Earth and Space

One of our groups has been learning about Earth and Space. The Earth and space unit introduces students to the following topics: the stars, the Sun as a star, gravity, telescopes.

Stars


A star is a ball of hot, glowing gases. Gases in space sometimes begin to collect together in one area. As they do, they get hotter and begin to form their own force of gravity. Hydrogen gas collects in the center of this ball of hot glowing gases. It is the fuel for the star. Stars give off light and heat energy. Stars can be grouped in three ways: by brightness, by size, and by color.

 

Here's a short video about stars:





Here's a link to the Hubble website: Hubble is a telescope in space that sends back to us pictures of stars, planets, and even other galaxies.


Sun


The Sun is a medium-size star. It appears to be much bigger in the sky because it is much closer than other stars. The Sun gives us light and heat energy. The energy we get from the Sun is known as radiant energy. Radiant means that the energy travels through space.

 



Here's a short video about the Sun:




Gravity


Gravity is a force that draws objects closer to each other. A force is a push or a pull. Bigger objects have more gravity than smaller objects. The Earth has a large force of gravity. Gravity is the reason that objects fall back down to Earth when you throw them up in the air. Gravity is the reason that you fall back down to Earth when you jump up in the air.

Gravity can be opposed. Oppose means to work against something. You can use a larger force than gravity to oppose gravity. When you throw a ball into the air, you can oppose the gravity that pulls it down by putting your hand out and catching it. A rocket opposes gravity by using a force that is stronger than gravity.

Here is a short video about gravity on Earth:



And here is a short video about gravity in Space:




Telescope


A telescope is a tool that makes faraway objects seem larger. It has curved lenses, like the ones on a pair of glasses, that make objects look bigger. Scientists use telescopes to get a better look at objects in space that are far away.

Here is a view of the moon without a telescope:



And here is a view of the moon with a telescope:



See the difference?