Educational resources in astronomy
Welcome to this Virtual Tour of the Baldone observatory in Latvia, where you can “walk” inside the observatory through your browser window, exploring rooms, the telescope itself and read about several interesting details of the observatory.
You can also download the tour as an executable file to your PC or mac and run it from there.
Orrery’s are fantastic tools to demonstrate the planetary motions in our Solar System, but rare since they often require an advanced (accurate) clock work to work. It is however straight forward to make one for your self with paper and scissors. The children can colour their own orrery and play with it to explore several interesting phenomena in our Solar System.
Download the pdf and print it, one per child, and follow the instructions printed on the sheet. You will need colours, scissors, split pins (split clips) and a laminator (optional). If you do not have a laminator machine, it is advisable to print the file below on the thickest paper you have available.
Keywords: children, paper, scissors, paper clips,
Welcome to this Virtual Tour of the Helsinki observatory in Finland, where you can “walk” inside the observatory through your browser window, exploring rooms, the telescope itself and read about several interesting details of the observatory.
You can also download the tour as an executable file to your PC or mac and run it from there.
Welcome to this Virtual Tour of Solobservatoriet in Norway, where you can “walk” inside the observatory through your browser window, exploring rooms, the telescope itself and read about several interesting details of the observatory.
You can also download the tour as an executable file to your PC or mac and run it from there.
Welcome to this Virtual Tour of the Brorfelde observatory in Denmark, where you can “walk” inside the observatory through your browser window, exploring rooms, the telescope itself and read about several interesting details of the observatory.
You can also download the tour as an executable file to your PC or mac and run it from there.
In this exercise we will observe the phases of the Moon over time or using Stellarium. Afterwards we draw each phase in to a series of cards, which we use to make our very own moon-book, which you can flip through to remind and entertain you.
Age Range: all ages, younger children will need help with scissors.
Prep. Time: 5 minutes
Activity Time: 20 minutes
Cost per activity: Low
Materials: Scissors, Stapler, Pencil / colours, Thicker paper
Age range: 12 – 16 years
Prep. time: 15 minutes + the time to find a partner school
Lesson time: 30 minutes
Cost per activity: 0
Includes the use of: calculator
In this exercise, we will measure the circumference of the Earth using the same procedure as Eratosthenes did 240 BC. To do this, we need to measure the height of the sun in two locations directly north-south of each other. Are you able to get answers close to the result we have today?
In this lesson students will also use techniques including basic mathematics (multiplication and division), measurement techniques, and geometry.
In astrophotography, colours are treated in different ways – telescopes generally do not take colour pictures, but use special filters to capture light in particular parts of the optical spectrum (e.g. red light only). This interactive app from the Faulkes Telescope project will show you how colour images are made using different filters, combining them to make various types of “colour image”.
Every day, several tons of material fall from space down on earth. Some of this material are rocks of sufficient size to make meteors (shooting stars) that survive the extreme heat as they are decelerated through our atmosphere. A few times every year, we see big fireballs, meteors big enough to survive all the way down onto the ground.
The possibility of finding a meteorite have sent many out looking for stones that carry the signs of a space rock. Several networks of all-sky cameras exist around the globe, with the aim of doing research on meteor activity. Now, a network is being built to supply schools with unique class room material, where young students can participate in identifying meteors, calculating where their landing sites and their extra terrestial origins.
Here at the Online Observatory, we develop activities and tools that allow schools to contribute in the hunt for meteors and meteorites. The following talk was given at an event held at the Brorfelde Observatory in Denmark, June 2019.
As presented on the Multiplier Event at Brorfelde Observatory in June 2019
As presented on the Multiplier Event at Brorfelde Observatory in June 2019
Do you want to learn more about this project or have ideas on how to make these ideas even better, please contact us with your ideas and questions.
Some activities require Geogebra files, where students can manipulate arrows indicating the path of given meteors. In these files, they can get acquainted with coordnates and distances of any given event. The files are still only prepared with maps of southern Norway.
Here are a few Geogebra files for download:
This June, the Online Observatory collaboration will have its first public event where, nearby teachers are welcome to attend lectures, join in on activities and discuss how to teach astronomy in schools.
This event is intended for teachers in denmark. Similar events will appear in the remaining home countries of each observatory.