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Scintillate, scintillate, asteroid minikin! (What does this mean?) A few more links...the Christmas games links are below the asterisks, if you want to play them....
Kepler Spacecraft PlanetQuest ********************************** ********************************** 12/18/2008 Today's Assignment ********************************* ********************************* 12/10/2008 Do the planetarium activity on pages 568 and 615, answer the questions for the activity, then put them on the table near the door. After you finish, you may explore only the websites linked directly from my website (NOT the ads...) ********************************** ********************************** 12/3/2008 Do the planetarium activity on page 658, answer the questions for the activity, then put them on the table near the door. After you finish, you may explore only the websites linked directly from my website (NOT the ads...) ******************************** ******************************** 12/1/2008 Do the planetarium activity on page 437, answer the questions for the activity, then put them on the table near the door. After you finish, you may explore only the websites linked directly from my website (NOT the ads...) ******************************* ******************************* 11/26/2008 Do the planetarium activity on page 419, answer the questions for the activity, then put them on the table near the door. After you finish, you may explore only the websites linked directly from my website (NOT the ads...) ********************************* ********************************* 11/19/2008 Use Starry Night Pro and complete the planetarium activities on pages 369 and 393. When you login to Starry Night Pro, make sure you allow it to update, and after you finish with the 2 exercises listed above, check to see if you can find the comet which can be seen with binoculars (not naked-eye, sorry!) Also, you should have data for me - the location of Jupiter and Saturn for last night! (Star charts, remember?) Show your data to me during this period to receive credit... Spaceweather.com When you finish, go only to the websites linked from my links below. ********************************* ********************************* 11/14/2008 In the news..... I spy....a planet! Spaceweather.com Things for which you should watch.... Top 10... StarDate Online 1) What is a meteor shower, and how are they named? 2) What's the best way to view a meteor shower? 3) On what night in November WAS the full moon? 4) On what night this month will we have a new moon? 5) Where will you be able to see Saturn (Near what object?) on the 21st of this month? Constellations 6. Which constellation actually looks like it's namesake? AMS Meteor showers for the year.... 7) How many meteor showers can be seen during a year, and during what seasons? Space.com 8) What is called the "Autumn Dipper"? Moon Names 9) What is the full moon for December called? The sun has another sunspot! Spaceweather.com Still upset about Pluto? Pluto Petition Check out the links from previous pages when you are finished... ******************************** ******************************** 11/12/2008 This will take longer if you don't follow the directions carefully, so pay attention! DO NOT GO TO ANY WEB SITE OTHER THAN THOSE TO WHICH I HAVE SPECIFICALLY LINKED! The first 3 links after this exercise are new - and should be of great interest to those of you who are serious about the night sky! For the first part of this exercise, go to the Heavens Above web site (linked below). Heavens Above You do NOT have to log in. Under "Anonymous users" click on "Select your location from our huge database". On the next page click on "United States of America", then on the "select Town" page enter "Bedford". When the choices come up, click on either "Bedford Indiana" - OR on the same line to the right of the highlighted Bedford click on "neighbors". Choose either "Bedford" or "Neighbors", whichever is closest to where you live. Once the location is set, use the web site to find the next time (Date, time) the ISS will be at least 30 degrees altitude from where you are - that will be the answer to #1. 2) What is the length of time of the pass you listed in # 1 (end time - start time) 3) Given that best observing times will have higher altitude and lower magnitude, what date/time/azimuth will likely have the best observing? Near the top right side of the web page, click on "orbit". 4) Where is the ISS right now? Click "back" and return to the "Visible passes" page. Click on the date that has the highest maximum altitude. Click on "Ground Track". 5) In what direction will the ISS be from your location? Click back, and return to the "Visible Pass Details" page. Place the cursor over the whole sky chart, right button click, then "Print picture". Attach it to your answers when you finish this exercise. Click on the link to "home" to go to the starting page for the Heavens Above web site. Click on the link for "Spacecraft escaping the Solar System". 