The Life of a Star
The life story of a star, from a glowing nebula to a white dwarf, neutron star or black hole.
Grades 6-12About 15 minutes of narrated flight, plus discussion stops10 stops
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What students will see and do
Students visit a stellar nursery, the Pillars of Creation, a young cluster, the Sun, a blue supergiant, a red giant, a white dwarf, a dying supergiant and a supernova remnant, then learn that their own atoms were made in stars.
Learning objectives
- Put the stages of a star's life in order
- Explain how a star's mass determines its lifetime and its fate
- Use star color as a clue to temperature
- Explain where the elements in the human body came from
NGSS connections
| HS-ESS1-1 | Nuclear fusion in the Sun's core releases energy that reaches Earth as sunlight; the Sun's life span depends on its fuel. |
|---|---|
| HS-ESS1-3 | Stars produce elements through fusion; supernovas and neutron star mergers scatter heavier elements. |
| HS-PS1-8 | Fusion of hydrogen into helium is a nuclear process that releases energy. |
| DCI ESS1.A / PS1.C | The Universe and Its Stars; Nuclear Processes. |
Stops on this journey
- A stellar nursery
- The Pillars of Creation
- A young star cluster
- A star in the prime of life (discussion stop)
- A blue supergiant
- A red giant
- A white dwarf
- A dying giant (discussion stop)
- A supernova remnant
- You are made of star stuff
Vocabulary
- nebula
- nuclear fusion
- main sequence
- red giant
- white dwarf
- supernova
- neutron star
- pulsar