A note to teachers
Activity Description
In this activity your pupils will review their experiments from the Solar System Science workshop and
discuss their results and conclusions in more detail.
Pupils will need the worksheets from the Solar System Science workshop which contain their
results.
The presentation is designed to be teacher-led, with opportunities for group discussion and/or
individual work.
Learning Objectives
•
To compare results with other groups in the class
•
To further link the experiments with the real Solar System
Please note…
Before you begin this activity, we recommend you familiarise yourself with it. This presentation
contains differentiated elements . You are welcome to remove parts, edit or add to this presentation as
you see fit, to tailor it to your class.
We hope your class finds this activity interesting and useful. Should you have any feedback, please do
not hesitate to send it to us. Thanks!
- The Jodrell Bank education team
Solar System
Science
After-workshop activity
Image credit:
NASA/JPL
What you did...
In the Solar System Science workshop you
completed four experiments about different aspects of
our Solar System.
Image credit:
NASA/JPL
What we are going to do now...
In this activity, we’re going to check our results by
comparing them with other groups.
Scientists do this all the time, to make sure their
results really show what they think they do.
We will also learn more about the Solar System as
we go!
Starter: What’s in the Solar System?
1.
stars
thethe
Solar
System
have?
2. How
3.
4.
5.
Anything
Howmany
many
else?
dwarf
planets
asteroids?
Ourdoes
Solar
planets?
in
System!
Solar
System?
1 Star (the Sun)
1 Dwarf
planet
in here
8 Planets Billions of comets
out there?
You live here!
Plus loads of meteoroids!
Click on a hyperlink to find out more!
Over 100
million
asteroids
4 Dwarf
planets
here
Image credit: NASA (not to scale)
But where did the Solar System come from?
Watch this video to find out how the Solar System formed…
You must be connected to the internet for this video to play. If it is still not playing, click the link below or copy &
paste the address into your web browser: http://youtu.be/RT4OO0TFLHw
1: Gravity Experiment
• Before we look at your results, let’s think about
gravity a little bit…
• How would you describe what gravity is?
Image credit: NASA
Gravity
• Gravity is the force that keeps us on the Earth.
• Is gravity a pushing force or a pulling force?
Gravity is a
pulling force
that pulls us
towards the
centre of the
Earth.
In what
direction
would gravity
be pulling if
you were
standing at
the South
pole?
Image credit: NASA
Image credit: NASA
This rocket is leaving Earth. Which answer correctly
describes Earth’s gravity acting on the rocket: A, B or C?
The answer is...
A
B
Gravity gets weaker the
further you get away
from a planet, but it
does extend out into
space!
C: Neither! (there’s no gravity in space)
• It’s gravity pulling downwards that causes things
to have weight.
• Weight is a force.
• In science what do we measure forces in?
In science we measure forces (including weight)
in units called Newtons
Image credit: NASA
Gravity experiment:
Taking our readings
• In task 1 you measured the weight of six pots
using force meters.
• If your group had two force meters, you may
have needed to choose the correct one to take
your readings…
Can you think why this is the
wrong force meter to use?
This force meter reads 1 Newton –
the maximum number on the scale
This force meter is at its maximum.
This means this pot could weigh 1
Newton or it could weigh anything
over 1 Newton. It’s impossible to tell!
When measuring things, it’s
important to choose the right scale!
Gravity experiment: Task 1
• Let’s now compare the different groups’ readings
from task 1.
• Click here to download our Excel file to help.
• Questions to consider:
– Did every group get exactly the same results?
– If not, can you think of any reasons that might
make the results different?
Scientists always check their results with other
scientists to make sure their results agree.
Gravity experiment: Task 2
• We then imagined each pot contained the same
amount of stuff, but that each one was on a
different place in the Solar System.
• This caused the pots to have different weights.
• Can you remember why being somewhere else
in the Solar System makes weight different?
• On different planets, the strength of gravity is
different.
