Lesson 69 of 84 · Space
Experiment⭐ 30 XP🚀 StarbaseAsteroids and Comets (Part 4)
Asteroids and Comets (Part 4).
🎯 Your mission
Predict it first. Then prove yourself right (or wrong).
⚡ The twist
The light you see now started its trip a long time ago.
Mind = Blown
🌌 If you could drive a car straight up at highway speed, you'd reach space in under an hour.
Make a hypothesis first
Guess: how big does that look from here vs. from there?
What You'll Learn
Asteroids are rocky objects orbiting the sun, mostly found in the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter. Comets are icy objects that develop tails when they approach the sun.
Key Words
- asteroid
- comet
- solar system
Materials Needed
- compass
- black paper
- foil
- scissors
- flashlight
- ball (Earth)
Safety First
- Wash hands after handling materials.
- Be careful with scissors — ask an adult for help if needed.
- Do not look directly at the sun or bright lights.
Steps
Review the background information on Space before starting.
Track the moon's phase each night for two weeks. Draw what you see and identify the pattern.
Watch carefully for any changes and note the time.
Create a data table to organize your measurements.
Check Your Understanding
Question 1
1 of 3What is the closest star to Earth?
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
We'll pick an experiment that matches exactly how you're thinking right now.
Share this experiment
Send it to a parent who's looking for a 10-minute kitchen science win.
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