Spaceship Chapter 3

CONTEXT AREA
Earth
■ Our Earth is very big. You would have to walk over 24 000 kilometres to go around it
once.
■ But our Earth is very tiny compared to the size of the universe. Our imagination
cannot prepare us for what is out there. The size, the distance, the danger.
■ Galaxies, comets, asteroids, pulsars, quasars, nebulae and black holes. These all
await for space travellers.
■ What are they? What are they made of? How will they affect future space travellers?
Will we ever be able to explore them?

PRESCRIBED FOCUS AREAS

4.1 identifies historical examples of how scientific knowledge has changed people’s
understanding of the world
4.2 uses examples to illustrate how models, theories and laws contribute to an
understanding of phenomena
4.5 describes areas of current scientific research

DOMAINS
KNOWLEDGE AND
UNDERSTANDING
4.9.2 components of the universe
a describes major features of the universe
including galaxies, stars, nebulae and solar
systems
b uses appropriate scales to describe
differences in sizes of, and distances
between, structures making up the universe
VALUES AND ATTITUDES
4.25 recognises the relevance and importance
of lifelong learning and acknowledges the
continued impact of science in many
aspects of everyday life
4.26 recognises the role of science in providing
information about issues being considered
and in increasing an understanding of the
world around them

SKILLS
4.18 with guidance, presents information to an
audience to achieve a particular purpose
4.19 draws conclusions based on information
available
4.22 undertakes a variety of individual and team
tasks with guidance
CONCEPTS
What is astronomy? Explanation of study of astronomy
Explanation of light years and distance
How people explore space History of telescopes, Galileo to Hubble
Making a simple refracting telescope
Looking into space Stars, galaxies, nebulae, pulsars
Quasars, black holes, the universe
Objects from space Comets and meteor showers
Meteors and meteorites
Collision! When the Earth is hit, craters
Extinction of dinosaurs
Spacecraft Galileo Epic journey to Jupiter
Is anyone out there? Search for intelligent life in the universe

51
 3.1
What is astronomy?
Read the comic strip ‘What is Astronomy?’, then answer the questions.

Astronomy is a subject truly out Astronomers look at the stars, galaxies Cosmologists work to understand the
of this world. and nebulae, and try to work out what whole universe. Why is there a
they are, and what they are made of. universe? How long will it last?

galaxy supernova Big Bang

nebula black hole

Stars and planets are far away, and astronomers use special tools to study them, they Light from distant stars is collected
use telescopes which can collect light, radio waves, infrared and ultraviolet light. and analysed.

Some telescopes are too large to

move. They are kilometres across.

Astronomers can tell the speed,

Some telescopes like the temperature and age of stars.
Hubble, are in space. Their secrets are in starlight.

Space probes have been sent to other Which planets and moons are best Are we alone?
planets, the Sun, and to comets. for people to colonise? Who listens for radio signals?

COMPUTER TRACE OF
RADIO WAV ES

Is there bacterial life elsewhere

smile, click! on a nearby planet?

Astonomers are looking at Mars, or

the many moons around Jupiter.

Satellites are used for communication Astronomy is useful for everyone. Knowledge of the Sun predicts
and all aspects of research. It is used in the prediction of tides, weather and climate cycles on Earth,
eclipses, sunrise and sunset, and and the solar winds which can distort
moonrise and moonset. radio communications on Earth.
‘Now about
those tide charts
you lost.’

Satellites can ‘see’ cars on a highway,

and a newly mown oval.
CHECKPOINT:

QUESTIONS
1 Astronomers are busy people who do a variety of 3 List some uses of satellites and other space vehicles
jobs. Use the information in the comic strip to list given in the comic strip.
at least five jobs which astronomers do. 4 Select one aspect of the work of an astronomer. Why
2 Write a definition, like you would read in a do you think that this work would be interesting?
dictionary, of what an astronomer does. (Write a three line answer to read to the class.)

52
 SPACESHIP EARTH 53

Read the comic strip ‘Light Years’, and then answer these questions.

When you look at the night sky Astronomers measure
you see about 3000 stars.
distance in light years.
How far is
it to the
shops?
A light year is the distance that
About 20
light travels in one year. Its speed
minutes.
is 300 000 km per second. This is
9 467 000 000 000 km per year.
So one light year is
9 467 000 000 000 km.