6) What is the most distant spacecraft from Earth? 7) When was it launched? 8) Is the spacecraft listed in #6 still functioning? 9) How long does light take to get to it from Earth? 10) Relative to the sun, what is its speed? 11) What is the fastest spacecraft listed? 12) What is its speed (Km/s)? 13) Looking at the diagram, which spacecraft is travelling closest to the plane of the ecliptic? 14) Using the links below, find information about the Orionid meteor shower and list best observing dates and times, what to expect as far as meteor brightness, and numbers per hour. Click the following link and enter information from #12 for speed. Astonomical Distances 15) How long would it take to get to the closest star to the sun travelling at the speed of the fastest spacecraft currently in operation? 16) At what speed (Km/s) would you need to travel in order to get to the closest star in 25 years? 17) What percent of the speed of light is your answer for #16? When you are finished with this exercise, use ONLY the links below to explore astronomy. Ask permission if you would like to look at anything else. Your Sky is an interactive web site for the night sky. There's a LOT here - including a "Virtual telescope". Your Sky Skyview Cafe is another interactive FREE application online - or you can download it for faster times and not tie up bandwidth when you are at home. This one is REALLY good, if you want to find information. I'd suggest trying the older version first, and playing with the controls. Skyview Cafe Here is a FREE interactive viewer - Stellarium. DO NOT DOWNLOAD IT to the COMPUTER IN THE LAB! Download it and use it at home, if you wish. I haven't looked at anything other than screenshots, so I can't recommend anything about this other than to try it out and see what it does. Stellarium Comets and Meteors Astronomical Lexicon Constellation Info NASA News Solar System Info Moon map Mars Exploration Rovers MOC gallery Spaceweather APOD Universe Today.com . Sky and Telescope magazine ******************************* ******************************* 11/5/2008 Use Starry Night Pro and complete the planetarium activities on pages 310 and 338-339. When you finish, go only to the websites linked below. ********************************** ********************************** 11/4/2008 For those of you that are old enough, I hope you vote! Use Starry Night Pro and complete the planetarium activities on pages 263 and 289. When you finish, go only to the websites linked below. ********************************** ********************************** 10/29/2008 Everyone needs a break now and then..... Consider this yours. Go to the following websites and see what you can find. The Space Place NASA kids Kids Astronomy Hubble Kids Hubble Kids About.com Amazing Space Chandra Kids Spitzer Check out the Aurora galleries on Spaceweather.com here: Aurora Gallery Look at these Solar resources Sungazer.net ********************************** ********************************** Answer the questions below using the following web site: MIT Astronomy 1. How long does it take the eye's pupil to expand to its maximum diameter after the lights are turned off? 2. What causes the eyes gain in sensitivity over time? 3. How long does it take for a person's eyes to adapt to darkness completely? 4. Explain why a red flashlight will not affect a person's night vision? 5. What is the reason why averted vision helps you see very faint objects? 6. Why do faint deep-sky objects usually disappoint beginning observers? 7. Explain the reason for the answer to #6. 8. Name one of the few nebulae that actually are of visual interest due to its surface brightness. 9. Explain why persons that wear eyeglasses sometimes have trouble properly positioning their eye for viewing with an eyepiece. 10. What is "Star-hopping"? 11. When finding directions using a star atlas, why is East shown to the left of North? 12. What is a finderscope? 13. Right ascension increases in what direction? 14. According to the article, why was it a mystery as to how successful observations were performed in the summer? (What invention made it easier? ;-) 15. Who is often considered the founder of modern astronomy? What did he have to say about "seeing"? 16) what is the Astronomy Photo of the day for today? 17) What's up in the news? (As related to Astronomy!) The Universe Today 18) What's visible in the night sky tonight and tomorrow night? Sky and Telescope magazine Spaceweather.com space.com Earth Science Photo of the day |
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Quotable Quotes Quote of the moment: (Reload this page for a new quote)"To bring up a child in the way he should go, travel that way yourself once in a while." --Josh Billings[Sorry. Only this one quote for non-Java browsers] If you'd like to suggest a quote, send e-mail. |
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