Click on the images in this website for more information about each image.
Have you ever wanted to visit distant places so that you could learn about them better? Have you ever wanted to leave Earth and travel through the solar system? You are not alone!
In Solar System Adventure, a mischievous little SPARK 5000 robot named Sparky transforms the planetarium into a spaceship for a fast-paced tour of our solar system. With the aid of the Narrator, "Zee" (the talking Zeiss Star Projector), and the ship computer, viewers travel to each of the nine planets, a comet, an asteroid, and some interesting moons in the solar system.
This show is both informative and exciting, as Sparky's warp-speed travel methods and love of adventure occasionally get the ship into trouble. Don't worry, though, so far they have always managed to get viewers back to our favorite planet, the white, blue, brown, and green sphere that is third from the Sun: Earth.
To learn more about the objects in the solar system, click on one of the links below. For a text-only printable version of the fact pages below, click here.
Click on the images in this website for more information about each image.
Sun
Comets
Asteroids
The Terrestrial Planets:
Mercury
Venus
Earth
Mars
The Gas Giants:
Jupiter
Saturn
Uranus
Neptune
The Other Planet:
Pluto
Comparison of Planet Types
Solar System in a Schoolyard
Create models of the Sun and planets, then arrange them at scaled interplanetary
distances on or near your school grounds to understand the scale of our solar
system.
Interplanetary Travel Brochures
Research a planet or moon, chose a destination a tourist of the future might
wish to see, and create a brochure or poster advertising your selection. Extend
the activity by inventing an alien adapted to life near the destination.
Modeling the Seasons
Use a globe and light to recreate the astronomical conditions that cause Earth's changing seasons. For an extra challenge, try to model the seasons on the other planets!
Definitions of some astronomical terms used in this web page.
For more information about our planet Earth, its only natural satellite the Moon, and our nearest star the Sun, see the Morehead Planetarium show Earth, Moon, and Sun and the many accompanying activities and links, including: Moon Phases and Eclipses, Creating Craters, and Sunlight, Sun Bright.
NC Science Curriculum Standards Solar System Adventure designed by Morehead Planetarium to address the North Carolina Science Standard Curriculum for 6th grade, but it will appeal to families and children in many other grades. This is a review of the 4th through 8th grade science standards addressed by Solar System Adventure and the accompanying activities.
Views of the Solar System Views of the Solar System presents a vivid multimedia adventure unfolding the splendor of the Sun, planets, moons, comets, asteroids, and more. Discover the latest scientific information, or study the history of space exploration, rocketry, early astronauts, space missions, spacecraft through a vast archive of photographs, scientific facts, text, graphics and videos.
The Nine Planets The Nine Planets is an overview of the history, mythology, and current scientific knowledge of each of the planets and moons in our solar system. Each page has text and images, some have sounds and movies, and most provide references to additional related information.
Windows to the Universe Windows to the Universe is a graphic-intensive site with lots of links, a wide range of astronomy-related pages (follow the links on the bottom of each page) and some unusual features such as astronomy "virtual postcards" to send and an interface to search the site for content relevant to the National Science Standards. The site has student pages (select beginning, intermediate, or advanced) and teacher pages.
Exploring the Planets The National Air and Space Museum’s Exploring the Planets pages have information about the objects in our solar system, plus the Cyber-Center, a simulated research center where you can explore the mysteries of the solar system as a planetary research would.
Solar System Simulator The Solar System Simulator, a NASA/JPL/Caltech spyglass on the cosmos allows you to select from many options (including date, object of interest, and field of view) to have the simulator create a color image of your favorite planet or satellite.
National space Science Data Center The National Space Science Data Center is NASA's deep archive and general distribution center for lunar and planetary data and images.
Virtual Solar System The Virtual Solar System, presented by the National Geographic Society.
www.frontiernet.net/~kidpower/astronomy.html This small, simple site is easy for young children to read, with basic astronomy facts and one photo for each subject.
pds.jpl.nasa.gov/planets/welcome.htm This is a collection of many of the best images from NASA's planetary exploration program.
kidsastronomy.com/solar_index.htm This is a quick fact-filled tour of the solar system.
National Air and Space Museum
The Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum has online exhibits, information
about museum lectures, events, theater shows, and more. Their Educational
Services page includes online activities, publications to order and to
download free, and teacher workshop information.
Project ASTRO
Project ASTRO: Teachers and Astronomers as Partners in Learning, A National
Program to Improve Science Education in Grades 4-9 Sponsored by the Astronomical
Society of the Pacific. The complete hardcopy version of this project was
useful to the author of the Solar System Adventure activity pages.
The Universe in the Classroom
The Universe in the Classroom is a free quarterly newsletter published by
the Astronomical Society of the Pacific for educators. It is available either in
printed form or on the website.
NASA SpaceLink
This is one of NASA's many educational sites. This ever-changing catalogue
includes activities for teachers and students of all ages, and a very useful
search engine.
NASA StarChild
NASA's StarChild: A Learning Center for Young Astronomers pages includes facts,
activities, photographs, games, vocabulary, and quiz questions for young
astronomers. A second level is available for more advanced students, and
links to Imagine
the Universe for students 14 years and up.
www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/worlds/stargazer.html Tips to help young astronomers start observing the night sky with the unaided eye.
Bad Astronomy Phil Plait writes the truth about astronomy misconceptions, scientific misquotes, and confusing pseudoscience.
Web page by Challe Hudson. Copyright 2001 Morehead Planetarium.