The better your telescope the more stars

you see. How far away are all these stars? We often use time to measure distance.

Our solar system seems very large. Compared with our galaxy and universe,
It is 5 800 000 000 km from the Sun to the outside. our solar system is very tiny.
This is 0.0006 l.y. (light years) or 5.4 light hours.
Light year is abbreviated to l.y.

5 800 000 000 km

The biggest and brightest stars may not Your torch is dull, Sorry for yelling.
be the closest stars. Small dull stars might you look far away. I thought you
be closer than big bright stars. were far away.

That is only
because I am small.
My friend over
there is much taller.

The next closest star to Earth Light and radio waves travel at the same speed, the speed of light.
( after the Sun ) is Alpha Centauri. It would take a message such as a flashing light (fibre optic signal)
It is 4.3 l.y. away. or a radio broadcast 4.3 years to reach Alpha Centauri.
490 l.y.

490 l.y.

4.3 l.y. If one of your friends lived there you would wait
370 l.y. 8.6 years for a reply to your email message.

A light year is a very Space travel involves For humans to be

large distance. Light from covering very large serious space explorers,
the Sun reaches us in 8 distances. The space higher speeds are needed.
minutes. If we could probe Galileo, travelling With the rocket engines
make the same journey at 170 000 kph (220 currently available,
in a jumbo jet (flying times faster than a jumbo humans will be restricted
at 750 kph) it would jet) took nearly 6 years to visiting the moon and
take nearly 23 years. to reach Jupiter. maybe Mars.
CHECKPOINT:

QUESTIONS
1 What is the definition of a light year? How far is 3 With current rockets it is unlikely that humans will
one light year in kilometres? become space travellers. Suggest a reason why
2 Why are light years used as a measure of distance humans cannot leave the vicinity of Earth.
instead of kilometres? 4 Explain why it is difficult to judge the distance of a
star by measuring only its brightness.
 3.2
Exploring space
Space travel is often called ‘the last frontier’.
Exploring space is complicated because there is
no air, food, water or gravity, getting there is
difficult and expensive, and the distances
involved make our Earth look insignificant.
Science is about finding the answers to
questions. To answer the questions about space,
scientists use telescopes, computers, and space
probes.
Most telescopes magnify light so that we can
see an enlarged image of the planet or star. These
are optical telescopes. Astronomers use radio
waves, ultraviolet light, infrared light,
microwaves and X-rays in other telescopes. A
radio telescope has a different shape to an optical
telescope. In New South Wales there is a radio
telescope at Parkes and large optical telescopes at
Siding Springs, near Coonabarabran.
Radio and microwaves are invisible to our eyes,
but maps using the radio wave information can
be drawn and coloured to look like photographs.
Most telescope and satellite images we see have
been collected in infrared or radio waves and
made to look like a photograph.
There are two main types of optical telescopes.
One is made with two convex lenses (magnifying
glasses) and is called a refracting telescope. The
other type uses a concave mirror (magnifying
mirror) and is called a reflecting telescope. A
refracting telescope is made in the experiment.
Large telescopes give a better magnification
and resolution than small telescopes.
Magnification is how many times larger the
image of the star is compared to the normal size
of the star that we see. Resolution is the amount
The CSIRO radiotelescope at Parkes, New South Wales
54
of detail we can see. A photograph with a low
resolution looks clear from a distance, but up
close it lacks detail. A high resolution photograph
is clear and sharp, even up close. In digital terms,
high res (short for high resolution) images have a
larger number of pixels, or more dots per inch
(dpi), than low resolution images.
Very large telescopes are expensive to build. An
alternative is to build many small telescopes and
link them electronically. The array of telescopes
acts like it is one very large telescope. An exam-
ple is the Australia Telescope at Narrabri in NSW.
The Hubble Telescope was put into orbit
around the Earth in 1990. It has different sorts of
cameras and detectors. The Hubble Telescope is
very large. It is 43.3 metres long, and has a mass
of 11 600 kg. Its main mirror is 2.4 metres across.
The telescope can view the stars 24 hours a day
and can take photographs using light, radio
waves or other waves. These can be joined
together to make a movie film.
Several telescopes operate in space. The first
was IRAS, or Infra-Red Astronomical Satellite,
which viewed the universe in infrared (heat)
rays. The Chandra X-ray telescope sees the
universe in X-rays, while the Compton Gamma
Ray Observatory collects gamma rays from space.
The SOHO telescope is located in deep space, and
views the Sun using many different detectors.
A new telescope, Spitzer, like Hubble, is named
after a famous astronomer. The Spitzer telescope
views the universe in many different types of
light. These and other telescopes in space have
greatly extended our knowledge of the universe
in a short period of time.
radio antenna light shield
2.4 m primary mirror aperture door
wide field
camera
costar
high resolution and
faint object
spectrographs
solar power
panel
faint object
instrument camera
access doors
The Hubble Telescope
 SPACESHIP EARTH 55
EXPERIMENT

