million miles away. Atmosphere: gaseous mass surrounding a celestial body. Asteroid: a piece of rock left over after the formation of the solar system about 4.6 billion years ago. Big Bang Theory: states that a tiny hot ball contained everything in the universe which exploded about 14 billion years ago. Comet: composed mainly of ice and dust, referred to as “dirty ice balls” leftovers from the early formation of the solar system. Diameter: a straight line measuring the center of a circle, from end to end. Distance: the amount of space between two objects. Dwarf Planet: must orbit the Sun; must have nearly a round shape; and has not cleared away objects in its neighborhood. Gas Giants: outer planets including Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune. Moon: a small body orbiting around a planet. Orbit: to move or travel around in a curved path. For example, the Earth orbits around the Sun in 365.25 days. Page 10 Planet: must orbit the Sun; be massive enough that its own gravity pulls it into a nearly round shape; and be dominant enough to clear away objects in its neighborhood. Prograde rotation: counterclockwise, rotation of most planets. Retrograde rotation: clockwise rotation which is considered “backwards” rotations compared to most planets. Venus, Uranus and Pluto all rotate in retrograde or in retrograde. Rotate: to turn around in on its axis or in one place. Solar System: a star with planets, asteroids and comets orbiting around it. Star: a glowing ball of burning gases. Sun: a medium size star. Terrestrial planet: inner planets including Mercury, Venus, Earth, and Mars. Page 11 TERRESTRIAL VERSUS GAS GIANTS 1.INNER PLANETS 1.OUTER PLANETS 2. ROCKY 2. GASEOUS 3. SOLID SURFACE 3. NO SOLID SURFACE 4. SMALL MASSES 4. LARGE MASSES 5. SLOW ROTATION 5. FASTROTATION 6. FAST ORBIT 6. SLOW ORBIT 7. FEW/NO MOONS 7. LOTS OF MOONS 8. NO RINGS 8. MANY RINGS Page 12 SEVEN LARGEST MOONS Moon: Diameter: What planet does the moon orbit around? 1.Ganymede 3,280 miles Jupiter 2.Titan 3,200 miles Saturn 3.Callisto 2,985 miles Jupiter 4.Io 2,255 miles Jupiter 5. The Moon 2,160 miles Earth 6.Europa 1,950 miles Jupiter 7.Triton 1,683 miles Neptune Page 13 Appendix E Teacher’s Guidebook An Astronomer’s Guide Through The Solar System Teacher’s Guidebook Name:____________________________ Table of Contents 1st Planet: Mercury………………………………………….pg. 1 2nd Planet: Venus……………………………………………pg. 2 3rd Planet: Earth……………………………………………..pg. 3 4th Planet: Mars……………………………………………..pg. 4 5th Planet: Jupiter……………………………………….…...pg. 5 6th Planet: Saturn……………………………………………pg. 6 7th Planet: Uranus………………………...…………………pg. 7 8th Planet: Neptune…………………….……………………pg. 8 9th Dwarf Planet: Pluto……………...………………………pg. 9 Glossary………………………………………………..pg. 10-11 Terrestrial Versus Gas Giants……………………………...pg. 12 Seven Largest Moons in the Solar System………………..pg. 13 1ST PLANET: MERCURY 1. Rotate: 3. Diameter: 88days 2. Orbit: 59 days 4,222 miles 4. Distance from the Sun: 36 million miles 5. Appearance/Surface: Heavily cratered, rocky, and yellowbrown. 6. Atmosphere: Yes No 7. Can we live on this planet? Yes 8. Does this planet have any moons? Yes And if so, how many moons? 0 No No 9. Fun Facts: Mercury is the smallest terrestrial planet. Mercury is the 2nd hottest and coldest planet in our solar system. Mercury is also the fastest orbiting planet because it’s the closest to the Sun and it has a shorter distance to travel. Terrestrial Planet pg. 1 2nd PLANET: VENUS 1. Rotate: 243 days 2.Orbit: 225 days (IN RETROGRADE) 3. Diameter: 7,523 miles 4. Distance from the Sun: 67 million miles 5. Appearance/Surface: Rocky surface with thick cloudy yellow atmosphere. 6. Atmosphere: Yes 7. Can we live on this planet? No Yes 8. Does this planet have any moons? Yes And if so, how many moons? 0 No No 9. Fun Facts: Venus is the hottest planet in our solar system because its gases in its atmosphere trap heat creating an intense greenhouse effect. Venus has the slowest retrograde rotation because scientists think something hit it or because of the powerful Sun’s gravity. Venus is also Earth’s “sister planet” because of their similar diameter. Terrestrial Planet pg. 2 3rd PLANET: EARTH 1. Rotate: 3. Diameter: 1 day 2. Orbit: 1 year 9, 726 miles 4. Distance from the Sun: 93 million miles = 1 AU 5. Appearance/Surface: blue water, white clouds, and brown patches of land. 6. Atmosphere: Yes OR 7. Can we live on this planet? No Yes OR 8. Does this planet have any moons? Yes And if so, how many moons? 