• This means on another planet an object is pulled
downwards by a different amount, compared to
when it was on Earth.
• This means the object will have a different
weight.
Can of beans
on Earth...
4 Newtons
Same can of
beans on Mars...
1.6 Newtons
Image credits: NASA
Gravity experiment: Task 2
• In task 2, you matched up each pot with where
you thought it was, based on the strength of
gravity on those different places.
• If you didn’t finish task 2, you can complete it now
(so long as you have your results from task 1).
Here’s the strength of gravity on the six different
places we looked at:
Venus
Earth
Moon
Mars
9
10
2
4
Jupiter Neptune
26
11
Task 2 answers...
Pot
Place
A
Venus
B
Earth
C
Moon
D
Mars
E
Jupiter
F
Neptune
• How many agree and disagree?
• If you didn’t get it right, is it because you measured a
different weight in task 1, or was it a mistake in task 2?
2: Sunlight Experiment
Sunlight shines throughout the Solar System,
providing planets with light and heat.
Image credit: International Astronomical Union (not to scale)
Sunlight experiment: Task 1
• In this experiment, we imagined the bulb on the
table was the Sun. You measured the brightness of
the light from the ‘Sun’ at different distances away
from it, using a light meter.
• In task 1 you were asked to make a prediction.
• What did you predict would happen to the
amount of light as you got further from the Sun?
Scientists always make a prediction before they do
an experiment. It’s not about getting it right or wrong
– it’s about making sure they’re testing the right
thing!
Sunlight experiment: Task 2
Amount of light
• Draw a line graph of your results from task 2.
The axes below may help you…
Graphs help scientists see patterns in their
results.
Mark the points on your
graph, then draw a
curve between them!
Distance (centimetres)
Teachers: You can create a whole class graph using the Excel file! Just click tab 2: Sunlight and enter the data.
Sunlight experiment: Task 3
• Does your graph show the brightness going up,
going down or staying the same?
• Did all groups find the same pattern?
• Does your pattern agree with your prediction?
Remember – in science, if your results don’t agree
with your prediction, it doesn’t mean you’ve gotten
it wrong! It just means you found something
unexpected!
Sunlight experiment: Extra Task
• If you had time to do the extra task, you took an
extra set of readings and compared them to your
first ones.
• If you did this, were your second readings
exactly the same as your first?
• Can you think of a reason why they might be
different?
In science, results are very rarely exactly the same
because experiments are never perfect. That’s
why experiments are repeated over and over!
More about Sunlight…
• Let’s now think about the sunshine in the real
Solar System…
• Sunlight falling on a planet provides it with heat.
• Look at your graph of results, where do you think
the hottest planet would be? Where do you think
the coldest planet would be?
Image credit: NASA/SDO (AIA)
The temperature of the planets
• This graph shows the average temperature of the planets,
compared to how far away they are from the Sun.
• Is it the same shape as your graph?
• Which is the hottest planet? Which is the coldest planet?
• Are these the planets you expected?
The temperature of the planets
• Here are the average temperatures of the
planets in table form…
Mercury
Venus
Earth
Mars
Jupiter
Saturn
Uranus Neptune
167˚C
462˚C
16˚
-63˚C
-145˚C
-168˚C
-224˚C
-200˚C
• Which planet is hottest? Which is coldest?
• Are these the planets you expected?
• Venus is the hottest planet – even though Mercury
is the closest to the Sun!
• Uranus is the coldest planet – even though
Neptune is the furthest from the Sun!
• Let’s find out why…
Mercury
Mercury is the closest planet to the
Sun. This means it gets blasted by
the Sun’s light and heat. The
temperature on the day-time side can
go up to 427˚C! However, Mercury
has no atmosphere (no air).
Atmosphere around a planet acts like
a duvet – trapping in heat. At night,
with no atmosphere to keep
Mercury’s heat in, the heat zips off
into space and Mercury cools down
very quickly. On the dark, night-time
side of Mercury, temperatures can
drop down to a very chilly -173˚C!
