StarLab Lessons – May 2017

Name______Date ______Per______ST#______

Much of the info and training for this packet came from the StarLab website at Wayne County RESA:

Horoscopes –complete 3 questions at bottom of page for log questions (obtained from Here’s today’s horoscope:

Definition: The term zodiac comes from Ancient Greek ZodiakosKyklos and refers to a 'circle of the animals.'

AQUARIUS– water/cup bearer (Jan. 20-Feb. 18) Your determination is impressive, though you easily could get distracted by others and their needs. Your ability to concentrate comes through once more.

PISCES – fish (Feb. 19-March 20) Tap into your imagination for answers. Your unusual creativity comes through more often than not.

ARIES – ram (March 21-April 19) Pressure builds with matters involving real estate and family. You simply cannot juggle everything that keeps landing on your plate.

TAURUS– bull (April 20-May 20) You tend to say what you think and tell it as it is. You might not always be met with agreement from others.

GEMINI– twins (May 21-June 20) Curb an innate insecurity that frequently rears its ugly head. This personality trait can be extremely offensive to you, as well as to others.

CANCER– crab (June 21-July 22) You are on cruise control, with your magnetism peaking. You know what you want, and you make good choices accordingly.

LEO– lion (July 23-Aug. 22) Take a backseat, whether you’re at home or at work. This role might not be natural for you, but it is necessary. Take this time to realize what is happening around you.

VIRGO– virgin (Aug. 23-Sept. 22) You put emphasis on success, networking and expanding your circle of friends. You will see a child or new friend make a demand.

LIBRA– scales (Sept. 23-Oct. 22) Others look to you for answers and resolution. You might not have the right solutions at this moment, but you certainly are capable of finding them.

SCORPIO– scorpion (Oct. 23-Nov. 21) Keep reaching out for someone at a distance. This person likely has important information, if not helpful feedback. Someone pushes you toward his or her chosen direction.

SAGITTARIUS– centaur/archer (Nov. 22-Dec. 21)You find that you are compatible with one particular person. For many of you, it will be your pleasure.

CAPRICORN– horned goat (Dec. 22-Jan. 19) Defer to others, as there seems to be little room for your ideas at the present moment. Eventually there will be, especially if you do not force your presence on others.

Question 1: Does your horoscope seem to work for today? Explain why or why not: ______

Question2: How many zodiac signs are there? ______With what do they match up? ______

Question 3: What is the name of the 13th zodiac sign that is normally left out? ______

(this will be answered during the presentation on day 2, and can be found on page 6 of this packet)

May Evening Skies– Use the map on page 3 of this packet to complete questions 1-5 prior to going into the Starlab. Questions 6-9 are homework after the presentation on day 1 ( ______)

The MSU planetarium’s map of the view of the stars notes that the picture isof the starsas they appear from the 40° N latitude of the middle of Ohio. We are farther north, so in Livonia we are at 42.3683° N, 83.3528° W.

Question 1: What would the latitude be if you were exactly ½ way between the Equator and the North Pole? ______.

Question 2: What does the 83.3528° W mean about our position on the earth? ______

Question 3: Speaking of latitude and longitude, which lines are parallel to the equator? ______Which ones are perpendicular? ______

Looking at the stars can be fun, but it’s not uncommon to see a satellite or two zipping by at 18,000 miles an hour or more. Here’s the link for “Daily predictions for brighter satellites” which shows us where to find satellites on clear nights, plus how bright we can expect them to be on a scale of zero to 5. Look on the star map on the next page, read the text below it,and determine which number represents the brightest objects in the sky (answer question 4, below):

Question 4: Brightest ______Dimmest: ______(I’ll tell you the dimmest number)

Question 5: Why do you think that they drew this map as though we were at 40° N latitude instead of drawing it from the North Pole? Is there a difference in the stars that you can see from those two locations? Remember, the earth does spin on its axis and revolve around the sun: ______

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Question 6 – additional info after the presentation: ______

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Question 7 -Read the text below and to the right of the picture on page 3. How many stars are in the bend in the handle of the Big Dipper? Can we tell if that is true in the StarLab?

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Question 8 - Polaris is upside down near the center of the top half of the map on page 3. What is another name for Polaris?______

Question 9 - Look at page 4. I know that you all like getting up before dawn on Saturdays. If you did that on this Saturday, the 27th , where would you have to look to see Venus? ______

Note: You can get the MSU Abrams Planetarium’s sky calendar for 3 months at a time from the StarLab section of the RESA site mentioned earlier, but it would be best if you use the address off of the copy that I have attached to this packet and pay the $12 for an annual subscription. ( , then choose “Sky Calendar” link.)

Accessed from: on 24 May 2017.

Accessed from: on 24 May 2017

The lessons in the dome - #1 -11 are Classwork Questions for Days 2-3 –these questions will be answered as we go along (essentially my lesson plan)

  1. Look at the starfield cylinder with the North Pole pointing upward. Discuss the big and little dippers – Ursa Major and Ursa Minor. Also, note Orion’s belt and sword (3 stars – point toward Sirius, the dog star, which is bright with a ring around it in our dome, but no ring in real life. The 3 stars also point to Pleiades, “The 7 Sisters” star cluster). The 2 stars at the end of the big dipper point toward the North Star, and the same 2 stars point to Leo in the other direction.
  1. Animate the cylinder, determine the location of Polaris. ______.

