Visions of the Universe: Four Centuries of Discovery
One-Hour Exhibit Tour / Program
“Visions of the Universe: Four Centuries of Discovery” was produced in December 2008 by the Space Telescope Science Institute, the American Library Association, and the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory, through funding from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration.
Some guidelines from NGS standards 2nd – 4th grade:
Science and Engineering Practices
- Constructing Explanations and Designing Solutions
- Constructing explanations and designing solutions in K–2 builds on prior experiences and progresses to the use of evidence and ideas in constructing evidence-based accounts of natural phenomena and designing solutions.
- Make observations from several sources to construct an evidence-based account for natural phenomena.
Disciplinary Core Ideas
The History of Planet Earth – Some events happen very quickly; others occur very slowly, over a time period much longer than one can observe.
Crosscutting Concepts
Stability and Change – Things may change slowly or rapidly.
In this program, the educator will guide a group through the “Visions of the Universe” exhibit, which consists of 12 panels mounted on foam board. Reading the text of each poster, and showing the depictions of space objects, exploration and achievements, the educator will present a big-picture view of the history of astronomy. At certain points, depending on time and group, you may connect the concepts of a given poster to one of the suggested “Earth and Space” activities. Refer to the supplemental materials in the “Visions of the Universe” binder for the background knowledge you will need to answer any questions that may come up! I. Visions of the Universe Intro
“Telescopes have transformed not only our views of the universe, but also our understanding of the planets, stars, and galaxies within it.”
After reading the poster, pause to let kids look through one of our Galileoscopes. Prompt them to think about the benefits and downsides of using a telescope.
What do you think motivated Galileo to develop an improved telescope? What did he think he might find up in space? What did he want to see more closely?
II. Exploring the Moon
“The Moon is an ancient world, with countless craters, barren plains, and no atmosphere.”
What have you noticed when you look at the moon? What do you think it’s like up there? Could people live there without help? What about with special technology?
[Activity: Hide and Seek Moon for younger kids; Craters for older kids]
III. Storms on the Sun
“The Sun’s atmosphere is filled with high-energy magnetic fields and explosive outbursts.”
How do you think it affects life on earth when there is increased solar activity? Solar flares and outbursts can even knock out electrical grids!
[Activity: Solar Beads, Magnetic Fields or Orbiting Objects]
IV. Journey to Mars
“Mars, the most explored planet beyond Earth, is a red, rocky, cold, dry, and dusty world.”
What do you think it might have been like when there was liquid water on the surface – might there have been life on Mars?
[Activity: Mars Rover or Imagining Life]
V. Majestic Rings
“Saturn’s rings are composed of thousands of ringlets made of millions of icy particles.”
So we know a lot more about Saturn’s rings than we used to, but there are still unanswered questions. Can you think of other areas of science that remain to be discovered or explored? How would you go about finding answers?
VI. The Nature of Comets
“A comet’s spectacular appearance begins with a small, icy object orbiting the sun.”
Talk about scientific method, hypotheses, etc. When we have a theory about how something might work, what do we have to do before we know for sure? PROVE it – and prove it again! This is how we learned about the cyclical nature of comets, as well as other predictable phenomena like eclipses.
VII. Secrets of Starlight
“Other stars are similar to our Sun, but they have a variety of colors, temperatures, and sizes.”
Look at star maps, or use an app that allows us to see the position of stars during the daytime. Where do stars go in the daytime? That’s right, they are still up there! In fact, the positions of stars are so reliably predictable, they can be used for navigation.
[Activity: Filtered Light]
VIII. Star Birth in Orion
“The Orion Nebula is a majestic interstellar gas cloud where stars are born.”
Not only stars are born in nebulae like Orion, but whole planetary systems, too, which orbit around their stars! Was our planet, Earth, born in a similar gas cloud? Has Earth changed a whole lot since it was a young planet? Have YOU changed a lot since you were a younger human?
IX. Stellar Explosions
“Some stars die in bright and powerful explosions that scatter their remains across interstellar space.”
The supernova itself lasts only about 100 seconds – but the peak brightness can last several months. Let’s think about the speed of light. Light is so fast, it feels like it reaches our eyes instantly, in short distances here on earth! The speed of light is 186,282 miles per second, or around 6 trillion miles a year. But even at such an amazing speed, that means there can be a delay in our perception of light, when we’re talking about the extreme distances in outer space! This means that, if a star 6 trillion miles away from us goes supernova, by the time we witness the light on earth it will have been “dead” for a whole year already!
X. Galaxies Revealed
“Galaxies are gigantic swarms of billions of stars with vast clouds of gas and dust.”
There aren’t really hard “walls” in space – scientists often refer to space as a “web,” because everything is interconnected and overlapping. How do you think scientists decide where a cosmic structure like a galaxy begins and ends?
XI. Discovering the Universe
“The Universe is everything – from planets, to stars, to galaxies, and beyond.”
Early in our studies of outer space, we knew only about our immediate neighborhood – our solar system! Now we are constantly expanding our knowledge of what the Universe holds.
XII. Future Visions
Go through final questions about the future of astronomy and scientific knowledge.
How will our Universe evolve, and does it have an end? How do collections of stars, gas, and dust develop into spectacular galaxies? When did stars first light up the Universe? Are there any Earth-like planets around other stars, and do they harbor life?
[Activity: Pocket Solar System model]