Weighing a Galaxy

In this activity, students use Newton's Laws of Motion, and the motions of the planets, to determine the mass of the sun. They then use the same techniques to determine the mass of a galaxy. In doing so, students convert among different units of measure used in astronomy. This is activity 6d 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.

This resource is located on page 43 of the PDF document.