Students explore placing a satellite into orbit, then about forces needed to keep an object in orbit. They examine how satellites orbit in elliptical paths and about properties of ellipses. They learn Kepler's 3rd Law of Planetary Motion

The presentation starts with the scientists who made discoveries about our solar system: Ptolemy, Copernicus, Galileo, Brahe, Kepler, and Newton. It also covers the planets, inner, outer, and Pluto, satellites, and an in-depth discussion...

Not everything revolves around the sun! Believe it or not, there are planets, called exoplanets, that orbit stars other than our sun. Learners use an interactive online resource to research several of these planets. They learn about the...

Young scholars investigate how engineers navigate satellites in orbit around the Earth and on their way to other planets in the solar system. They study vocabulary words and participate in studying a satellite by learning about times...

In this plasmasphere worksheet, learners determine how long the plasmasphere takes to rotate around the Earth using two satellite images taken three hours apart.

In this space science worksheet, students use the clues at the bottom of the sheet to solve the crossword puzzle on our solar system. They identify the different planets and their location in relation to the sun.

Preparing for an assessment? Here's an activity that will ensure that all class members have the background knowledge they need to demonstrate their skills on a performance task related to the solar system and the tools astronomers use...

Students explore space science by completing a solar system identification worksheet. In this planets lesson, students discuss the different planets in our star system and identify their traits. Students complete an orbital system...

Students examine the different types of satellites, cloud formations and weather patterns.  In this weather lesson students use the Internet to research weather satellites, then write an article and create graphs. 

Students demonstrate size and orbits of Earth, Moon, and Mars. In this space science lesson plan, students will use balloons to show how the size and distance between the planets and satellite compare.

In this solar eclipse worksheet, students solve seven problems about solar eclipses after making a model following five steps. They determine the different orbits for satellites, they determine the lengths of Earth's shadow and they...

In this radiation shielding worksheet, students use a graph of the dosage of radiation versus the thickness of aluminum shielding using data from the MIR spacecraft and ISO satellite to solve 3 problems. They determine how thick the...

In this optimization of satellites worksheet, students read about the Octagonal IMAGE satellite and solve 4 problems related to the size and shape of the satellite and the solar cells used to power the satellite. Students find the mass...

In this parallax effect worksheet, students observe 2 photographs taken of an active area of the sun by 2 STEREO satellites and 1 photograph taken of the same active area of the sun by the SOHO satellite. Students observe the shift in...

In this geometric calculations of solar storms worksheet, students use a diagram indicating the location of 2 STEREO satellites, the earth and the sun to calculate the distance between a Coronal Mass Ejection and the Earth. They use...

For this solar electricity and satellites worksheet, students calculate the perimeter of a satellite, they find the area of the surface of the satellite and they determine if there is sufficient space for enough solar panels to supply...

In this sun's diameter worksheet, students use a photograph taken by the SOHO satellite of the sun showing a change in diameter from one month to another. Students find the average diameter of the sun, they determine the percent change...

In this coronal mass ejections and Solar Proton Events learning exercise, students create a Venn Diagram to represent given data. They answer 5 questions about the data related to the number of coronal mass ejections and Solar Proton...

In this energetic neutral atoms worksheet, students solve 3 problems including determining the formula for particle speed, writing the equation to show the relationship between mass, energy and speed and determining the speed of protons...

In this lunar crater worksheet, students use an image taken by the Lunar Orbiter spacecraft to find the scale of the image and determine the diameter of the lunar crater Tycho. They also find the size of the smallest and largest features...

In this coronal mass ejection worksheet, high schoolers read about the coronal mass ejections detected by the IMAGE satellite and the Hubble Space Telescope resulting in auroras. Students solve 6 problems and determine the speed of the...

In this moon instructional activity, students determine the angular size of the moon and draw a scaled model of the Earth, moon, and sun and given distances and positions. This instructional activity has 4 problems to solve.

Students use real satellite data to determine the changes in near-surface air temperature at different times of the year over the Caribbean Sea. They discover how Earth's tilt causes seasonal differences in incoming solar energy. They...

If you are looking for an outstanding lesson on the Moon for your budding astronomers, look no further! This outstanding plan is full of wonderful, meaningful activities for your charges to engage in. Pupils will discover why there are...