Listing all results (26)
Exoplanets
In this Teaching Astronomy and Space video, produced by the Institute of Physics (IOP), Teachers TV and Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC), Don Pollacco introduces us to SuperWASP, one of the most successful exoplanet finding instruments in the world....
Exoplanets
This resource has been...
Exoplanets
This animated clip explains how planets outside our solar system are difficult to see because they get lost in the glare of the star they orbit. The clip briefly mentions Doppler shift, dimming through transit as detection techniques that enable us to infer what the planet is made of, and explains what the...
Exoplanets
In this lesson, students will be introduced to the advantages of big telescopes and the use of telescopes to do astronomy across the whole electromagnetic spectrum. They will then explore the transit method of detecting exoplanets (either practically, or using real astronomical data) and use mathematics to...
Exoplanets are planets that orbit stars other than our Sun.
This collection was developed by the Institute of Physics to help bring this new and exciting area of research into the classroom. It consists of five practical activities matched to the 11-14 curriculum.
Each of the activities is standalone...
Exoplanet atmospheres
In this activity developed by the Institute of Physics, students use simple diffraction gratings to observe the spectra from different sources, and deduce how scientists can work out which chemicals are present in an exoplanet’s atmosphere. When an exoplanet passes in front of its star, some of the starlight is...
Looking for a habitable exoplanet
Produce by the Royal Observatory Greenwich, this booklet introduces exoplanets, planetary transits and light curves. Included is an online video that provides context for a lesson by discussing if there are aliens and where they might be found. This is followed by questions and answers that test understanding of...
Paxi Explores Exoplanets
This short animation films joins Paxi as he explores exoplanets. Paxi explains what exoplanets are, how they are discovered and he explores the many different types of exoplanet. This video produced by the European Space Agency would be well placed at the start of a Key Stage 2 Science lesson to introduce new...
Radius and Volume of Exoplanets
This activity, from the Royal Observatory Greenwich, uses data from NASA’s Kepler space probe to determine the size of an exoplanet, and provides students with an insight into the advantages and disadvantages of the transit method of exoplanet detection.
...Mass of an exoplanet from radial velocity
Produced by the Royal Observatory Greenwich, this booklet shows how the Doppler effect and the radial velocity of an exoplanet can be used to calculate its mass. Included is an online video that demonstrates the Doppler effect using a portable speaker and discusses how it can be applied to a distant exoplanet....