1 No OR No 9. Fun Facts: Earth is the only planet that has life on it that we know of. It is the most active planet in our solar system. Earth is the largest terrestrial planet but not the largest planet in our solar system. Terrestrial Planet pg. 3 4th PLANET: MARS 1. Rotate: 1 day and 37 minutes. 2. Orbit: 3. Diameter: 1.2 years 4,222 miles 4. Distance from the Sun: 142 million miles 5. Appearance/Surface: red-brown rocky surface 6. Atmosphere: Yes 7. Can we live on this planet: No Yes 8. Does this planet have any moons? Yes And if so, how many moons? 2 No No 9. Fun Facts: Mars use to have water on it! Mars has very small traces of Oxygen in its atmosphere. Mars has the biggest volcano in our solar system called Olympus Mons. Mars is also known as the “Red Planet.” Terrestrial Planet pg. 4 5th PLANET: JUPITER 1.Rotate: 9 hours and 55 minutes 3. Diameter: 2. Orbit: 12 years 88, 846 miles 4.Distance from the Sun: 483 million miles 5.Appearance/Surface: Great Red Spot, swirling stripes of gases 6. Atmosphere: Yes 7. Can we live on this planet: No Yes 8. Does this planet have any moons? Yes And if so, how many moons? At least 63 No No 9. Fun Facts: Jupiter is the BIGGEST planet in our solar system. Jupiter rotates the fastest and has crazy weather. Jupiter has a Great Red Spot which is a constant tornado. Jupiter's has some of the most unique and biggest moons in the solar system (Ganymede, Callisto, Io, Europa). Gas Giants pg. 5 6th PLANET: SATURN 1.Rotate: 10 hours and 13 minutes 2. Orbit: 3. Diameter/Size: 29.4 years 74, 898 miles 4.Distance from the Sun: 888 million miles 5.Appearance/Surface: Rings, smooth gaseous, yellowish, 6. Atmosphere: Yes 7. Can we live on this planet: No Yes 8. Does this planet have any moons? Yes And if so, how many moons? 31 No No 9. Fun Facts: Saturn’s density is less dense than that of water. Therefore, Saturn is the only gas giant that could float in a bathtub of water, if such a thing existed. Saturn is known for its fabulous rings, which are made of ice, rock, and dust particles. Gas Giants pg. 6 7th PLANET: URANUS 1.Rotate: 17. 2 hours 2. Orbit: 84 years (SIDEWAYS and IN RETROGRADE) 3. Diameter: 31, 763 miles 4.Distance from the Sun: 1,784 million miles 5.Appearance/Surface: Green-blue smooth surface, thin rings 6. Atmosphere: Yes 7. Can we live on this planet: No Yes 8. Does this planet have any moons? Yes And if so, how many moons? 27 No No 9. Fun Facts: Uranus rotates on its side and goes in retrograde. Evidence suggests that rock and ice may exist underneath Uranus atmosphere. Like all the gas giants, Uranus has rings but you can't see them because they are thin. Gas Giants pg. 7 8th PLANET: NEPTUNE 1.Rotate: 16 hours and 17 minutes 2. Orbit: 165 years 3. Diameter: 30,775 miles 4.Distance from the Sun: 2,794 million miles 5.Appearance/Surface: Darker blue, Great Dark Spot, small cloud formation 6. Atmosphere: Yes OR 7. Can we live on this planet: No Yes OR No 8. Does this planet have any moons? Yes OR No And if so, how many moons? 13 9. Fun Facts: Neptune has the fastest winds in the solar system; reaching up to 1,200 mph. Neptune has a “Great Dark Spot,” which is a tornado. Gas Giants pg. 8 9th PLANET: PLUTO 1.Rotate: 6 days and 9 hours 2. Orbit: 3. Diameter: 250 years 1,485 miles 4.Distance from the Sun: 3,647 million miles 5.Appearance/Surface: Haven’t been there yet/ No Pictures 6. Atmosphere: Yes 7. Can we live on this planet: No Yes No 8. Does this planet have any moons? Yes No And if so, how many moons? 3 9. Fun Facts: Pluto is the coldest planet in our solar system (-378 to -396 degrees Fahrenheit). Pluto's atmosphere sometimes freezes because it is so cold. Pluto is the smallest planet and is even smaller than the seven largest moons. It has a weird elliptical orbit that at one time crossed Neptune’s path. NASA launched for the first time a trip to Pluto, known as the New Horizon Mission. In nine years, we will have the first pictures of Pluto. There are three known dwarf planets, Pluto, Eris and Ceres. Odd-Ball pg. 9 GLOSSARY Appearance: an object’s physical features or what an object looks like. Astronomical Unit: measures the distance from the Sun to a planet. 