An impressive animation explains the earth's awe-inspiring auroras. The contributions of high-energy particles from the sun collide with our neutral atmospheric atoms. Explained are the roles of solar wind, plasma, the magnetosphere,...

Is Earth prepared for a massive solar storm? Examine the possibilities with an interesting activity, part of NOVA's Sun Lab interactive unit. Viewers learn about historical solar storms, the tools we have for protecting ourselves and...

Our atmosphere is pretty amazing! How does it minimize the effects of solar weather? Scholars discover Earth's first line of defense against the sun—the magnetosphere. The activity, one of several in a sun unit from NOVA, explains how...

Large solar flare storms occur every 11 years, and scientists want to understand why. The video explains one scientists journey to investigate this phenomenon. It introduces the difference between various types of sun storms and includes...

Learn the science behind one of the most beautiful acts of nature. A comprehensive lesson explores the causes and characteristics of auroras. The instruction also explains the differences among auroras and what the differences indicate...

Did you know our sun has the power to make telegraphs work and cell phones cease to work? Show a video that explains solar storms and their impact on us. It describes what solar storms are, when and why they happen, and the good and the...

Did you know that Earth is one of three planets that experiences auroras? A video explains what happens when the magnetic sun throws giant balls of plasma at the earth. It includes both the beauty and the damage an aurora can cause. 

Why is the sun round? Examine this question, and others, with your pupils while teaching them how to live in a more earth-friendly environment. Pupils explore Sun composition and discuss how solar wind, sunspots, and solar energy affects...

Where can you see an aurora in North America? After completing an astronomy activity, scholars can locate the exact coordinates. Pupils plot points of the inner and outer ring of the auroral oval and answer questions based on their...

Most of us are familiar with the three states of matter—solid, liquid, and gas. But what about plasma? Yet 99.9% of the universe is made of plasma. Get the scoop on this gooey goo.

This mini-episode is really more about magnetic fields than the phenomenon of magnetism. Computer graphics help Bill explain how charged particles from solar wind create the awesome Aurora Borealis and Aurora Australis. Mr. Nye also...

Here is a quick puzzle-style worksheet for your aspiring astronomers. A code is printed at the top of the page and learners use it to fill in the blanks describing different phenomena or objects in outer space. The material does not even...

These aren't exactly worksheets, but rather a selection of pdf files of different atmospheric or solar events. Print your chosen pdf file for each aspiring astronomer in your class, have them cut out the individual mini pages, arrange...

In this auroras worksheet, learners read an online book about auroras and answer short answer questions about it. Students answer 10 questions total.

In this aurora activity, students read a description of an aurora observed by Captain Standard in 1859. Students interpret the description with a drawing giving as much detail as possible using colored media to capture what they read.

In this solar activity instructional activity, students complete a puzzle given a word bank with matching numbers. The numbers correlate to the answers to basic math problems that use the order of operations. Students use their...

For this auroras worksheet, students define 11 terms related to space phenomena such as auroras, coronal mass ejections and auroral ovals. Students use a given website to help them define the terms and they write a 500 word essay about...

In this coronal mass ejection worksheet, students read about the coronal mass ejections detected by the IMAGE satellite and the Hubble Space Telescope resulting in auroras. Students solve 6 problems and determine the speed of the coronal...

For this solar storms worksheet, students use an on line source to read newspaper stories about scientific theories and hypothesis related to space weather phenomena. Students answer 7 questions about past solar storms and compare ideas...

In this auroras worksheet, students read 2 descriptions written about a massive solar storm that occurred in 1859. Students read each description and compare the specific points in each. They create a time line of the events that...

For this space worksheet, students identify and describe what auroras are in the sky and why they are made up of different colors. Then they explain why stars are born and what happens to them as they get older. Students also name which...

Students read about and explore solar winds and spectacular auroras, specifically the Aurora Borealis, also known as the Northern Lights.

Students read science article on auroras and create a class bingo game with the scientific terms.

Students examine the relationship between solar activity and the Earth's geomagnetic field in producing the phenomena known as aurora borealis (Northern Lights) by reading and discussing "Earth, Wind and Fireworks." students graph data...