Astronomy:

1. Page 9 to 11 in astronomy handbook. Go over basic first aid for hypothermia, heat
stroke, bites, and stings. Explain that one should never look directly at the sun,
especially through a telescope, even if that telescope has a sun filter. Instead, one
should observe the sun by projection (see page 45).
2. Light pollution is when light gets trapped in the atmosphere, as with the
greenhouse effect, bouncing in between the air particles. This causes a corona of
light to form around the source (if land based) or around the planet (in the case of
the sun). It has a tendency to outshine the distant stars, causing them to appear
faint or seem to disappear entirely.
3. Binoculars and telescopes allow you to see farther away. Binoculars are smaller
and easier to handle, but they cannot see as far as a telescope. They also produce
clear images of (relatively) near objects such as the moon, and allow the user to
use their depth perception (provided by the use of both eyes). Telescopes are
better suited to studying the stars than planets and moons. They can see farther,
but are much bulkier. Refracting telescopes have a tendency to flip viewed images
upside down, which is annoying if you want to view the moon or a planet, but
quite fine if your viewing a star that is so distant that you wouldnt be able to tell
top from bottum anyway. Reflecting telescopes are even bigger and bulkier, but
they serve the same perpose as refracting telescopes without turning the viewed
object upside down.
4. You should be able to see the following constellations: ursa major, ursa minor,
Cassiopia, Draco, Leo, Virgo, Libra, Lyra, Cygnus, Aquila, Bootes, Scorpius, and
Sagitarius, of which Leo, virgo, libra, scorpius, and sagitarius are in the zodiac.
The stars Arcturus (Bootes), Vega (Lyra), Altair (Aquila), Antares (Scorpius), and
Spica (Virgo) are or a magnitude higher than 1. Other conspicuous stars include
Polaris (Ursa Minor), Alkaid (Ursa Major), and Caph (Cassiopia). When we see
the milky way, we see the outer edge and the center because we are inside or it
rather than outside of it. This is similar to how one does not see the entire earth as
a sphere, because we are on it.
5. The five most vissable planets are mercury, venus, mars, Jupiter, and Saturn. The
planets tend to move across the zodiac, in tune with the rotation of the sun.
6. Look on pages 40 and 41 for lunar seas and craters. The moon keeps in orbit
through a balancing of inertia and gravity. Gravity pulls the moon towards earth,
but the moons inertia causes it to overshoot its target, so it ends up falling in the
other direction and missing, and missing, and missing. Its trajectory puts it into a
circular motion. See pages 41 through 45 for the moons phases and the eclipses.
7. The sun is composed of hydrogen and helium ions as well as other ions constantly
undergoing nuclear fusion and held together by intense mutual gravitational
forces. It is an average, medium temperature and medium size star. Its rays heat
upt the air on earth, causing temperature differences that cause wind. It also
evaporates water, which then condences and rains. Durring a solar flare, the suns
rays can even penetrate earths atmosphere and short out communications.
Sunspots are cooler parts of the sun caused by twin magnetic poles located

therein. They often twist around each other and that causes the magnetic field
lines eminating from them to twist. When enough tension builds, the magetic field
actually snaps, shooting charged particles out into space in a solar flare. A blue
star is the hottest, as it gives of the highest energy light. A red star is the coldest,
as it gives of the lowest energy light. A yellow star is in between. An example of a
blue star is Rigel in Orion. An example of a yellow star is capella in Auriga. An
example of a red star is Antares in scorpius.
8. See instructions.
9. See instructions.