AIM: To make a telescope thick lens thin lens

A refracting telescope is easily made from a thick and
thin convex lens (magnifying lenses) and two cardboard
tubes. One tube must slide inside the other tube, and tabs
the two lenses must be of different thicknesses (or
focal lengths). 50 mm diameter biconvex lenses of large tube
5 cm and 15 cm focal length work well.
Cut one end of each tube into tabs about 8 mm
long, and open the tabs out. Using electrical tape, tape
thin tube
one lens to this flat surface on one tube. Do the same
for the other lens and the other tube. The centre of
each lens should be over the centre of the hole at the cardboard tube from
end of the tube. Now slide one tube inside the other. toilet paper roll
To view objects through your telescope, put your cardboard tube from
eye close to the thick lens and point the telescope paper towel roll
towards a nearby object. Focus the telescope by sliding
one tube inside the other. Look at objects one metre
away, then two metres, then four metres. To view and
focus on more distant objects, you might have to cut
the end off the longer tube. Notice that the image
you see is upside down. thick lens large tube thin tube thin lens

Making the telescope

COPY AND COMPLETE

CHECKPOINT:

Science is about finding the _______ to _________. To answer the questions about _____, scientists use
__________, _________, and space ______.
Most __________ magnify light so that we can see an ________ image of the ______ or star. These are _______
telescopes. Astronomers use _____ waves, ___________ light, ________ light, __________ and _-____ in other
telescopes.
Very large telescopes are _________ to build. An alternative is to build ____ _____ telescopes and ____ them
______________.
The ______ Telescope was put into _____ around the Earth in 1990. It can view the stars __ _____ a day and can
take ___________ using _____, _____ waves or other _____.

QUESTIONS 5 Compare the advantages and disadvantages of the

Hubble Telescope with an optical telescope on the
1 What is the reason for the difference in shape of an Earth.
optical and radio telescope?
6 Name some other telescopes that view the universe
2 What is the difference between a reflecting and a from above the Earth’s atmosphere.
refracting telescope?
7 List three ways by which people learn about space.
3 What is the difference between magnification and
8 The Hubble Telescope does not use chemical film,
resolution?
but takes digital images of Earth. Why is this?
4 What is special about the Hubble Telescope?
9 How could you make a more powerful telescope than
the one described in the experiment?
 3.3
Looking into space
Our solar system is a tiny part of a galaxy (= group
of stars) called the Milky Way. This galaxy is flat
and spinning, and looks like a huge flat spiral. The
Milky Way is enormous. It is 100 000 light years
across, and contains one hundred thousand
million stars. One rotation of the Milky Way takes
about 220 million years.
The Milky Way galaxy has two smaller galaxies
beside it. These are called the Large Magellanic
Cloud and the Small Magellanic Cloud. From
Earth, they look like fluffy clouds or wisps of
cotton wool in the night sky. But they are very
faint and not easily seen in city areas.
The next closest galaxy to the Milky Way is
Andromeda. It is 2.2 million light years away.
Andromeda is larger than the Milky Way, both in
size and number of stars. Both these galaxies are
spiral shaped.
The Milky Way is just one of millions of
galaxies in the universe. Each galaxy is separated
by millions of light years. Astronomers using
telescopes are finding more and more galaxies, the
further they look into space.
The universe is the name given to space and
everything contained within it. As well as galaxies,
the universe also contains nebulae, pulsars and black
holes. The study of the universe and why it is like it
is, and where it came from, is called cosmology.
All the stars in the night sky are nuclear
furnaces like our Sun. They convert hydrogen into
helium and release huge amounts of energy.
When a star’s hydrogen starts to run out, it begins
to die. Most stars, like our Sun, increase in size
and fade in brightness with time. Some stars end
as a nova—they become up to 10 million times
brighter over a matter of days, then fade away.
Large stars have a spectacular ending. These stars
collapse, and then their core explodes in a
supernova.
In the year 1054 a new star appeared in the sky. It
shone brighter than the full Moon, and could be seen
in the daytime. It was a supernova. Today it looks
like a tiny fuzzy spot. We call it the Crab Nebula.

