18

Lesson 18 of 84 ยท Space

Experimentโญ 30 XP๐Ÿš€ Starbase

Space Exploration History

๐ŸงชLab Brief #18

Space Exploration History.

๐ŸŽฏ Your mission

Predict it first. Then prove yourself right (or wrong).

โšก The twist

The light you see now started its trip a long time ago.

๐Ÿคฏ

Mind = Blown

๐ŸŒŒ If you could drive a car straight up at highway speed, you'd reach space in under an hour.

๐Ÿ”ฎ

Make a hypothesis first

Guess: how big does that look from here vs. from there?

What You'll Learn

Earth rotates on its axis once every 24 hours, causing day and night. The side facing the sun experiences day, while the opposite side experiences night.

Key Words

  • moon phase
  • eclipse

Materials Needed

  • ball (Earth)
  • small ball (moon)
  • dark room
  • paper plate

Safety First

  • Wear safety goggles when mixing liquids.
  • Wash hands after handling materials.
  • Be careful with scissors โ€” ask an adult for help if needed.

Steps

Step 1 โ€” Read

Read the introduction and identify the main idea of this lesson.

Step 2 โ€” Do

Calculate your weight on different planets by multiplying your Earth weight by each planet's gravity factor. Make a bar graph of the results.

Step 3 โ€” Observe

Look for patterns in your observations.

Step 4 โ€” Record

Make a graph or chart showing your results.

Check Your Understanding

Question 1

1 of 3

How many planets are in our solar system?

๐ŸŒ

Where you see this in real life

GPS, weather forecasts, and the seasons all rely on this.

๐Ÿ†

Stretch Challenge

Try this in real life this week.

Find a constellation in the sky. Look it up. Tell someone its story.

๐Ÿ‘จโ€๐Ÿ‘ฉโ€๐Ÿ‘ง

For the dinner table

โ€œIf you could visit any planet, which would you pick and why?โ€

๐ŸŽฏ

Next Smart Experiment

We'll pick an experiment that matches exactly how you're thinking right now.

โšกShare card

Share this experiment

Send it to a parent who's looking for a 10-minute kitchen science win.

๐Ÿ–จ๏ธ

Checkout complete lesson on Space for 8th Grade

Get the full Space track as a printable PDF โ€” all lessons, worksheets, and answer keys.

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