Is There Life Out There? Our Solar System (and beyond) Draw a picture of what you think life would look like on another planet, if it existed. Describe why you drew that image. What makes Earth a great place for life?

Where are we?

 How did it form?  Basic facts  99.8% of mass  100x diameter of Earth  5,527 o C  92.1% H, 7.8% He  Plasma  Sun today Sun today  Main source of Earth’s energy Our Sun

 Definitions  Thermal energy  Temperature  Heat  Types of heat  Occur in different parts of the Sun  Core  Dense, hottest  Hydrogen fusion  Conduction How do we get the Sun’s energy?

 Radiation  Energy transfer (heat)  Light waves  Also how energy gets to Earth  Energy moves slowly  Thick layer Radiation Zone

1.VideoVideo  Write down your observations  Why did that happen? 2.How are conduction and radiation similar? 3.Give a real-life example of conduction, and radiation making an object warmer. 4.What is something surprising that you learned about the Sun? Daily Review #1

Convection Zone  Uses convection  In liquids and gases  Material heated (conduction)  Rises….why?  Sinks….why?  Repeat  Where else does this happen?  Moves more quickly in this layer

 Photosphere  Visible surface  Chromosphere  Red  High speed gas  Corona  Hot  Outermost layer  Seen during an eclipse Outer Solar Structure

 Dark  Cooler than nearby areas  Appear in pairs  Intense magnetic field  Lines go out and in Sunspots

5.Complete sun structure worksheet 6.How are sunspots, solar prominences and solar flares similar? 7.How are sunspots, solar prominences and solar flares different? 8.Watch the demonstration and determine what kind of heat is involved and why. Daily Review #2

 What is a magnetic field?  What causes a magnetic field?  On the Sun?  Effect of rotation  Different rotation rates  Magnetic field lines get wound up  Eventually snap  Causes…… Sun’s Magnetic Field

 Solar flares  High energy  Explosive  Prominence  Follow magnetic field lines into space  Loops/arches Surface Features

 Predictable cycle  11-years  Minimums  Last = 2008/2009  Low # of prominences, flares and sunspots  Cooler climate on Earth  Next maximum = 2013, very weak Sunspot Cycle

 Hot, high speed, plasma streams  Corona expanding  Coronal Mass Ejections (CME)  Massive eruption  Rearrangement of magnetic field lines  One hit on 9/12/14  Effects on Earth  Disrupt magnetic field shape  Danger to astronauts  Damage electronics  Aurora Solar Wind

 Borealis or Australis  Interaction of particles and magnetic field  Particles drawn to poles  Colors  Elements  Altitude  Constantly changing  Video Video Aurora

9.How are the aurora created? 10.How can a CME change the aurora? 11.Due to the sunspot cycle, what should be happening to the climate here on Earth? 12. Create your own definitions for planet, dwarf planet, moon, comet and asteroid. Daily Review #3 or ?QUIZ?

 Nebula  Evidence for formation from one nebula  Nearly circular orbits  Orbit in same direction  Orbits in same plane  Planets rotate in same direction (mostly) How does this other stuff form?

…what do the scientists say?  Planet 1.Orbit only a star 2.Round 3.Dominant object in its orbit  Dwarf planet 1.Orbit only a star 2.Round 3.Not dominant object in its orbit  Tends to be small  Rocky and icy  Moons 1.Orbit another body  Asteroid 1.Orbit only a star 2.Irregularly shaped  Tend to be small  Meteors – when in our atmosphere  Comet 1.Ball of frozen gas and dust 2.Orbit only a star 3.Large, very elliptical orbits

 Orbits the sun once every 90,465 days  Volume is about 1/200 th the size of Earth  Large enough to relatively round in shape  Average surface temperature -229 O C  ~5.9 billion km from the Sun (outside of the gas giants)  Elliptical and angled orbit  Crosses paths with Neptune (which is much larger than this new object) A new celestial body has been discovered! How should this body be classified and why?

 Why is it not a planet? 1.Orbit a star?  Yes 2.Round?  Yes 3.Dominant object in orbit?  NO! NO!  What is Pluto? This object is also known as… PLUTO!!!

Daily Review #4

 What does it cause to happen?  Attraction, orbiting  Laws  Newton  More mass = more gravity  Closer together = more gravity  Fall at constant rate  Theories  Why does it exist?  Einstein  Gravitons Gravity

Mass  kg, g, lbs.  Definition  Doesn’t change with location Weight  Newtons  Definition  Can change with location and motionlocation

 Inner edges  Heavier elements  Hotter  Terrestrial planets  Asteroid belt  Effected by Jupiter  May leave and collide with planets  Meteorites What’s happening towards the Sun?

 Outer edges  Cooler  Lighter elements  Gas giants  Kuiper belt  Icy chunks  Pluto  Asteroids  Oort cloud  Comets  Source of Earth’s water? What’s happening at the outer edge?

 Astronomical unit (AU)  Average distance from Sun to Earth  1 AU= 9.3 x 10 7 mi = 1.5 x 10 8 km  Calculate the AU distance between the Earth and the Moon, 0.38 million km Distances within our Solar System

Daily Review #5

 Captured by Earth’s gravity  Formed at same time as Earth  Collision of small planets  Current theory  Collision with early Earth  Similar material to Earth  Age – 4.5 billion years Formation of the Moon Theories

 Structure  Solid inner core  Liquid outer core  Solid mantle  No magnetic field  Virtually no atmosphere  Same side faces the Earth  Drastic temp. differences  Surface shaped by  Early volcanic activity  Asteroids  Reflects sunlight Moon Basics

 Complete front of worksheet  What is occurring in these phases?  Full  New  Quarter  Between phases  Waxing vs. waning  Gibbous vs. crescent  Name the phasephase Moon Phases

Daily Review #6

 Complete worksheet  Lunar Lunar  Which phase?  What is happening?  Doesn’t always happen because of the Moon’s orbital path  Solar Solar  Which phase?  What is happening?  Only seen on a portion of the Earth Eclipses

 What patterns do you observe on the tide chart?  How are the patterns you saw related to the phases of the moon? Tides

 Tides!  Bay of Fundy Bay of Fundy  Big Picture Big Picture  Tides vs. Waves  High vs. Low  Where on Earth? Earth and its Moon

 Liquid water  Habitable Zone Habitable Zone  What can effect HZ?  Star – size and temperature  Distance from star  Size of planet  Structure of planet  Presence of atmosphere  Other source of heat  Available carbon Why is Earth perfect for life?

 What was discovered by the Mars Curiosity rover and its research?  Why are those discoveries important?  Should we continue this research? Why or why not? Recent Discoveries about Mars

1.Correct solar structure worksheet 2.What is needed for life as we know it? 3.Describe 3 things that would effect where life could be found in a solar system. Daily Review #1

5.Ceres is located 414,000,000 km from the Sun. How far is that in astronomical units? Daily Review #3

10.Describe how the planets, moons and other items formed in the solar system 11.Draw a picture of the solar system including the location of the asteroid belt, Kuiper belt and Oort cloud 12.How are mass and weight different? 13.Should the U.S. spend more, less or the same amount of money on exploring space? Why? Daily Review #4

14.What is the current theory on how the Moon was formed? 15.Describe how the new moon and full moon are created. 16.How are solar and lunar eclipses similar? How are they different? 17.In 2006, a group of astronomers gathered and one of their tasks was to define what makes something a planet. What would your definition be? Daily Review #5

18.What does it take to be considered a planet? 19.If a body in space is not a planet, what else could it be? 20.Describe 5 different characteristics of the Moon. 21.Describe how the Moon effects the tides on Earth. Daily Review #6