Lesson 83 of 84 · Space
Experiment⭐ 30 XP🚀 StarbaseOur Solar System (Part 5)
Our Solar System (Part 5).
🎯 Your mission
Run the experiment. Find out what really happens.
⚡ The twist
Gravity is invisible — but it shapes everything.
Mind = Blown
🌟 The light from the closest star (after the sun) takes 4 years to reach you.
Make a hypothesis first
Before you check: which is closer?
What You'll Learn
The solar system has eight planets orbiting the sun. The four inner planets (Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars) are rocky, and the four outer planets (Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune) are gaseous.
Key Words
- rotation
- revolution
Materials Needed
- small ball (moon)
- dark room
- paper plate
- markers
- string
- tape
Safety First
- Protect your work surface with newspaper or plastic.
- Adult supervision recommended.
- Do not taste any materials.
Steps
Read the introduction and identify the main idea of this lesson.
Use a flashlight, a large ball, and a small ball to model eclipses. Show both a solar eclipse and a lunar eclipse.
Use your senses (except taste) to describe what you notice.
Write a summary of your findings in 3-5 sentences.
Check Your Understanding
Question 1
1 of 3How many planets are in our solar system?
Where you see this in real life
GPS, weather forecasts, and the seasons all rely on this.
Stretch Challenge
Try this in real life this week.
Find a constellation in the sky. Look it up. Tell someone its story.
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.
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Send it to a parent who's looking for a 10-minute kitchen science win.
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