1& 2 March 2007 Wan Ng School of Educational Studies La Trobe University La Trobe University Bundoora, Victoria Bundoora, [email protected]

1& 2 March 20071& 2 March 2007

Wan NgWan NgSchool of Educational StudiesSchool of Educational Studies

La Trobe University La Trobe University Bundoora, VictoriaBundoora, Victoria

[email protected]@latrobe.edu.au

School of Educational Studies

Courtesy of SOHO/[instrument] consortium. SOHO is a project of international cooperation between ESA and NAS

Learning Science in Context

Concept Map

related to

related to

related to

in

in

takes place in

one of which is

involved

SUN

Physical Science

Biological Science

Chemical Science

Earth & Space

ENERGY

RenewableSolarWindHydro

(water cycle)Biomass

Non-RenewableFossil

(coal, oil, natrual gas)

Nuclear

Light (properties) spectrumHeat/heat transfer

PhotovoltaicElectronics (solar powered

battery charger)

Nuclear Reactions

Energy (combustion)

Water CycleBiomassBiodiesel

Fuel Cell (solar driven)Food Chemistry

(cooking in solar oven)Production of Food

Spectroscopy (study of sun)

Photovoltaic (materials/

behaviour of atoms)

Photosynthesis (production of food)

Flowering in plantsCancer (skin)Transpiration

Food chains/EcosystemsAstronauts (body functions

in space travel)

Wavelengths

consists of

Night & DaySeasonsWeatherAurora

Space ExplorationSolar System

Science related to the Sun

Ultraviolet

causes

affect

affect

ICT and Technology

Biological Science

Learning Outcome6.1 Explain how ecosystems are maintained in terms of energy and matter

6.3 Describe regulation and coordination in plants and animals

6.4 Explain cellular processes, including photosynthesis and respiration

Content related to Sun & ScienceEnergy cycle in nature, food chains, food webs, carbon-oxygen cycle, nitrogen cycle, cells and organelles

Investigate different factors affecting growth of plants including the effect of sunlight and hormonal influence.

Processes of photosynthesis and respiration, including creating concept maps using Inspiration software.

Chemical ScienceLearning Outcome

6.1 Relate the properties of fundamental groupings of substances to the nature of their constituent particles

Content related to Sun & Science

Nuclear reactions in the sun provide the source of heat and light energy.

Science Learning Outcomes (CSF)

Earth & Space Science

Learning Outcome6.2 Describe the extraction, processing and use of geological resources and associated environmental and social issues

6.3 Compare theories about the origin and evolution of the universe

6.4 extension. Analyse aspects of space technologies

Content related to Sun & ScienceFormation of natural resources such as crude oil and coal. Describe the extraction, processing and use of coal in producing electricity. Discuss environmental and social issues related to burning of coal and why the use of solar energy is important

Life cycle of a star .

Investigate the use of solar cells in space technologies

Physical ScienceLearning Outcome

6.1 Relate the behaviours of light, such as reflection, refraction, absorption and polarisation, to uses in technology

6.3 Explain how different forces act together to affect the motion of objects

6.2 Explain the effect of electronic and electrical components in the operation of electronic and electromagnetic devices

Content related to Sun & Science

Concepts of light and heat applied to construction of a variety of solar powered devices e.g solar cooker, solar hat, solar mini-cars and boats, solar torch, solar powered flashing board, solar powered table mini-fan

Build an electronic device such as a flashing unit which is powered by solar charged batteries.

Investigating effectiveness of sunblockers using UV sensitive nail

polish and beads

Build and test a solar cooker

Investigating biodiesel

Build and test a food drier

Ethanol run bus

Build and test a solar tower

Build a solar powered battery charger

Build a solar powered welcome sign with flashing lights

Build a flashing unit

Investigating how big the sun is

Hands-On Activities

Investigating photovoltaic modules

electrolyser

solar panel

H2 and O2 storage tanks

fuel cellfan

Hydrogen Fuel Cell

Some information about the Sun

La Trobe Univeristy/Institute for Education/

The sun is a mass of incandescent gasA gigantic nuclear furnaceWhere Hydrogen is built into HeliumAt a temperature of millions of degrees

The sun is hot, the sun is notA place where we could liveBut here on Earth there'd be no lifeWithout the light it gives

We need its light, we need its heatThe sun light that we seekThe sun light comes from our own sun'sAtomic energy


The sun is hot...

The sun is so hot that everything on it is a gasAluminum, Copper, Iron, and many others

The sun is large...

If the sun were hollow, a million Earth's would fit insideAnd yet, it is only a middle size star

The sun is far away...About 93,000,000 miles awayAnd that's why it looks so small

But even when it's out of sightThe sun shines night and day

We need its heat, we need its lightThe sun light that we seekThe sun light comes from our own sun'sAtomic energy

Scientists have found that the sun is a huge atom smashing machineThe heat and light of the sun are caused by nuclear reactions betweenHydrogen, Nitrogen, Carbon, and Helium


Why Does the Sun Shine?They Might Be Giants

Men are weak now, and yet they transform the Earth's surface. In millions of years their might will increase to the extent that they will change the surface of the Earth, its oceans, the atmosphere, and themselves. They will control the climate and the Solar System just as they control the Earth. They will travel beyond the limits of our planetary system; they will reach other Suns, and use their fresh energy instead of the energy of their dying luminary."-Konstantin Tsiolkovsky (1857-1935)

Mankind will not remain on Earth forever, but in its quest for light and space will at first timidly penetrate beyond the confines of the atmosphere, and later will conquer for itself all the space near the Sun.

