Pluto’s Secret - Children’s Book. How did three staff members at the National Air and Space Museum get to collaborate on the Museum’s first children’s book, Pluto’s Secret: An Icy World’s Tale of Discovery?
The short answer is that this is an extraordinary place to work. And when people are as generous with their time and talents as my collaborators have been, neat stuff happens. Pluto’s Secret: An Icy World’s Tale of Discovery The idea that became Pluto’s Secret began in the Writers’ Group that I hold for Museum curators and fellows. We meet twice a month to share mutual problems we encounter in our research and writing of aviation and space history. So, during my commutes in and out of Washington, DC, I added the story of Pluto’s discovery to the repertoire of tales that I would tell my son in the car to pass the time.
Inquiry Curriculum: On Inquiry Science “Science can be introduced to children well or poorly.
If poorly, children can be turned away from science; they can develop a lifelong antipathy; they will be in a far worse condition than if they had never been introduced to science at all.” –Isaac Asimov The core philosophy behind inquiry-based, student-centered learning is that students learn best while doing science rather than merely reading about this or that aspect of science. The Orbit Simulator. Hate Mail From Third Graders. What's Your Favorite Planet? Distance from sun (avg.): 36 million miles Time it takes to orbit sun: 88 Earth days Size (diameter): 3,032 miles (two-fifths of Earth) Surface Temperature (range): -275 to 840 ºF Number of Moons: 0 Discovered: Known in ancient times Origin of Name: Roman god, the swift messenger Sean Solomon Carnegie Institution of Washington Principal Investigator for NASA's MESSENGER mission, which will reach Mercury in 2011.
Mercury is the underdog planet. It's the smallest guy in the neighborhood, and it lives in the roughest part of town—high temperature, strong solar wind. But little Mercury is tough. It's made out of the densest material. Distance from sun (avg.): 67 million miles Time it takes to orbit sun: 225 Earth days Size (diameter): 7,520 miles (roughly Earth-size) Surface Temperature (range): 113 to 870 ºF Number of Moons: 0 Discovered: Known in ancient times Origin of Name: Roman goddess of love You know the famous phrase, "There's no place like home? " My Dad Discovered Pluto. Www.astro.virginia.edu/dsbk/files/LessonPlans_PocketSolarSystem_v2.pdf. Astro.unl.edu/naap/pos/animations/kepler.swf.
Planet Paths activity. This activity is designed to help middle school students understand that planets travel in nearly circular orbits around the sun, and that planetary motion obeys laws defined by Kepler and Newton.
Students will explore interactive web sites demonstrating orbital motion and complete a series of modeling activities. The Pluto Files. The Pluto Files PBS Airdate: March 2, 2010 NEIL DEGRASSE TYSON (American Museum of Natural History, Hayden Planetarium): In 1930, a farm boy, with a passion for the universe, notices a tiny dot moving across the night sky.
He discovers Pluto, four billion miles from the Sun and cloaked in darkness. Pluto is a mystery. Our best images are nothing more than a blur, and many scientists are arguing over whether it's even a planet. MARK SYKES (Planetary Science Institute): When we fly our spaceship to Pluto, we'll arrive at a round world. BRIAN G. NEIL DEGRASSE TYSON: The scientific debate over Pluto has even caused a media frenzy. STEPHEN COLBERT (The Colbert Report/Film Clip from August 17, 2006): I'm sorry, I thought planets might be one of the constants in life. Ellipse inquiry for SECO.