TOP: Andromeda: a spiral galaxy

MIDDLE: The Crab Nebula is the remains of an exploded star
BOTTOM: The Horsehead Nebula is an enormous cloud of dust that
blocks out the light from the stars behind it

56
 SPACESHIP EARTH 57

Small stars like our Sun shrink when they run
out of fuel. Our star will eventually collapse into a
small dull star about the size of the Earth. But don’t
worry! Our Sun isn’t very old, so it will
be a few thousand million years before this
happens.
A nebula (plural nebulae) is a cloud of dust or
gas in space. Most nebulae can only be seen with a
telescope. Some are glowing clouds of gas, such as
the Horsehead Nebula (named because of its
shape). Others absorb light so we see them as
shadows. The Coal Sack, near the Southern Cross,
is an example.
A pulsar is a pulsating star. It is a small star
which produces regular pulses of X-ray energy. The
closest pulsar to Earth is only 20 km in diameter,
yet weighs 11/2 times more than our Sun. It spins
more than 100 000 times every second.
Quasar is short for quasistellar (= kwoz-ee-stell-
ar) objects. Quasars are very distant objects, further
away than most galaxies. They produce lots of
energy, although the amount of energy varies. No
one knows for sure what quasars are; they are
certainly mysterious.
Quasars release lots of energy. The opposite is a
black hole. The gravity around a black hole is so
strong that it attracts everything that comes too
close. Even light is attracted into a black hole.
Black holes are collapsed stars. They are very
small in size but unbelievably heavy. A piece of a
black hole the size of a matchbox would weigh
over a million tonnes!
The name ‘black hole’ refers to its appearance.
Astronomers see a black hole in the sky where stars
should be seen.
Most of the Universe is empty space, dotted with
huge galaxies which are very distant from each
other. Occasionally stars will explode into a nova or
supernova, and others will collapse and become
black holes. Stars and solar systems are constantly
being made and destroyed. New galaxies, quasars
and black holes are still being discovered. As far as
we know, the universe has no edges. It just keeps
on going.
Future investigations will focus on looking for
planets that orbit distant stars, locating and
explaining pulsars and quasars, and seeking out the
parts of the universe that do not make light and
cannot be easily seen.

COPY AND COMPLETE

CHECKPOINT:

Our solar system is a tiny part of a ______ called the _____ ___. This galaxy is ____ and ________, and looks like a
huge flat ______. The Milky Way is 100 000 _____ _____ across, and contains ___ _______ ________ million stars.
All the stars in the night sky are _______ ________ like our Sun. In the year 1054 a ___ ____ appeared. It shone
________ than the full ____, and could be ____ in the _______. It was a _________.
A ______ is a _____ of dust or gas in _____. A ______ is a pulsating star. _______ are very _______ objects. They
produce lots of ______. ___________ see a black hole in the sky where _____ should be ____.

