ORIGINS Earth is Born How Life Began Where Are the Aliens? Back to the Beginning ADDITIONAL RESOURCES REFERENCE LISTS INDEX CREDITS Sort By: 1-20 of 41| pages: 1 2 3 | Next > Cosmic Chemistry Article for grades 3 through 12 What happened after the Big Bang? This comic strip explains the interactions that lead to the creation of stars, planetary nebulas, and supernovas. PDF [plugins: Adobe Acrobat; filesize: 1300kb] [pages: 1] More about this Resource Exploring Density Activity for grades 3 through 12 Why do some materials sink to the core of a planet while others float to the crust? This experiment uses marshmallow fluff and molasses to illustrate the concept of planet differentiation. Webpage More about this Resource Impacts Article for grades 3 through 12 Why do you think they call it “Impacts"? A comic strip shows what can happen—and does happen—when asteroids head for Earth. PDF [plugins: Adobe Acrobat; filesize: 389kb] [pages: 1] More about this Resource Launching and Recovering Meteorites Activity for grades 3 through 12 Throwing water balloons on school grounds in the name of science? Absolutely, if you do it safely, and apply what you learn to the science of finding and recovering meteorites. Webpage More about this Resource The Formation of the Solar System Article for grades 3 through 12 About 4.6 billion years ago, our solar system came into being. This comic strip explains the processes that led to the creation of the planets and the asteroid belt. PDF [plugins: Adobe Acrobat; filesize: 1300kb] [pages: 1] More about this Resource What If There Were a Planet Between Mars and Jupiter? Activity for grades 3 through 12 A wide belt of asteroids lies between Mars and Jupiter, and was formed at the same time. If these asteroids had come together to form a 10th planet, what would it be like? Students investigate the answer. Webpage More about this Resource Astro Viz: Extrasolar Planets Article for grades 6 through 12 Since 1995, astronomers have discovered more than 100 planets orbiting stars beyond our Sun—only a fraction of those thought to exist. Take an interactive tour of the Milky Way Galaxy to visit these "exoplanets." Webpage More about this Resource Is It Alive? Activity for grades 6 through 12 Despite extreme temperatures and the absence of sunlight, you can find a variety of life on the ocean floor. Take a look at the amazing organisms that thrive in this unlikely environment. Webpage More about this Resource It's Aliiive—Or Is It? Activity for grades 6 through 12 Scientists have found life everywhere they've looked on Earth—even at the bottom of the ocean, where conditions are extreme. Investigate one deep sea vent's thriving ecosystem. PDF [plugins: Adobe Acrobat; filesize: 426kb] [pages: 6] More about this Resource Journey to a Black Hole Article for grades 6 through 12 If you could take a trip to a black hole, would you? Before you answer, take a peek at what you'd encounter. The trip certainly would qualify as adventure travel! PDF [plugins: Adobe Acrobat; filesize: 312kb] [pages: 1] More about this Resource Liquid Mars Article for grades 6 through 12 In March 2004, two NASA explorers discovered firm evidence that water once flowed on Mars—perhaps enough water to harbor life. Examine their findings and the enduring allure of the red planet. Webpage More about this Resource The Nature of Diamonds Exhibition Materials for grades 6 through 12 Did you know that 80 percent of the diamonds mined each year are used for industry, not jewelry? Or that diamonds are mined on most continents? Take a close-up look at this "king of gems." Webpage More about this Resource The Rise of Oxygen Article for grades 6 through 12 Oxygen is so essential that it's hard to imagine Earth without it. Yet it wasn't in the atmosphere for the first half of our planet's 4.5-billion-year history. Trace the profound effects of its rise. Webpage More about this Resource The Search for Life: Are We Alone? Educator's Guide Curriculum Materials for grades 6 through 12 Are we alone in the universe, or does life exist elsewhere? Get ready to be immersed in the museum's Space Show, where cutting-edge technology is used to communicate cutting-edge science. Webpage PDF More about this Resource The Search for Life: Are We Alone? Educator's Guide Insert Activity for grades 6 through 12 Life exists on Earth because of the favorable balance of water, elements, and other conditions. What would happen if the balance changed? And what role did the formation of the solar system play? PDF [plugins: Adobe Acrobat; filesize: 393kb] [pages: 2] More about this Resource Arthur Holmes: Harnessing the Mechanics of Mantle Convection to the Theory of Continental Drift Article for grades 9 through 12 This geologist made not one but two major contributions to our understanding of how the Earth works. Read about his geologic time scale and his contributions to the theory of continental drift. Webpage More about this Resource Beyond Our Solar System: Searching for Extrasolar Planets Article for grades 9 through 12 Stars are about one billion times brighter than any orbiting planet. Learn how scientists are now discovering extrasolar planets despite this overwhelming brightness. Webpage More about this Resource Carl Sagan and the Quest for Life in the Universe Article for grades 9 through 12 Cosmos, Contact, Icarus and Billions and Billions—from TV and movies to professional journals and best-selling books, Carl Sagan's influence was legendary. Webpage More about this Resource Cecilia Payne and the Composition of the Stars Article for grades 9 through 12 What are the stars made of? At 25, Cecilia Payne answered this fundamental question in her Ph.D. thesis. Her pioneering work also made it possible to read a star's surface temperature. Webpage More about this Resource Cosmic Microwave Background: The New Cosmology Article for grades 9 through 12 Take a trip back through 14 billion years of time and space to view the Cosmic Microwave Background—the vast curtain of energy left over from the Big Bang. Webpage More about this Resource 1-20 of 41| pages: 1 2 3 | Next >