SCIENCE 8VIRTUAL FIELD TRIP

Ms. Miller

Earth is only a small part…

http://www.google.com/earth/ , type in the school’s address and take a little trip from outer space to Braxton County Middle School.

There is so much more beyond where we live. Let’s investigate what’s out there.

Where are we going to go…

First we will look at what is being effected by the Earth’s gravitational pull.

Comets, Asteroids, Meteoroids, Oh My…

Gravity has an effect on many things outside of our atmosphere.

Comets Asteroids Meteoroids Let’s learn how the Earth’s gravity pulls

them in and the difference between them.

Comets

Comets – Overview A comet is an object in space that is made up of dust and

rock particles mixed with frozen water, methane, and ammonia that forms a bright coma as it approaches the sun.

Comets orbit the sun. Some comets inhabit in an area known as the Oort Cloud which is far beyond the orbit of Pluto.

Occasionally a comet streaks through the inner solar system; some do so regularly, some only once every few centuries. Many people have never seen a comet, but those who have won't easily forget the celestial show.

Comets

Famous Comets Let’s explore. http://amazing-space.stsci.edu/resources/

explorations/cometmyth/lesson/facts/Fact6/index_nf.html

Asteroid vs. Comet

The main difference between an asteroid and a comet is what they are made of.

Asteroids are made up of metals and rocky material. Comets are made up of ice, dust and rocky material. Both of these space objects were formed during the

earliest times of the solar system, around 4.5 billion years ago.

Asteroids formed much closer to the Sun, where it was too warm for ices to remain solid.

Comets have tails and asteroids do not. Why do comets have tails? Comets formed farther from

the sun where ices would not melt. Comets, which approach the Sun, lose material with each orbit because some of their ice melts and vaporizes to form a tail.

Asteroids

Let’s watch a video of asteroids. . . . http://www.space.com/51-asteroids-forma

tion-discovery-and-exploration.html

Meteoroids

A meteoroid is matter revolving around the sun or any object in space that is too small to be called an asteroid or a comet.

A meteor is a meteoroid that buns up in Earth’s atmosphere.

A meteorite is a meteoroid that strikes the surface of the moon or planet.

Meteoroids

We can study meteorites that have landed on Earth. . . .

http://www.solarviews.com/eng/meteor.htm

What else does gravity effect?

Gravity effects the motions in sun-earth moon systems

Eclipses, tides, seasons http://www.solarviews.com/eng/solarsys.h

tm http://www.visuallearningsys.com/digital-

science/preview

Eclipses

Solar Eclipses

When the moon passes between the Sun and Earth, the moon is fully or partially blocked by the sun. This is called a solar eclipse.

http://eclipse.gsfc.nasa.gov/eclipse.html

Lunar Eclipses

When the Sun, Earth, and Moon are aligned (with the Earth in the middle), a lunar eclipse occurs.

The Moon passes directly behind the Earth into it’s umbra (shadow).

http://www.moonconnection.com/lunar_eclipse.phtml

Tides

http://earthsky.org/earth/tides-and-the-pull-of-the-moon-and-sun

Tides

Seasons

Seasons

http://spaceplace.nasa.gov/seasons/en/

Science fiction or fact??

Could we colonize space? Should we continue to research space? http://www.spacefuture.com/archive/the_

ethical_commercialization_of_outer_space.shtml

Let’s discuss space exploration

http://www.spacedaily.com/ http://www.spaceref.com/news/viewsr.ht

ml?pid=30009 http://www.universetoday.com/37079/ben

efits-of-space-exploration/

Pros and Cons

Let’s discuss the pros and cons of space colonization.

http://settlement.arc.nasa.gov/Basics/wwwwh.html

http://www.debate.org/opinions/should-humans-attempt-to-colonize-space