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Introductory questions for
Detecting Extrasolar Planets
from Space Science Sequence Unit 4Great Explorations in Math and Science
(GEMS)http://www.lhsgems.org
If there is a certain zone around a star where life
might exist, what must be critical qualities of that
zone?
What happens when a planet transits a star?
Make a model that you can use to demonstrate a
planet transit.
For each team of 4–6 students:
• 1 snake book light
• 1 prepared Ping-Pong ball (see Getting Ready)
• several round, opaque plastic beads (ranging in size from 8 mm to 16 mm in diameter)
• 2 or more pipe cleaners
• 1 or 2 chopsticks or thin wooden dowels
• black thread
• 4" x 6” index cards
• tape
• paper or plastic bag to hold the materials
Book lights:
create a model “star” by setting up a light bulb and socket in the middle of the classroom for teams to demonstrate their transits.
What’s wrong with this statement:
“If a star has an orbiting planet, astronomers can
usually detect it by transit observations”