In this lesson, students read the original paper written by Henrietta Leavitt in which she compared the apparent brightness and period of Cepheid variable stars. The students prepare graphs from numerical data, just as she did, and compare their... (View More) data to hers. They then discover that there is a relationship between the period and luminosity of the variable stars she observed, and experience for themselves how scientists really collect data. Materials required include standard graph paper and logarithmic graph paper (a template is supplied). This activity is part of the "Cosmic Times" teacher's guide and is intended to be used in conjunction with the 1929 Cosmic Times Poster. (View Less)

Students investigate magnetic fields in two and three dimensions, and compare the magnetic field of a pulsar to that of the Earth and other astronomical objects. This is Activity 3 of the Supernova Educator Guide developed by the XMM-Newton and... (View More) GLAST E/PO programs. The guide features extensive background information, assessment rubrics, student worksheets, extension and transfer activities, and detailed information about physical science and mathematics content standards. Note: In 2008, GLAST was renamed Fermi, for the physicist Enrico Fermi. (View Less)

In this activity, students explore the idea of classifying objects. They start by giving examples of objects that can be classified in everyday life and in science. They then characterize and classify a set of galaxies using their own scheme, and... (View More) using Hubble's classification scheme. This is activity three in the "Hidden Lives of Galaxies" information and activity booklet that was designed for use with "The Hidden Lives of Galaxies" poster. The booklet includes student worksheets and background information for the teacher. (View Less)

In this activity, students will describe similarities and differences between galactic star clusters and globular clusters. This is activity five in the "Hidden Lives of Galaxies" information and activity booklet that was designed for use with "The... (View More) Hidden Lives of Galaxies" poster. The booklet includes student worksheets and background information for the teacher. (View Less)

The is one several activities in which students are required to access and analyze actual data from NASA missions, including video interviews with real NASA scientists, to solve a mystery. In this mystery, students explore stars and their... (View More) properties, investigate the different characteristics of stars, and look for trends and patterns to determine what kinds of stars different companies are buying, and why. During the activity, students analyze a list of stars purchased by each company using tools showing a star's luminosity in infrared, x-ray, and visible ranges of light, and tools that plot the stars in different ways. Star Market can be used as a supplemental learning tool to support the scientific method, understanding the life cycle of stars, and learning about the different reasons scientists study stars. It is one several activities within "Space Mysteries," a series of inquiry-driven, interactive Web explorations. Each Mystery in "Space Mysteries" is designed to teach at least one physical science concept (e.g. interactions of energy and matter, structures and properties of matter, energy, motion, or forces), and is accompanied by materials to be used by classroom teachers. (View Less)

This activity is intended as a review of the concepts presented in the previous activities as well as an assessment of student understanding of the activities. Learners use the review information from the activities as they answer question and then... (View More) view the image of an object that even astronomers had difficulties classifying. Learners make their own interpretation of the object and then compare their answers to the astronomers' interpretations. This is activity four of four in the Hubble Deep Field Lesson Package which includes color lithographs, student worksheets, background information, a glossary, as well as national science education standards. Request a paper copy of the HDF package through the "contact us" page of Amazing Space - be sure to include your mailing address. (View Less)

In this activity, learners classify selected objects from the Hubble Deep Field based on their color and shape. They then compare their classification with a chart made by astronomers. This is activity two of four in the Hubble Deep Field Lesson... (View More) Package which includes color lithographs, student worksheets, background information, a glossary, as well as national science education standards. Request a paper copy of the HDF package through the "contact us" page of Amazing Space - be sure to include your mailing address. (View Less)

In this activity, the problems and difficulties of determining the distances between Earth and objects in space is addressed. Learners attempt to arrange five objects from the Hubble Deep Field according to their distances from Earth. After making... (View More) their determination, based on visual observations alone, learners compare their answers with those of astronomers and try to explain why they differ. This is activity three of four in the Hubble Deep Field Lesson Package which includes color lithographs, student worksheets, background information, a glossary, as well as national science education standards. Request a paper copy of the HDF package through the "contact us" page of Amazing Space - be sure to include your mailing address. (View Less)