1 AU = 93 million miles away. Atmosphere: gaseous mass surrounding a celestial body. Asteroid: a piece of rock left over after the formation of the solar system about 4.6 billion years ago. Big Bang Theory: states that a tiny hot ball contained everything in the universe which exploded about 14 billion years ago. Comet: composed mainly of ice and dust, referred to as “dirty ice balls” leftovers from the early formation of the solar system. Diameter: a straight line measuring the center of a circle, from end to end. Distance: the amount of space between two objects. Dwarf Planet: must orbit the Sun; must have nearly a round shape; and has not cleared away objects in its neighborhood. Gas Giants: outer planets including Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune. Moon: a small body orbiting around a planet. Orbit: to move or travel around in a curved path. For example, the Earth orbits around the Sun in 365.25 days. Page 10 Planet: must orbit the Sun; be massive enough that its own gravity pulls it into a nearly round shape; and be dominant enough to clear away objects in its neighborhood. Prograde rotation: counterclockwise, rotation of most planets. Retrograde rotation: clockwise rotation which is considered “backwards” rotations compared to most planets. Venus, Uranus and Pluto all rotate in retrograde or in retrograde. Rotate: to turn around in on its axis or in one place. Solar System: a star with planets, asteroids and comets orbiting around it. Star: a glowing ball of burning gases. Sun: a medium size star. Terrestrial planet: inner planets including Mercury, Venus, Earth, and Mars. Page 11 TERRESTRIAL VERSUS GAS GIANTS 1.INNER PLANETS 1.OUTER PLANETS 2. ROCKY 2. GASEOUS 3. SOLID SURFACE 3. NO SOLID SURFACE 4. SMALL MASSES 4. LARGE MASSES 5. SLOW ROTATION 5. FASTROTATION 6. FAST ORBIT 6. SLOW ORBIT 7. FEW/NO MOONS 7. LOTS OF MOONS 8. NO RINGS 8. MANY RINGS Page 12 SEVEN LARGEST MOONS Moon: Diameter: What planet does the moon orbit around? 1.Ganymede 3,280 miles Jupiter 2.Titan 3,200 miles Saturn 3.Callisto 2,985 miles Jupiter 4.Io 2,255 miles Jupiter 5. The Moon 2,160 miles Earth 6.Europa 1,950 miles Jupiter 7.Triton 1,683 miles Neptune Page 13 Appendix F Suggested Questions For Solar System Game NAME:__________________________ SOLAR SYSTEM GAME QUESTIONS 1. What planet do we live on? 2. What is the biggest planet? 3. How many planets do we have in our solar system? 4. What is the smallest planet? 5. What planet is known as the “Red Planet?” 6. What planet is the farthest away from the Sun? 7. What planet has the Red Spot? 8. What planet is the closest to the Sun? 9. What is the hottest planet in our solar system? 10. What planet has the fastest winds in its atmosphere? 11. What planet has no atmosphere? 12. Which planet has the Dark Spot? 13. What are the Red Spot and Dark Spot? 14. What planet can float in a bathtub? 15. What planets do not have rings? 16. What planet has the most Moons? 17. What are Saturn’s rings made out of ? 18. Why does Uranus appear to rotate on its side? 19. Why is Venus so Hot? 20. How long does it take Earth to rotate? 21. How long does it take Earth to revolve? 22. Can you list the planets in order? 23. Can you show the planet hand signals in order? NAME:__________________________ SOLAR SYSTEM GAME QUESTIONS 1. What planet do we live on? [Expected Response: Earth] 2. What is the biggest planet? [Expected Response: Jupiter] 3. How many planets do we have in our solar system? [Expected Response: 8 planets and 3 dwarf planets] 4. What is the smallest planet? [Expected Response: Pluto] 5. What planet is known as the “Red Planet?” [Expected Response: Mars] 6. What planet is the farthest away from the Sun? [Expected Response: Pluto] 7. What planet has the Red Spot? [Expected Response: Jupiter] 8. What planet is the closest to the Sun? [Expected Response: Mercury] 9. What is the hottest planet in our solar system? [Expected Response: Venus] 10. What planet has the fastest winds in its atmosphere? [Expected Response: Neptune] 11. What planet has no atmosphere? [Expected Response: Mercury] 12. Which planet has the Dark Spot? [Expected Response: Jupiter] 13. What are the Red Spot and Dark Spot? [Expected Response: Tornado] 14. What planet can float in a bathtub? [Expected Response: Saturn] 15. What planets do not have rings? [Expected Response: terrestrial planets, Mercury, Venus, Earth, and Mars] 16. What planet has the most Moons? [Expected Response: Jupiter] 17. What are Saturn’s rings made out of? [Expected Response: Rocks, ice, dust] 18. Why does Uranus appear to rotate on its side? [Expected Response: In the early formation of the solar system, Uranus was struck by a large object that forced Uranus to rotate backwards with a severe tilt.] 19. Why is Venus so Hot? [Expected Response: Greenhouse Effect] 20. How long does it take Earth to rotate? [Expected Response: 1 day] 21. How long does it take Earth to revolve? [Expected Response: 1 year] 22. Can you list the planets in order? [Expected Response: Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, and Pluto] 23. Can you show the planet hand signals in order? [Expected Response: MVEMJSUNP]