How HR Diagrams evolve
Life Cycles of Stars
The Effects of Mass on Life Cycle
As you go through the timeline, jot down ideas of how stars evolve. Include facts such as mass, color, elements, and the type of death they undergo. You will be writing a murder mystery story on one of the stellar characters you encounter. Story should be 1-2 pages, typed, and posted on your blog. Include a visual on the post to help set the scene.
Friday, February 27, 2009
Thursday, February 26, 2009
SDSS Scavenger Hunt
You will be completing a scavenger hunt found here This scavenger hunt uses CCD technology.
The worksheet is found at http://cas.sdss.org/dr5/en/proj/basic/scavenger/scavenger.pdf
The worksheet is found at http://cas.sdss.org/dr5/en/proj/basic/scavenger/scavenger.pdf
Tuesday, February 24, 2009
Monday, February 23, 2009
Sunspots
Sunspots are an important way that we track the sun, starting with the first observations about Galileo.
Spaceweather
Find out
a) what sunspots are
b) how they change
c) the purpose of a Maunder diagram
d) the cycle of sunspots
e) why they matter to Earth
f) when the next solar maximum will be
g) how we study them safely
h) what telescopes work the best
Post your answers, along with illustrative pictures, on your blog.
Spaceweather
Find out
a) what sunspots are
b) how they change
c) the purpose of a Maunder diagram
d) the cycle of sunspots
e) why they matter to Earth
f) when the next solar maximum will be
g) how we study them safely
h) what telescopes work the best
Post your answers, along with illustrative pictures, on your blog.
Monday, February 16, 2009
The Speed of Light in Chocolate
Get a paper plate (it works better than styrofoam) or paper towels for this activity.
Fill it with chocolate chips or mini marshmallows and heat in a microwave for 30-40 seconds. The microwave MUST have the turntable REMOVED for this experiment to work.
The microwaved sugar will have dead spots that correspond to the nodes on a transverse wave. Measure the distance between nodes, and come up with an average spacing. This should be expressed on your blog in cm. This length represents one-half of a microwave. Double it, and you will have the length of your microwave. This should be expressed on your blog in cm.
Using the formula speed= wavelength*frequency, we can figure out how many waves pass through your microwave in a second. Take the speed of light in m/s and divide by the wavelength of the microwave in m (if you have it in cm, you need to change to m by moving the decimal point two places to the left). The number you get will be the number of waves your microwave is producing each second. This should be expressed on your blog in numbers/second.
Write a 1-2 paragraph reflection on this experiment on your blog. Were you surprised at anything in this experiment? Why is a microwave a type of light? **Bonus: why is microwave light important to astronomy.
This assignment is due by Friday, 2/20 for full credit (20 points) You must show a visual of the completed microwave lab (a MMS message to me, a picture on your blog, or a cell phone photo shown to me in class).
The speed of light is 300,000,000 m/s, roughly.
Fill it with chocolate chips or mini marshmallows and heat in a microwave for 30-40 seconds. The microwave MUST have the turntable REMOVED for this experiment to work.
The microwaved sugar will have dead spots that correspond to the nodes on a transverse wave. Measure the distance between nodes, and come up with an average spacing. This should be expressed on your blog in cm. This length represents one-half of a microwave. Double it, and you will have the length of your microwave. This should be expressed on your blog in cm.
Using the formula speed= wavelength*frequency, we can figure out how many waves pass through your microwave in a second. Take the speed of light in m/s and divide by the wavelength of the microwave in m (if you have it in cm, you need to change to m by moving the decimal point two places to the left). The number you get will be the number of waves your microwave is producing each second. This should be expressed on your blog in numbers/second.
Write a 1-2 paragraph reflection on this experiment on your blog. Were you surprised at anything in this experiment? Why is a microwave a type of light? **Bonus: why is microwave light important to astronomy.
This assignment is due by Friday, 2/20 for full credit (20 points) You must show a visual of the completed microwave lab (a MMS message to me, a picture on your blog, or a cell phone photo shown to me in class).
The speed of light is 300,000,000 m/s, roughly.
You and Your Passion
Annie Jump Cannon spent her entire life following her passion. It was not common for a woman in her day to get a degree in physics. It was not common for a woman to have a career. And it was not common for anyone to have the dedication to do one thing for almost 400000 specimens.
So now, I ask you: What's your passion? What do you dream about doing in your future? Post a 2-3 paragraph reflection on your blog.
Monday, February 9, 2009
It's the End of the World as we Know it....or not.
Spaceweather
The World will end!
No, it won't!
Well, what do you think? Support your blog post with references, video clips, or other material to illustrate your point.
Friday, February 6, 2009
Tell me about Comets
Tell me about comets. Use the terms nucleus, head, tail, coma in your description. Describe their orbits. Find out five facts about one of the following: Halley's comet, Shoemaker-Levy comet, or Hale-Bopp comet. Post as a blog, with a visual to support your comments.Wednesday, February 4, 2009
Rocky planets and plate activity
An iron core, surrounded by magma, surrounded by a crust, is a feature of a rocky planet or a moon that exhibits rocky tendencies.
Find out what you can about volcanic activity on the Moon and on Mars, and write a 2-3 paragraph blog summary. List your sources
Plate Techtonics
The mid Atlantic ridge has experienced many different types of study, and we have found that the North Pole oscillates over time. What does this mean?
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