How Far Is That Star?

Pupils often wonder how we know the distance to various stars. Starting with a thought experiment and progressing to a physical experiment, they determine the brightness and distance to various stars. The evaluation requires critical...

Enough talk about the Greenhouse Effect—let's actually look at it! Junior climatologists engage in a simple thermodynamics experiment on a cold winter's day to examine global warming. The activity simulates rising carbon dioxide levels...

How far is it from your house to the grocery store? If you answered in time rather than distance, there's a scientific explanation. Science scholars compare distance/time quantities in a short, animated video. Topics include time being...

Astronomers classify all elements that are not hydrogen or helium as metals. Their "heaviness" causes turbulence that may form metal stars. An installment of a comprehensive solar system series explains how scientists believe these stars...

It seems obvious that two miles is more distant than one mile, but did you know nine minutes is more distant than nine hours? The concept of special relativity explains how this is possible by graphing using only two dimensions. The...

Between 100 billion and 400 billion stars exist in the Milky Way Galaxy. The video discuses five amazing stars with unique characteristics. Most pupils know about red giants but need to learn more about hybrid stars—here is a great video...

Aspiring astronomers study stars. They compare stars and explain the relationship between radius, mass, and diameter. By creating a star simulation, they discover how a binary star system's orbit can cause changes in the observed...

Four modules are a part of this stellar lesson plan. Space scientists view the electromagnetic spectrum, they generate waves on a computer screen in order to measure frequency and wavelength, discover how light is related to temperature,...

How safe is the drinking water you have access to? Colors, smells, and other factors may lead you to finding out if your water is safe. Watch a video that explains the ways water becomes filtered and ways to know when water is contaminated.

A timely resource illustrates the effects of the passing years on sedimentary rock formation! Young geologists discover just how long it takes to create shale, slate, and other sedimentary rocks. The interactive also shows...