Exploring Black Holes Webquest Name ______

Exploring Black Holes Webquest Name ______

6th Grade PSI Science Score: ______/ 8

Follow the steps below exactly in order to complete the webquest! There will be questions throughout the activity so make sure that you are following along with the procedure listed.

1) Go to www.google.com and search “Hubble Black Holes.” Click on the first link (http://hubblesite.org/explore_astronomy/black_holes/)

2) Click “Skip Intro Animation” at the bottom of the page. You will be brought to this image:

3) You will now be on an introduction page. Answer the following questions:

a. No object can escape a black hole’s ______.

b. How close is the nearest black hole?

4) Click on “Journey to a Black Hole”

5) Use the circle to the right to find all of the listed objects in the night sky.

6) Fill in the chart below using the information uncovered:

Your Findings / Object / Distance / Black Hole?
Moon
Sun
Planet
Binary star
Red giant
Planetary nebula
Supernova remnant
X-ray binary
Extragalactic binaries
Milky Way center
Spiral galaxy
Elliptical galaxy
Quasar

7) Click

8) Read the introduction on the left side of screen and then click on “Cygnus X-1”

9) Follow the directions on the screen and answer the questions below:

a. What speed must you reach in order to escape Earth’s atmosphere?

______

b. At this speed, it will take you forever to reach your destination. How much more energy did you apply to your engines?

______

c. How long will it take you to reach Pluto at this speed?

______

d. At this speed, how long does it say it will take to reach Cygnus X-1?

______

e. What is the black hole doing to the star that orbits around it in this system?

______

10) Click “Up Close and Personal”

11) Why does the image on this page appear so distorted?

______

12) Click “Learn More” and answer the questions below:

a. What happens to light rays that pass close to a black hole?

______

b. What happens to light rays that pass a little bit further away from the black hole?

______

c. There are ______many images of each star since the light rays circle the black hole many times before coming to your eye.

d. What does Einstein’s general theory of relativity say?

______

13) Click on “What is a Black Hole” under “Related Questions” and answer the questions below:

a. Define a black hole:

______

b. The more ______an object, or the ______its size, the ______the gravitational force felt on its surface.

c. Who came up with the term “black hole?”

______If we cannot see black holes, how can we tell where they are?

______

Feel free to explore the other Related Questions and look at the other pink links at the bottom of the page.

Don’t forget that you can journey to another black hole in the Andromeda Galaxy. Click “The Voyage” near the top of the screen, and select “Andromeda – a supermassive black hole!”