QUESTIONS
1 What is a galaxy? What is the name of our galaxy? Distance from Earth to Sun, 150 000 000 km
What is the shape of our galaxy? 0.000016 l.y.
Distance from Sun to edge of solar system
2 Name one other galaxy.
0.0006 l.y.
3 How many galaxies are there in the universe? Distance to next closest star
4 What is cosmology? 3.4 l.y.
Distance to next galaxy (Andromeda)
5 Write a 10 to 20 word description of each of these
2 000 000 l.y.
objects: light year, star, nova, supernova, nebula,
Distance to furthest observed galaxy
pulsar, quasar, black hole.
10 000 000 000 l.y.
6 The size of the universe can be seen if we use a
On this scale, how far across is our solar system,
scale. On our scale let one light year (l.y.) be one
and how far is it to the other stars and galaxies
millimetre.
listed?
 3.4
Objects from space
Many small pieces of rock and ice travel past our
Earth each day. Some are comets, like Comet
Halley, which passes the Earth every 76 years.
Others might pass us only once, and never be
seen again.
Comets are icy lumps of rock and dust that
have existed since the beginning of the solar sys-
tem. They orbit at the edge of the solar system, far
beyond the orbit of Pluto. When a comet gets
bumped out of its orbit it is attracted by the strong
gravity of the Sun. Comets orbit between the Sun
and the edge of the solar system. They have long
elliptical (= oval shaped) orbits. Comets return to
the Sun at regular intervals. This length of time
varies for different comets. A comet travelling through space
As a comet gets closer to the Sun, some of the
ice evaporates and trails behind like a long tail. A last seen in 1986. It will pass the Earth again in
comet is brightest when it is closest to the Sun. 2062, but it will be distant from the Earth and
The tail always points away from the Sun. A small hard to see. People living in 2134 will see it more
part of the comet evaporates each time it passes clearly.
the Sun. This dust remains in space, and the Hundreds of new comets are discovered each
Earth might pass through the trail of dust. This year. Comets are named after the person who first
causes lots of meteors in a short time. sees them. New discoveries have to be faxed or
Edmund Halley predicted that the comet seen phoned to a central recording station in the USA
in the years 1531, 1607, and 1682 would be to be registered as the first sighting. If the same
visible again in 1759. He was correct, and the person or people discover more than one comet,
comet was named Comet Halley in his honour. the name is followed by a number. Comet
This is the best known of all the comets. It was Shoemaker–Levy 9 was the ninth comet discov-
ered by Dr Carolyn Shoemaker and David Levy.

as the comet moves

comets moving from the sun, its tail gets
away from the Sun cooler until the comet
move tail first is again frozen

comets have 2 tails,

a dust tail and
a gas tail

Sun
when a comet nears the Sun,
its ice is turned into gas; this
comet tail
produces the comet tail
dust tail

the closer the comet

is to the Sun, the
the tail of a comet always bigger the tail
points away from the Sun

