WSKY: Radio Station of the Stars

(Printable Version)

Information:

• Planetarium Show
• Suitable for grades 3 - 6
• Maximum 107 participants per session
• Approximately 35 minutes long

Description:

WSKY: Radio Station of the Stars is patterned after a Top 40 radio station and hosted by the fictional DJ team, Moondog Matt Midnight and Stella Sunspot. Join them as they present a totally spaced out show that explores the universe. The show includes original "chart-topping" hit singles, call-in segments with Dr. Cosmos who answers questions on everything from shooting stars to black holes, wacky interplanetary weather reports, zany solar system traffic reports, cosmic news and much more! The show gives a general overview of some constellations and how to find them in the night sky, information about planets, as well as some of the mythology.

Concepts:

• Ancient people used the sky as a calendar, as a way to navigate, and as a way to share the stories of their cultures.
• Stars are great glowing balls of gas that give off energy and light.
• Some large stars may die in a gigantic explosion or supernova that either destroys the star or leaves the core intact. If the core remains, the force of gravity may continue to compress the core until it forms a black hole.
• Some stars are part of star systems in which the more massive star orbits so closely to the smaller star that it can pull gas from that star, causing the larger star to temporarily brighten.
• Planets orbit our star and they reflect the sun’s light. Planets are a lot smaller than stars. Each planet has unique physical characteristics.
• Venus has a thick atmosphere that traps heat close to the planet. The planet’s day and night cycle is equal to 243 Earth days.
• Mars has a very thin atmosphere, no evidence of life, and temperatures that range from 72 degrees F to minus 189 degrees F.
• Jupiter is made up of mostly hydrogen and helium gases, with incredible temperature and pressure differences.
• Uranus is four times the diameter of the Earth and orbits the Sun at a distance of almost two billion miles.
• Pluto is three and one half billion miles form the Sun. It would take a spacecraft from fifteen to thirty years to reach Pluto depending on whether it used gravity assist from other planets to increase speed.
• Saturn has a ring system made of bits of rocks and ice that may have formed late in its history.
• Earth is the only planet we know of that has life. It rotates at about one thousand miles per hour and travels through the galaxy at 137 miles per second.
• Our Solar System is part of a galaxy made up of billions of stars bound together by gravity.
• Sometimes galaxies collide causing the scattering of stars and maybe the creation of new stars.
• Most of the objects in the universe appear to be moving away from each other. Scientists wonder if the universe will continue to expand forever.

Sunshine State Standards Addressed:

• SC.E.1.2.3 The student knows that the Sun is a star and that its energy can be captured or concentrated to generate heat and light for work on Earth.
• SC.E.1.2.4 The student knows that the planets differ in size, characteristics, and composition and that they orbit the Sun in our Solar System.
• SC.E.1.2.5: The student understands the arrangements of planets in our Solar System.
• SC.E.1.3.3 The student understands that our sun is one of many stars in our galaxy.
• SC.E.1.3.4 The student knows that stars appear to be made of similar chemical elements, although they differ in age, size, temperature, and distance.
• SC.E.2.2.1: The student knows that, in addition to the Sun, there are many stars that are far away.
• LA.C.1.2.1 The student listens and responds to a variety of oral presentations such as stories, poems, skits, songs, personal accounts, and informal speeches.
• LA.C.2.2.2 The student recognizes and responds to nonverbal cues used in a variety of nonprint media, such as motion pictures, television advertisements, and works of art.