star party Activities

Sound Cone – demonstrating the light collecting capabilities of a telescope using a sound comparison

  • Materials: construction paper, tape
  • Process: 
    • Roll a sheet of paper into a cone shape
    • Make the small hole less than 1 inch wide and the wide hole, on the other end,  as big as possible
    • Tape the edge into position
    • Test how things sound with and without the sound cone

Crater Creation – learn how craters are formed and analyze their impacts

  • Materials: tub, flour, cocoa powder, a few varied sizes of marbles
  • Process:
    • Fill the tub with a layer of flour at least an inch deep
    • Add a thinner layer of cocoa powder on top
    • Try dropping marbles in to create craters
      • Compare the impacts left by different sized marbles, try the same marble but from different heights

Earth and Moon Scale Model – create scale models of the Earth and Moon, and learn how they move around each other, how this creates eclipses

  • Materials: clay/playdough, flashlight
  • Process:
    • Roll small balls using your clay/playdough, you want 50 evenly sized balls
    • Reserve one of those balls to represent the Moon, combine the other 49 together to make the Earth
    • Use the flashlight as your Sun, create a lunar eclipse when the Moon passes behind the Earth’s shadow

Constellation Projectors – create a projection of your favorite constellation

  • Materials: paper/foam cup, pushpin/pencil, marker
  • Process:
    • With your cup flipped upside down, draw dots for each star on the bottom (if you want your constellation to be accurate to the sky when projected, you’ll need to draw it on backwards)
    • Use the pushpin to poke holes in each of your stars
    • Project your constellation onto the wall by shining a flashlight into the cup

 

Constellation Finder – create a constellation finder that can be used to locate your constellation in the sky

  • Materials: manila folder/sturdy cardstock, saran wrap/transparency sheet, marker
  • Process:
    • Cut your paper to create a rectangular frame with an empty middle, leaving an inch or so of paper left around the edges
    • Tightly stretch your saran wrap around the frame (transparency sheets work better for getting a smooth surface but they are less common at home)
    • Draw your constellation, emphasizing the dots for the stars, on the saran wrap
    • You can now use your constellation drawing to find those stars in the sky, just hold it up and search around until you find the stars that match!

Making Sundials (making one with your hands, chalk shadows) – learn how to tell time with the Sun using a few different methods for creating sundials.  Watch the Adler Planetarium’s Sunny Sundials video for more ideas.

  • Chalk Shadows
  • Materials: chalk
  • Process:
    • Pick a spot outside where you can draw with chalk and that will have direct sunlight all day
    • Draw a circle on the ground
    • At the top of each hour, stand in the circle. Have someone else trace your shadow. Then write the time inside your shadow
    • At the end of the day, you will have chalk markings on the ground for where your shadow falls during each hour. The next day, you can tell time by going outside and seeing where your shadow falls.

Sun Prints – create artworks using the ultraviolet power of the Sun

  • Materials: construction paper (dark blue or purple preferred, you can also use sun print paper if you have it), assortment of objects
  • Process:
    • Lay your paper on a flat surface outside that will be exposed to sunlight for at least 2-3 hours
    • Place a few objects down on your paper, leaving some of the paper directly exposed to the sunlight
    • For best results, lay plastic wrap or plexiglass over your objects and paper (flat objects like leaves or flowers work best because of this). If using plastic wrap, make sure to weight the corners down

After a few hours, you can remove the objects off the paper and see your sun print. The ultraviolet light that comes from the Sun makes the uncovered parts of the paper lighter, while the covered parts stay dark. This ultraviolet light is the same thing that gives you a sunburn when you stay out in the Sun without sunscreen for too long

Making a Comet – demonstration that shows how comets are formed and how they leave tails behind, as well as an additional at home activity for creating a comet

  • Link to video here.  Based on JPL’s comet making guide.
  • Below is an alternate comet activity that can easily be done at home
  • Materials: popsicle stick, two colors of ribbons, tin foil, scissors
  • Procedure:
    • Cut two pieces of each ribbon, one long one and one shorter one. Tie the ribbons to one end of the popsicle stick
    • Cut three square pieces of tin foil. Ball the first piece of tin foil around the end of the popsicle stick where the ribbons are tied. Wrap the other two pieces of tin foil around the first
    • The tin foil ball represents the rocky, icy nucleus of the comet. The two different colored ribbons represent the dust tail and gas tail that the comet leaves behind as it passes near the Sun.
    • When you run with your comet, or hold it in front of a fan, watch as the tails trail behind the comet’s nucleus. On comets in space, these tails are pushed by solar winds.