Konstantin E. Tsiolkovsky (1857-1935)

You need about 109 Earths to span the

width of the Sun

It takes about one million Earths to fill up the whole

Sun!

La Trobe Univeristy/Institute for Education

Sun Earth MoonMass (kg) ~ 2 x 1030 ~ 6 x 1024 ~ 7 x 1022

Diameter (km) ~ 1 400 000 ~ 13 000 ~ 3500Temperature(oC) Surface ~ 6000

Core ~ 15 000 000

Some facts


Mass of Sun is 330, 000 times that of Earth

The distance is about 150 000 000 km

If you were travelling in a car at an average speed of

100 km per hour, how many years will it take for you to

get to the sun?

AnswerLa Trobe Univeristy/Institute for Education

To measure really long distances, the unit ‘light years’ is used. Light travels at the speed of 300 000 km per second. A light year is the distance that light takes to travel in a year.

Calculate the distance of a light year.

Answer


How long will it take for the light from the Sun to reach the Earth?

Distance of Sun from Earth is 150 000 000 kmLight travels 300 000km in 1 second

Time to travel 150 000 000 km is

150 000 000 = 50 s = 8 mins 20 s

300 000


Element % composition

Hydrogen 92.1%Helium 7.8%Oxygen 0.061%Carbon 0.030%Nitrogen 0.0084%Neon 0.0076%Iron 0.0037%Silicon 0.0031%Magnesium 0.0024%Sulfur 0.0015%All others 0.0015%

Source:http://www.solarviews.com/eng/sun.htm

Is the Sun a ball of Solid, Liquid or Gas?


The Sun is neither a solid nor a gas but in a state called plasma. This plasma is thin and gaseous near the surface, but gets denser down towards the Sun's fusion core. Plasma is not a gas, liquid, or solid - it is the fourth state of matter. Plasma often behaves like a gas, except that it conducts electricity and is affected by magnetic fields.

On an astronomical scale, plasma is common. "99.9 percent of the Universe is made up of plasma," says Dr. Dennis Gallagher, a plasma physicist at NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center. "Very little material in space is made of rock like the Earth."


http://www.amastro.org/at/su/sust.html

Interior

Surface layers

Special Features

About 4.5 billion years old

(4500000000)


Complete the following by calculating the distance travelled by light in 1 year:

light travels 300 000km in 1 secondit travels 300 000 x 60 s = 18 000 000 km in 1 min

Calculate the distance of one light year.

it travels 18 000 000 x 60 min = 1 080 000 000km in 1 hourit travels 1 080 000 000 x 24 hrs = 25 920 000 000 km in a day

it travels 25 920 000 000 x 365 days = 9 460 800 000 000 km in a year

One light year is 9 460 800 000 000 km!


150 000 000 km/ 100km per h = 1 500 000 hours1 500 000/24 hours in a day = 62500 days

62500/365 days in a year= 171.2 years

Ans: ~171 years


Sun’s Interior

Core Radiative

zone

Convective

zone

• Hot and Dense

• 15 000 000 oC

• Gravitational pull

• Nuclear fusion

•25% of Sun’s radius

• Heat travelling through the air

• Electromagnetic energy

• 55% of Sun’s radius

• Rising of warm air and sinking of cool air

• Reaches surface of Sun


Surface Layers

Photo- sphere

Chromo-sphere Corona

• 500 km ‘thin’

• Heat and light we see and feel

• 6000 oC

• 2000 km in thickness

• Hotter than Photosphere

• 100 000 oC

• Several million km from Photosphere

• 1-2 million degree

• Solar wind is hot gas from Corona


Solar Cooker


Masking tape to stop reflectors

from flapping in the wind

Reflector

Polystyrene box:

internally lined with

black paper

Reflector

Glass (or glad wrap)

cover

Solar Eclipse


Constructing Solar Food Drier


Alex Leach with solar powered

battery charger and flashing unit.

Solar powered battery charger

Flashing unit

Kevin Morgan and students from Echuca High School with solar cooker

Another model

Solar Tower


Kew High School students testing their solar tower

Solar tower model as constructed by engineering students.

Ethanolpowered bus (Ventura Bus) and Solar Pond (RMIT)


Flashing lights on Welcome sign powered by car battery which is charged by solar panel


Flashing lights embedded in the

words.

Car battery

12 volts

12V solar

panel

Concentrating Mirrors


Hot Spot on screen Array of

small mirrors

2002 Sun & Scienc Camp Group


Participating schools

CD-ROM

Documents

1& 2 March 2007 Wan Ng School of Educational Studies La Trobe University La Trobe University Bundoora, Victoria Bundoora, [email protected]