Teacher Portal
Space
Investigation 4
Investigation 4
Space
Phase 1 – Defined Understanding
Student Guide
Download and Distribute
Access Teacher Guide
Student Guide with answers
Teacher PreLab
Prepare for the Experiment
Phase 2 – Dynamic Understanding
► Investigation Four Summary – Orbit of the Earth and the Moon
In Investigation Four, you continued your exploration of the orbit of the Earth around the sun and the moon around the Earth. During this Investigation, you:
1. Modeled what happens to the orbit of an object when gravity no longer exists and its relation to Newton’s First Law of Motion.
2. Simulated the orbits of the Earth and moon.
3. Illustrated the series of straight lines that comprise an orbit of an object in motion and the relation to Newton’s First Law of Motion.
► Investigation Four Summary – Learning Goals
Through these experiments, you concluded that:
1. The combination of forward motion and gravity cause the planets to orbit the Sun and the Moon to orbit the Earth. Without this precise amount of gravity, planets would either fly out of orbit in a straight line or they would be pulled toward the Sun.
Concept Slides
Launch and Discuss
Mathematics Concepts in This Investigation
- length in cm
- geometry
- predict/verify results
- projections
- problem-solving
- patterns/trends