The path of a comet around the Sun

58

The first comet to be investigated by space
probes was Comet Halley in 1986. Five space
probes flew past the comet. The probes included
Giotto, launched by the European Space Agency,
and Vega, launched by Russia and Planet A,
launched by Japan. The probes radioed back
photographs and data showing that the nucleus
looked like a black icy rock, measuring 15 km by
15 km by 8 km. Comet Halley has an uneven sur-
face, with dust boiling off from the surface. Its
temperature is 42°C on the sunny side and about
–120°C inside. It has a mass of 10 million tonnes.
A grain of dust, or other rocks from space, can
fall towards the Earth. They travel through the
Earth’s atmosphere very quickly, and vaporise
(= boil away). This is seen as a bright trail in the
night sky. Meteors are grains of dust or stones
from space that burn up and vaporise in the
atmosphere. They are sometimes called ‘falling
stars’ or ‘shooting stars’. They are not real stars at
all, but they do look like a star which is falling out
of the sky.
A meteorite is a meteor which is so large that it
doesn’t burn up completely in the atmosphere,
and crashes into the Earth. The meteorite might
make a crater when it hits the ground.
A meteor shower (sometimes called a meteor
storm or meteor stream) occurs when the Earth
COPY AND COMPLETE
CHECKPOINT:
Comets are icy lumps of ____ and ____. They orbit at the edge of the _____ system. They have long _______ orbits.
As a comet gets closer to the ___, some of the ice __________ and trails behind like a long ____.
A comet is _________ when it is closest to the Sun.
Meteors are grains of ____ or ______ from space that ____ up and ________ in the atmosphere. They are sometimes
called ‘_______ stars’ or ‘________ stars’.
A meteorite is a ______ which is so _____ that it doesn’t ____ up in the atmosphere, and _______ into the Earth.
The meteorite might make a ______ when it ____ the ______.
QUESTIONS
1 Name two well-known comets.
2 What are comets made of?
3 What is the difference between a meteor and a
meteorite?
4 Give one similarity, and one difference, between the
orbits of a planet and a comet.
5 How did Comet Shoemaker–Levy 9 get its name?
6 What is the connection between a meteor and a falling
star? Why is ‘falling star’ a poor name for a meteor?
SPACESHIP EARTH 59
passes through the dust left behind by a comet. As
a comet passes close to the Sun, part of it boils
away and remains in space. The dust fragments
left behind are about 0.1 mm across, and collide
with the Earth’s atmosphere. They burn up or
vaporise and leave a trail of light in the sky.
Occasionally the Earth passes through the
debris left by Comet Halley. Since the comet dust
and the Earth are travelling in opposite direc-
tions, their speed of collision is 60 kilometres per
second. To an observer on Earth, the meteors all
appear to come out of the same section of sky.
There may be 100 meteors seen each hour during
a meteor shower.
Sun
path of Earth
path of dust
left by comet
Earth
Earth can pass through Comet
the dust from a comet
7 Comet Tempel–Tuttle passed the Earth in 1900, 1933,
1966 and 1998. The Earth passes through the dust
trail left by this comet on about 18 November each
year. The dust strikes the atmosphere at 72
kilometres per second. Thousands of pieces of dust
strike the Earth every hour during the ten hours it
takes for Earth to pass through the dust trail.
a Suggest how this comet got its name.
b What is the period of this comet? (The period is
the length of time between visits.) Calculate it to
the nearest year.
c List the next three years that this comet will pass
the Earth.
 3.5
Collision!
Many craters can be seen on the surface of the
Earth. Many more have been eroded away by
wind and rain. Some of these craters are caused
by the impact of an object from space. Other
craters are made by volcanoes.
The non-volcanic craters visible on Earth are
the result of a collision with an asteroid or a
comet. An asteroid is a lump of metal or rock that
orbits the Sun. They range in size from 10 metres
to 1000 kilometres across. Asteroids are usually
found in orbit between Mars and Jupiter, but
many have moved to different orbits. A comet has
a rocky core, and its outside boils off as it passes
close to the Sun. Comets move out into the
distant solar system before coming close to the
Sun again.
Australia is a large continent, and it has many
impact craters. There are 19 impact craters in
Australia, and four of them are less than 6000
years old. The best known is the Wolf Creek
Crater, which is 880 metres wide. It was caused
by an iron meteorite weighing 50 000 tonnes. It
is the second largest unaltered crater in the world.
The largest known crater in Australia is centred
on Lake Acraman in South Australia. It is now
weathered and partly buried, but the original
crater was 35 km across.
Many meteorites have been found in Australia.
They include small shiny meteorites called
tektites, which have been found in desert areas.
The most important meteorite crashed at
Murchison in Victoria in 1969. Its fragments
contained the types of chemicals found in living
things. Some people believe this shows that there
could be life in space.
1 2
Meteorite hits ground. Shattered rock rebounds
Shock waves shatter the from the impact and there
underlying rocks. is a huge explosion.
The formation of a meteorite crater
60
On the morning of 30 June 1908, a bright light
was seen in the sky over Russia. It was followed
by a huge explosion. Trees were blown over up to
32 km away. There was searing heat up to 80 km
away, and even 600 km away the ground shook
like an earthquake. In all, an area of 2200 square
kilometres in eastern Russia was devastated.
Luckily the area was very remote, and very few
people lived there. It is thought that a fragment of
Comet Ponswinnecke collided with the Earth.
This explosion is now called the Tunguska (or
Tangusta) Event. A small piece of the comet is
thought to have vaporised before it hit the Earth,
so there is no crater or remains of the comet. This
small object released a large amount of energy.
Comet Shoemaker–Levy 9 was discovered on
24 March 1992 by Dr Carolyn Shoemaker and
David Levy. It was a single comet when it was
discovered, but in July 1992 it was pulled apart
by the strong gravity of Jupiter. The comet was
broken into at least 21 mountain-sized chunks;
the largest was 4 km across. The big chunks, and
thousands of smaller pieces, were arranged like
the carriages in a train. And they were heading
towards Jupiter!
The chunky remains of Comet Shoemaker–
Levy 9 crashed into Jupiter between 16 July and
22 July 1994. The first impacts were not visible
from Earth, but as the planet rotated other
impacts were visible. Huge plumes of hot gases
and shock waves were seen on the planet. This is
the only time that an impact on another planet
has been seen.
3 4
After the explosion a hole The final crater.
is left. Debris builds up the
edge of the crater.
 SPACESHIP EARTH 61