Discuss the meaning of the circumpolar motion we are seeing. Explain it here ______

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  1. Swap the constellation cylinder back and forth with the starfield so that students can get used to finding Polaris and the other items from #1. Also note Cygnus, which is the Northern Cross in the summer sky, but looked like a ______to the ancients. (what do we call a baby swan? ______)
  1. Make note of the Milky Way. Where are we in the Milky Way? ______
  1. Discuss the signs of the zodiac. Note the orange line on the cylinder to indicate the annual travel of the ______, which is how the Zodiac is defined.

“As the Earth orbits the sun, the sun appears to pass in front of different constellations. Much like the moon appears in a slightly different place in the sky each night, the location of the sun relative to distant background stars drifts in an easterly direction from day to day. It’s not that the sun is actually moving. The motion is entirely an illusion caused by the Earth’s own motion around our star.”

  1. Remind students that the signs come by in order, and that we wouldn’t get to see them all from here if the earth didn’t tilt on its axis (23.4 degrees, right now). Explain the issue with the signs of the Zodiac no longer being visible in the same spots in the “correct” months. Use this site:

We have a wobble that changes the tilt of our axis of rotation, and it takes 26,000 years to complete the full path of the wobble and start to repeat it again. “Since we tie our calendar (and astrologers tie the signs) to the solstices and equinoxes, the Earth does not actually complete an entire orbit in one year. The seasonal or tropical year is actually a hair less time than one full orbit (sidereal year). This means that, each year, where the sun is relative to the stars on any given day—June 21, for example—drifts a very tiny amount.Wait about 2000 years, and the sun will be sitting in an entirely different constellation!

On the June solstice 2000 years ago, the sun was sitting almost halfway between Gemini and Cancer. On this year’s June solstice, the sun will be sitting between Gemini and Taurus. In the year 4609, the June solstice point will pass out of the constellation Taurus and into the constellation Aries.”

“To complicate matters more, the constellations – unlike the astrological signs – are not of equal size and shape. The stars that make up a constellation are not, for the most part, physically related. The constellations are just patterns that our ancestors saw as they gazed skyward and tried to make sense of it all. Today’s constellations are specific to ancient Greek culture. Most of them were introduced by the Greek astronomer Ptolemy in the 2nd century (who in turn borrowed them from ancient Babylonian texts). Different cultures have seen patterns in the sky unique to their history. Some constellations are shared by many cultures (Orion is a notable example), but most are not.”

“The modern constellation boundaries weren’t defined until 1930 by the International Astronomical Union. With the current boundaries, there are actually thirteen constellations that lie along the sun’s path. The extra one not listed in any horoscope is Ophiucus, the Serpent Bearer, who sits between Sagittarius and Scorpius.”

  1. Have students learn to locate “their” constellation with the constellation drum, then swap back and forth to see if they can find it again with the starfield. Note the difficulty in doing so with the 3000 stars in the Starlab. Show the stars/Zodiac using the projector as well – note the differing shapes. Note that Castor and Pollux are the 2 bright stars in Gemini. (What does Gemini mean? ______)
  1. Review – from the North Pole, what is the apparent motion of the stars relative to the earth? ______

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  1. Review – from Michigan, what is the apparent motion of the stars?

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  1. Why did I write “apparent motion” for the previous 2 questions?

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  1. What motions are actually occurring to you as you sit on this planet right now?

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Objectives:

  • Differentiate between folklore/traditions and scientific studies
  • Understand our position in the Milky Way (Earth lies about 27,000 light-years from the galactic center in the midst of a galaxy 1,000 light-years thick. From this position, about halfway out on Orion–Cygnus Arm)
  • Have a clearer understanding of latitude and longitude
  • Understand how the tilt of the earth’s axis impacts the stars that we see
  • Understand our motion on earth (earth spins on axis, orbit sun, hurtle through Milky Way Galaxy, Milky Way Galaxy charging outward through the Universe)

24 May: Day 1 - Classwork. Mr. Reina guides you through a viewing of the starfield, teaches you about some basic Milky Way astronomy.

25 May: Day 2 - ClassworkObtain this packet – start filling it out as we go along, also complete the review sheet from day 1 (a separate sheet)

25 May: Day 2 - HomeworkRead the article about sand grains and stars that will be handed out on day 2 and write a comparison summary of the article – due on ______.

26 May: Day 3 - ClassworkFinish filling out this packet.

30 May: Day 4 - ClassworkRead the article about the Milky Way and answer the 6 questions numbered within the article.

Resources for your own use - (thank you Mr. Pearson and Mr. Chinavare for helping to get these together)

General Stargazing Note: *** All Michigan Stargazing subject the Whims of the "Cumulus Gyp-us Cloud" Gods ***

Definition --- Cumulus Gyp-us Clouds: The obstructions that WILL invariably form over Michigan WHENEVER there are ANY Significant Astronomical events occurring in the Heavens above, sometimes partially clearing ... strategically... at JUST the precise moment or area of the sky, to render one with ONLY the slightest, minimal fleeting glimpse of what it was they are ACTUALLY missing.

Just a few Quick Reference Big Dipper Links (Orion and others too):

Betelgeuse is the Red Star in Orion, Antares is the Red Star in Scorpius (Astrology = Scorpio)

Zodiac:

Constellations:

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