QUESTION 6 Locate a Small World This part of the lab is an exploration of the So

Question

QUESTION 6

Locate a Small World

This part of the lab is an exploration of the Solar System. In exploring the Solar System, you may make attempts that may not succeed on the first try. This is ok and is a natural part of exploration. The important part is to learn from that attempt and try again.

1. In the Small Worlds Sim, look for unlabeled objects that are moving at different speeds from the background stars and click on one.

2. In order to visit the small world, you must first find out its speed.  Place the Test Object to figure out the speed of the small world. It is recommended that you place the Test Object in the colored cone indicating your field of view so that you can directly compare the speed of the Test Object with the small world you clicked on.

3. To experiment with different distances away from the Sun, click “Play” to watch how the Test Object compares in speed with the Small World.

4. Once you find a distance of the Test Object that you would like to test, click “Test”. If the speed matches, a probe will launch to the small world.

Find the Astrocache:

5. A model of the small world will appear and many of these models use data obtained by NASA missions. You may need to click and drag to look around the small world for the light blue circle that indicates the location of the Astrocache. Using the zoom slider may also be helpful.  Click on the light blue circle once you have found it to add the astrocoin to your Cache Case.

6. Next, view your Cache Case: Click on the box that says “Cache Case” at the top middle of the screen.

You will need to find 3 astrocoins in each category of small worlds to move onto the next part. Look for small worlds with different speeds, some fast, some medium, and some slow. You will need to use the speed slider to find the different speeds.

Mapping the Location of Small Worlds

1. In the Small Worlds Sim, Examine Solar System Map in lower right of the starfield for the location of the orbits of the small worlds that you located. Zoom in and out to see them. They will appear as arcs (or orbits) of different colors. You may want to take some notes about where the different categories of objects are located in the Solar System.

2. Build a map of Small Worlds: In the Small Worlds Sim, click on Map.

3. Place beacon (in the lower right) into the area of the map where those objects occur (based on the locations you discovered in the previous map). Click Verify to check. You may need to zoom in and out to find the correct locations.

4. Find More Small Worlds by repeating Step 3, then click Finish.

Watch the videos and explore the links under “Near Earth Objects”, “Main Asteroid Belt”, and “Kuiper Belt” for additional information to complete the questions in the lab.

Question: In the video under "Near Earth Objects", Prof. Phil Christensen says that while many Near Earth Objects (NEOs) are asteroids, some NEOs are actually

comets.

moons.

rocky asteroids.

planets.

comets.

moons.

rocky asteroids.

planets.

Explanation / Answer

Question : Some NEO's are comets.

University of Arizona's Catalina Sky Survey, a secluded astronomical observatory whose mission it is to discover and monitor Near Earth Objects (NEOs), comets and asteroids which pass within roughly 120 million miles of Earth's orbit and therefore have the greatest potential to obliterate humanity.

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