Ever wonder why a siren sounds different when it's coming toward you than when it's going away from you? It all depends on the motion of the sound waves! The interactive activity demonstrates how the Doppler effect impacts the motion of...

Here is a full-fledged investigation of light waves, the electromagnetic spectrum, and element spectra. Physicists research a scientist that contributed to our understanding of the behavior of light. They take notes on your lecture, and...

High schoolers use an ordinary toy to reveal the Doppler effect. The connection is also made to moving cars, and to the shifting of the lines in the absorption or emission spectrum when the distance between a star and Earth is increasing...

Students explain why a transiting planet causes a periodic dimming in the light from its parent star. They determine the radius of a planet, and its orbital distance, by analyzing data and manipulating equations. Students compare the...

Ninth graders explain waves in terms of energy transfer and describe their basic types and characteristics. They solve mathematical problems involving wavelength and frequency. Students conduct experiments in reflection and refraction.

Students explore what astronomers are able to examine our galaxy and universe by examining light. They explore in this sub-unit the formation of the universe, commonly called "The Big Bang," and it follows studying from the Light: The...

According to the Farmers' Almanac, the weather will be nice today. Class members examine how weather forecasting plays a part in their lives with a resource that provides information on the history of forecasting, from using cloud...

Tenth graders explore the structure and content of galaxies. Through discussion, lab, and hands-on activities, they discover the general structure of the three types of galaxies as well as the effect they have on the structure and...

Students view video segments which reveal the parts of sound and what factors control sound. The viewing and post-viewing activities serve to reinforce the video segments using worksheets and hands-out experiments.

Learners participate in an estimation and measurement activity to improve their estimates of the size of hail. They hold several different sized wooden balls and record their guesses of the ball's diameters. They compare their estimates.

Students investigate the refraction properties of gelatin to calculate its index of refraction. They discover that as the light travels through the gelatin, its speed and wavelength also change. Students find th indes of refraction of an...

Young scholars practice manipulating algebra formulas with more than one variable. They examine the topics of velocity, wavelength and frequency. They determine the amount of red-shift in a receding star.

Students investigate the mixing of light. They form a hypotheses to reason why color changes occur and they write conclusions and ask new questions arising from the investigation. Students identify the primary and complementary colors of...