This makes the average temperature
on Mercury about 167˚C.
Image Credit: NASA/Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory/Carnegie Institution of Washington
Venus
Venus is the second closest planet to
the Sun, but it is the hottest. This is
because Venus has loads of
atmosphere! Venus’ atmosphere is
93 times thicker than Earth’s! The
whole planet is covered in a thick
layer of clouds – you can’t even see
the surface! Venus’ atmosphere is
mostly made of carbon dioxide,
which is a greenhouse gas – very
good at trapping in heat! (the carbon
dioxide didn’t come from cars and
factories on Venus, but from lots of
volcanoes!) All this means that Venus
warms up from the heat of the Sun,
and stays hot! The temperature on
Venus is an even 462˚C!
Image Credit: NASA/JPL
Uranus and Neptune
Uranus is the seventh planet from the Sun, but it
is the coldest at -224˚C. Neptune is slightly
warmer at -200˚C. This is because, although
Neptune gets less light and heat from the Sun,
Neptune generates more heat in its core.
Neptune actually gives off 2.6 times more heat
than it receives from the Sun. At the moment, we
don’t know what’s causing that heat!
Image Credits: NASA, ESA, and M.
Showalter (SETI Institute); NASA/JPL
The solar system and water…
• Look again at the average temperatures of the
planets in the Solar System…
Mercury
Venus
Earth
Mars
Jupiter
Saturn
Uranus Neptune
167˚C
462˚C
16˚
-63˚C
-145˚C
-168˚C
-224˚C
-200˚C
• On what planet could you find liquid water?
The only planet in the Solar System where you can
have liquid water is Earth. Any closer to the Sun
and water boils. Any further away, and it freezes.
The area around a star where the temperature is right for
liquid water is called the Habitable Zone (or the
“Goldilocks Zone” – can you think why it’s called that?).
In the habitable zone, living things might be able to survive!
(all the living things we know of need liquid water to live)
Scientists are currently using telescopes to look for other
planets in the habitable zones around other stars. Watch
this video about one such planet found in 2014…
You must be connected to the internet for this video to play. If it is still not playing, click the link below or copy &
paste the address into your web browser: http://youtu.be/RlidbLyDnPs
3: Cratering experiment
There are lots of places in the Solar System where you can find craters,
such as the Moon, Mars, Mercury and even the Earth. This is meteor
crater in Arizona, USA! Can you remember what causes craters?
Image credit: Shane.torgerson
Craters are caused by bits of rock and metal falling from
space and crashing into the ground. This NASA animation
shows this happening on the Moon…
You must be connected to the internet for this video to play. If it is still not playing, click the link below or copy &
paste the address into your web browser: http://youtu.be/mDNXAicVHZA
When these bits of rock and metal fall to Earth, we
can sometimes see them as shooting stars…
You must be connected to the internet for this video to play. If it is still not playing, click the link below or copy &
paste the address into your web browser: http://youtu.be/v-DmkH7udc4
Should we be worried?
• Another name for a shooting star (something
falling from space) is a meteor.
• Most meteors are completely harmless. They
are usually very small (the size of a grain of rice
perhaps) and they get so hot as they fall to
Earth, that most are completely destroyed!
• If any part of the meteor does survive and
crashes to the ground, this is called a meteorite.
• Most meteorites are also harmless – they
usually fall in the sea, or places where there
aren’t people.
Earth versus Moon
• Can you think why the Moon has loads more
craters than the Earth, even though we get hit
just as often?
Image credits: Jacques Descloitres, MODIS Land Rapid Response Team, NASA/GSFC and Dave Tyler
Earth versus Moon
There are three reasons why the Moon has more
craters than the Earth…
1. The Moon has no air. This means there’s no friction to
burn up the smaller meteors – every meteor hits the
ground on the Moon!
2. The Moon has no sea. About 70% of the Earth’s
surface is covered by water. Any meteorites landing
here wouldn’t make a crater!
