Students use water balloons and a length of string to understand how gravity and the velocity of a spacecraft balance to form an orbit. They see that when the velocity becomes too great for gravity to hold onto an object, the object...

These hands-on activities are a great way for students to gain perspective on the relative sizes and distances of each planet, the relationship between the sun and Earth, and much more.

College-level online course highlighting the study of classical mechanics. This course focuses on Newtonian mechanics, fluid mechanics, and kinetic gas theory. Course features include a 35 video lecture series by Walter Lewin. Also link...

Most people think of every full moon as appearing the same, but careful observation allows us to see that sometimes the Moon appears larger than at others. This is caused by the elliptical orbit of our natural satellite.

Kepler's Laws 1,2,3 including eccentricity of elliptical orbits. Good for reviewing planetary motions (NYS Earth Science).

Our solar system is filled with a wide assortment of celestial bodies - the Sun itself, our eight planets, dwarf planets, and asteroids - and on Earth, life itself! The inner solar system is occasionally visited by comets that loop in...

At this site from the Astronomy Department of Cornell University, Kepler's three laws of planetary motion are stated. There are brief explanations of each, along with links to additional information on related subjects.

Find tools to calculate astronomical distances and sizes, to view various Solar System models, to compare gravity's affect on weight, and more. A good place to find interesting facts, simple animations, and astronomy links to physics and...

The circle is one of four different shapes which can be created using "slices" through a cone, a 3-dimensional solid that has a circular base joined to a single point (called the vertex) by a curved side. If you tilt a cone, you get an...

Observe the sun and the rotation of the planets in this moving image from NASA. Observe the axial tilts and directional rotation of planets and how they differ for each planet. Be sure to read the background information on how planets...

This site from NASA lists common and uncommon misconceptions about Sun-Earth Science. Site also provides links to activities and lesson plans as well as background reading.

Good site explaining the laws of planetary motion and ellipses

Through interactive practice problems and illustrated examples, students explore energy relationships for satellites.

An outstanding page describing Kepler's three laws of planetary motion.