Planet Research Project

Guidelines

The 8th grade classes in Franklin Middle School are on a fact-finding mission. The mission is to research one planet in our Solar System.

STEP 1 PICK A PLANET______Due: ______

STEP 2 GATHER INFORMATIONDue: ______

Get to know your planet. Read as much information about the planet as you can find. You will need to use at least of two resources. You can use the websites, video, newspaper articles, books from the school library, the public library, or your own books. As you’re reading about your planet, take notes on key information listed below. This will be part of your grade. Keep track of the sources you use, because you will need to create a works cited page as wellas part of your grade. You can attend office hours to work on the research if you would like, but you are responsible for researching your planet.

YOUR RESEARCH MUST INCLUDE:

  • Position in the Solar System: Where is your planet located (for example, Earth is the third planet from the Sun)? How far from the Sun does it orbit?
  • Orbit: How long does it take for your planet to orbit the Sun? (This is how long a year is.)
  • Rotation on its Axis: How long does it take for your planet to rotate on its own axis? (This is how long a day is)
  • Appearance of your Planet: What does your planet look like? Are there any special characteristicsin the appearance of your planet?
  • Size: How big is your planet? How does it compare to the other planets in terms of size?
  • Mass: What is your planet’s mass? How does its mass compare to the other planets?
  • Moons: Does your planet have moons? How many? If there are moons orbiting your planet, describe them. Do they have names? What are they composed of?
  • Rings: If there are rings orbiting your planet, describe them.What are they composed of?
  • Composition of your Planet: What type of planet is it (is it terrestrial or a gas planet)? What is its composition?
  • Gravity: What is the force of gravity at the surface of your planet? (For example, what would a person weigh on your planet)?
  • Atmosphere: What is the composition of the atmosphere of your planet? Is it a thick or a thin atmosphere?
  • Temperature: What is the temperature range on your planet? Does it change? Why?
  • Exploration: Has your planet been explored? By who? By what? What did they find?
  • 3-10 Other Interesting Facts Not Asked Above

STEP 3 CREATE YOUR WORKS CITED PAGE Due: ______

You will need at least two sources for this project. Keep track of your sources on the Work Cited Page AS YOU USE THEM. List all of your sources using the appropriate format below.

Website:

Author. (Date of publication).title. Retrieved date, URL

Example:

National Renewable Energy Laboratory. (2008). Biofuels. Retrieved May 6, 2008, from

Book:

Author’s Last Name, First Initial.(Year of Publication).Title of book: Subtitle of book. Place of Publication: Publisher.

Example:

Kidder, T. (1981).The soul of a new machine. Boston: Little, Brown & Company.

Video Online

CreatorLast Name, First Initial. OR Creator screen name. (Year, Month Day{of video post}). Title of video [Video file]. Retrieved from complete website

Example:

Norton, R. (2006, November 4).How to train a cat to operate a light switch [Videofile]. Retrieved from

Newspaper Article:

Editor (Year, Date).Title of Article.Newspaper Name, Pages.

Example:

Delaney, K. J. (2008, May 5). Microsoft ends pursuit of Yahoo. The Wall Street Journal, pp. A1-A12.

STEP 4 COMPLETE YOUR CHOICE PROJECT TASK Due: ______

RESEARCH GATHERED

PLANETARY MOTION

  • Position in the Solar System: Where is your planet located (for example, Earth is the third planet from the Sun)? How far from the Sun does it orbit?
  • Orbit: How long does it take for your planet to orbit the Sun? (This is how long a year is.)
  • Rotation on its Axis: How long does it take for your planet to rotate on its own axis? (This is how long a day is)

RESEARCH GATHERED

PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS

  • Appearance of your Planet: What does your planet look like? Are there any special characteristicsin the appearance of your planet?
  • Size: How big is your planet? How does it compare to the other planets in terms of size?
  • Mass: What is your planet’s mass? How does its mass compare to the other planets?
  • Composition of your Planet: What type of planet is it (is it terrestrial or a gas planet)? What is its composition?

RESEARCH GATHERED

PLANETARY OBJECTS

  • Moons: Does your planet have moons? How many? If there are moons orbiting your planet, describe them. Do they have names? What are they composed of?
  • Rings: If there are rings orbiting your planet, describe them.What are they composed of?

RESEARCH GATHERED

PLANETARY CONDITIONS

  • Atmosphere: What is the composition of the atmosphere of your planet? Is it a thick or a thin atmosphere?
  • Temperature: What is the temperature range on your planet? Does it change? Why?
  • Gravity: What is the force of gravity at the surface of your planet? (For example, what would a person weigh on your planet)?

RESEARCH GATHERED

EXPLORATION AND FACTS

  • Exploration: Has your planet been explored? By who? By what? What did they find?
  • 3-10 Other Interesting Facts Not Asked Above

Works Cited Page