• TODAY’S AGENDA:

• Introduction to the Universe and Astronomy

• Notes: The Nebular Theory• Activity: How the Sun was

Formed Video Clip

MONDAY 12/1/2014

Homework: 1. Universe Analogy Activity due Tuesday 12/2/2014for 25 Points

Birth of Our Solar System• The Nebular Theory (Nebular

Hypothesis): • Explains the formation of the solar

system• Sun & all the celestial bodies

(planets, moons, asteroids) that surround it.

• About 4 billion years ago, the solar system formed out of a huge, rapidly-rotating cloud of gas & dust particles

• Nebula

Horsehead Nebula

Crab Nebula

Birth of Our Solar System

• The Nebular Theory (Nebular Hypothesis): • Gravity pulls the nebula together & the cloud begins to rotate

• The more stuff in the cloud, the faster the rotation• Heavy matter: Rocks, dust, ice & metal slammed together to form

planets, moons, asteroids, meteors• Lighter matter: Gases fused to become stars & the giant gas planets• http://www.5min.com/Video/Learn-how-our-Solar-System-was-formed-5-Billion-Years-Ago-117543712

Birth of our Star…the SunSun: The large star at the center of our solar system, consisting of very high pressures of gases due to nuclear fusion.

Nuclear Fusion: Hydrogen (H) atoms combine to form helium (He), releasing huge amounts of energy.

When nuclear fusion begins, a star is born. When nuclear fusion stops, a star begins to die.

X-raysUltraviolet

Infrared

The Path our Sun will Follow

Our sun is now a mid-life main sequence yellow star.

It will cool and grow larger, becoming a Red Giant.

The sun will grow so large that nuclear fusion can no longer take place & it will shed it’s outer layers of gas in a Planetary Nebula.

Our sun will most likely die as a very small, hot white dwarf.

Q: How Much Longer will the Sun be around?A: About 5-6 billion more years!

Birth of our Star…the SunAs you watch the following video clip, discover the answers to the following questions & write them in your notebook.

1. What is the name of the enormous cloud of gas & dust within space that formed the solar system?

2. What 2 forces give the sun its spherical shape?3. What is the main form of radiation the sun produces?4. How is the sun giving off radiation like boiling water?5. Explain the change in energy from beginning to end.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PL3YNQK960Y

Universe Analogy Activity

• Universe: EVERYTHING in space (billions of galaxies) = whole CHS campus

• Galaxies: clumps of billions of stars held together by gravity = all the buildings on CHS campus

• Solar system: Our sun, the planets, asteroids = classrooms within each building on CHS campus

• Sun: the only star in our solar system = the teacher in each classroom

• Planets: a celestial body that has a large mass & orbits a star = the students in each classroom

The universe is a BIG concept to understand! We’re going to make it a bit

more realistic by developing an analogy for the universe & everything within it!

My Universe Analogy

• Universe = whole CHS campus • Galaxies = all the buildings on

CHS campus• Solar system = classrooms within

each building on CHS campus• Sun = the teacher in each

classroom• Planets = the students in each

classroom

BIG IDEA

LITTLE IDEA

Universe Analogy Activity

Think of another analogy for the Universe & EVERYTHING in it (galaxies, solar systems, sun, planets).

Hint: Think of your favorite sport, family, favorite movie…

Label what each part of your drawing represents in the universe!

Use color, be appropriate (they will receive grades & be hung on the walls) & be creative! Be prepared to share your posters with the class!

You have the rest of the period! GO!!!

The end

• TODAY’S AGENDA:

• Notes: Nebular Theory and the Sun

• Activity: Universe Analogy

TUESDAY 12/2/2014

Homework: 1. Solar System Word Search and Puzzle due Wednesday/Thursday 12/3-12/4/2014 for 20 Points

The Solar System

What is the Solar System??

• Made up of all the planets that orbit the Sun

• Consists of celestial bodies (planets, moons, comets, asteroids, minor planets), dust and gas

• Planets orbit the Sun, Moons orbit the Planet

• Celestial bodies bound to the Sun by gravity

• The Solar System is in the Milky Way Galaxy

Planets of the Solar System

• There are 8 planets in the Solar System

• In order from the Sun: Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune

• Pluto is considered a dwarf planet• Too small to be termed a planet

Planets of the Solar System• Two types of planets: Inner and Outer Planets• Inner Planets: (Also known as Terrestrial Planets) Made up

of rock and dust with a metallic core• Mercury, Mars, Earth, Venus

Planets of the Solar System

• Outer Planets: Made up largely of gas and water

• Also known as Jovian Planets• Uranus, Neptune, Saturn, Jupiter• These planets are also the only planets

with rings• Outer Planets also have moons

orbiting around them

The Big Star….The Sun!!• Yes….it is true, the Sun is a Star!!

• Made up of mostly Hydrogen (H) and Helium (He)

• The distance from here to the Sun is 93 million miles or 1 Astronomical Unit (AU)

• The Sun makes up about 99 percent of the Solar System’s mass

• It is the closest star to the Earth

• So what’s the difference between…• Comets:

• Chunks of frozen ice, gases & rocky debris traveling outside the Earth’s atmosphere

• Asteroids: • Bodies of rock.

• The large collection of asteroids in our solar system located between Mars & Jupiter is called the Asteroid Belt

• Meteorites: • Bodies of rock smaller than an asteroid, usually

only meters in size

More Out-of-this-World Terms!

• TODAY’S AGENDA:

• Notes: The Big Bang Theory

• Activity: Big Bang Theory Video and Worksheet

• Activity: Expanding Universe Questions

WEDNESDAY/THURSDAY 12/3-12/4/2014

Homework: 1. Expanding Universe Packet due Friday 12/5/2014 for 25 Points

Introduction to the Big Bang Theory

The Origin of the Universe

Edwin Hubble(1889-1953)

Astronomer who made several discoveries that provided clues for how our universe began:

1. Galaxies are “building blocks” of the universe.• What’s the universe?

• Universe: All existing matter, energy & space

2. The Milky Way (Earth’s galaxy) was 1 galaxy among billions of others. • What’s a galaxy?

• Galaxy: Is made up of a cluster of stars (solar systems). There are billions of galaxies within the universe.

3. The galaxies are spreading apart from each other.

• A scientific theory that states that the universe was created from a high density of matter (called a “singularity”) that expanded at very hot temperatures, shooting matter & energy everywhere. Eventually, the matter began to cool off & formed various galaxies.

The Big Bang Theory

Formation of the UniverseOne Scientific Theory –

All matter & energy in the universe was concentrated in an EXTREMELY small volume

13-17 billion years ago, the BIG BANG occurred, propelling matter & energy in all directions universe expanded

Gravity condensed (clumped) matter galaxies

Still many questions remain about the beginning of the universe

“The Big Bang”

The Expansion of the Universe• Hubble likened the moving away (expansion) of the galaxies from one

another to cooking raisin bread…• Each raisin represents a galaxy. When the bread is uncooked, the raisins

float in the batter relatively close to one another. When heat is added, the bread itself expands, as well as the raisins within the bread move further apart from each other.

But how did Hubble conclude these things (right or wrong) about our universe?

• What did Hubble (& many other astronomers & scientists) study?

• STARS & the energy they give off!

Nuclear FusionA star is born when fusion begins in the star’s core (center)

H + H à He Fusion is a reaction that combines 2 small nuclei (H) to form larger nuclei (He) The result is the release of a large amount of energy

What are the 2 products (outcomes) of nuclear fusion?

Larger nuclei (atom)

LOTS of energy!