Lesson 65 of 84 · Space
Experiment⭐ 30 XP🚀 StarbaseStars: Balls of Hot Gas (Part 4)
Stars: Balls of Hot Gas (Part 4).
🎯 Your mission
Run the experiment. Find out what really happens.
⚡ The twist
The light you see now started its trip a long time ago.
Mind = Blown
🪐 A day on Venus is longer than a year on Venus.
Make a hypothesis first
Guess: how big does that look from here vs. from there?
What You'll Learn
Stars are massive balls of hot gas that produce light and heat through nuclear fusion. Our sun is a medium-sized star that provides the energy needed for life on Earth.
Key Words
- gravity
- solar system
- inner planets
Materials Needed
- flashlight
- ball (Earth)
- small ball (moon)
- dark room
Safety First
- Clean up spills immediately to prevent slipping.
- Use materials only as directed in the experiment.
Steps
Study the diagram and label the parts you recognize.
Model Earth's tilt and seasons: hold a globe tilted at 23.5° and walk it around a lamp (the sun). Observe which hemisphere gets more direct light at each position.
Draw a detailed diagram of what you observe.
Write a conclusion: what did your results show? Did they match your prediction?
Check Your Understanding
Question 1
1 of 3What is a constellation?
Where you see this in real life
Every sunrise and every shadow is this idea in action.
Stretch Challenge
Try this in real life this week.
Look at the moon tonight. Notice its shape. Look again in 3 days.
For the dinner table
“If you could visit any planet, which would you pick and why?”
Next Smart Experiment
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