3. The Moon has no weathering. When craters are made
on the Earth, over a long period of time wind, rain,
plants and animals will slowly wear the crater away.
Cratering experiment: Task 1
• In this experiment, you dropped balls into a
container of sand and measured the size of the
crater which was created. We imagined the balls
were meteorites and the sand was the surface of
a planet.
• In task 1 you were asked to choose a small,
medium or large ball.
Cratering experiment: Task 2
• In task 2 (a) you were asked to make a prediction.
• Which height did you predict would leave the biggest
crater?
• Why did you think that?
Remember: predictions are not about getting it right or
wrong – they’re to make sure you’re testing the right
thing!
• Task 2 (b) asked: Why must you keep using the same
ball during your test?
• The size of the ball might also affect the size of the
crater. We only want to test how the height changes the
crater size. So, we change only the height and keep
everything else the same. This keeps it a fair test.
Cratering experiment: Task 3
• Let’s now compare the different groups’ readings
from task 3.
• You can again use the Excel file to help. Just
click tab 3: Cratering and enter the results.
Remember: Scientists always check their results
with other scientists to make sure their results
agree.
Cratering experiment: Task 4
• Which height left the biggest crater for your
group?
• Did all groups find the same thing?
• If not – what might have caused a difference?
• Looking at the class average results, do all three
of the balls show the same pattern?
• Do your results agree with your prediction?
Remember – if your results don’t agree with your
prediction, it doesn’t mean you’ve gotten it wrong!
It just means you found something unexpected!
4: Meteorite experiment
When meteors land they are meteorites.
These are very different from Earth rocks…
Where do meteorites come from?
• Meteors and meteorites start life floating in
space as meteoroids.
• Meteoroids usually come from when asteroids
crash together, sending out tiny pieces into
space.
• Meteoroids have been floating in space for a
long time – usually billions of years!
• This makes them much older and very different
from any of the rocks from the Earth…
Earth rocks
• Rocks on Earth are formed
in lots of different ways.
• One of the ways is for lava
(from volcanoes) to cool
down and solidify into rocks.
• Did you know that lava is
just hot, melted rock? Like
ice is to water, rock is to
lava!
• Lava can make lots of
different types of rock,
depending on how quickly it
cools down.
Image credit: Jason Bott, Christopher Berger, Pete Garza
Meteorite experiment: Task 1
• In this experiment, you had five rocks. Following
a flow chart, you performed a series of tests.
The results of the tests allowed you to identify
the rocks.
Task 1 answers...
Pumice
Lodestone
Basalt
Pumice
isformed
created
when
Granite
when
magma
Basalt
is is
created
lava
leaks
Lodestone
is when
made
out
of
Most
meteorites
contain
alava
lot
of
quickly
shoots
out has
of
volcanoes
cools
slowly
underground.
This
out which
of
volcanoes,
then
cools
magnetite,
which
become
iron,
makes
them
stick
to Granite
and
cools
very
quickly.
The
holes
gives
enough
time
for
crystals
quickly
on
the
surface,
ornot
magnetised.
This
makes
itjust
a to
magnets,
but
they
are
are
made
from
trapped
gas
form
in the
Granite
has
many
underneath
it.
You
alsonot
find
basalt
natural
magnet.
We’re
entirely
magnetic
byrock.
themselves.
They
are
bubbles
the
lava!
uses
in
buildings,
e.g.
to make
rocks
on
the
Mars
and
sure
how
lodestones
become
also
covered
in Moon,
ainblack
crust
– this
Meteorite
kitchen
tops.
Venus.
but
might
from
ismagnetised,
where they
got ithot
and be
burnt
as
being
struck
byEarth!
lightning!
they
fell to
Congratulations!
• We have come to the end of our experiments into the
Solar System!
• We hoped you enjoyed your experiments, plus we hope
you learnt a few new things!
Thanks, from everyone at Jodrell Bank! 