The extinction of the dinosaurs has fascinated
people for many years. Why did so many
different dinosaurs become extinct so quickly?
Why did so many other types of animals become
extinct at the same time? The answer might lie in
a collision with an asteroid or comet. A crater,
called the Chicxulub Crater, which is in Central
America, has been discovered. It now lies buried
partly under land and partly under the Atlantic
Ocean. It is 400 km across, and its age coincides
with the time that the dinosaurs vanished. Other
evidence comes from rocks laid down at the same
time, which contain chemicals found only in
meteorites and lots of ash. The ash comes from
bush fires caused by the explosion. Evidence of
fire and dust have been found all over the world.
Perhaps this caused the extinction of the
dinosaurs.
Is it likely that Earth will be hit in the near
future by an object from space? No one knows
but astronomers are searching the sky for Near
Earth Objects, abbreviated to NEO. Near Earth
Objects cross the Earth’s orbit in space, and there
is the potential for collision. NEOs include
asteroids and comets. There are over 10 000 NEOs
that have been discovered, named, and their
courses plotted by computer.
Comet Swift-Tuttle was first discovered as it
passed by Earth in 1862. It returned 133 years
later (1996), and on its next pass on 26 August
2126 it will be very close to Earth. However, in
the year 3044 there is a chance that the comet
might collide with Earth.
Should this comet collide with Earth the speed
of impact will be 60 kilometres per second. The
entire comet has a mass of tens of millions of
tonnes, but it may break apart in the atmosphere
into smaller pieces. The comet or its fragments
would be stopped in an instant by the much
larger and heavier Earth, and the kinetic energy
would be converted into heat and light energy
that would be carried around the Earth in huge
shock waves.
Scientists, astronomers and space engineers are
working on ways of detecting and predicting the
course of Near Earth Objects, and how to break
up or deflect these objects so that they do not
collide with the Earth.

The Wolf Creek Crater in Western Australia

COPY AND COMPLETE

CHECKPOINT:

There are 19 ______ _______ in Australia. The best known crater is the ____ Creek Crater, which is ___ metres wide.
Many __________ have been found in Australia. They include small shiny __________ called ________.
The chunky remains of _____ _________–____ _ crashed into _______. Huge ______ of hot _____ and shock _____
were seen on the planet. This is the ____ time that an impact on another ______ has been seen.
The __________ of the dinosaurs might have been caused by a collision with an ________ or _____.
Near Earth Objects cross the Earth’s ________ in space, and there is the potential for __________. NEOs include
__________ and ________.

QUESTIONS 4 Lots of tektites are found in the Australian desert.

What are tektites?
1 Explain how a crater is formed.
5 What is the evidence for extinction of the dinosaurs
2 What is the difference between a typical comet and a by an asteroid impact?
typical asteroid, in terms of:
6 What is a Near Earth Object? How many are there?
a their appearance
Why are they so important?
b their orbit through the solar system.
7 Astronomers believe that the Earth has been peppered
3 How many meteorite craters in Australia are less than
with asteroids in the past, yet the Earth does not
6000 years old?
have a cratered landscape like the Moon. Explain why.

61
 3.6
Spacecraft Galileo
The spacecraft Galileo was named after the
Italian scientist Galileo Galilei. Galileo was a
famous astronomer who proposed that the Sun
is at the centre of the solar system, not the
Earth. Galileo was also the first person to use a
telescope to look at the night sky, and he
discovered four moons around Jupiter.
The Galileo spacecraft was built to explore
Jupiter. It is a remote robot with computers
which were programmed before it left Earth.
The voyage took six years. It carried sixteen
scientific instruments that conducted experi-
ments for 100 scientists in six countries.
sensors to measure magnetic fields are
mounted on a beam 11 m long, to avoid
interference from the space craft
5 m reflector, to beam
radio signals back to
Earth, received by
tracking stations in
probe released California, Spain and
to measure Australia
atmosphere of
Jupiter
platform
with camera
The spacecraft Galileo (20th century)
The following notes relate to the diagram on
page 63.
1 The spacecraft Galileo was launched from
the space shuttle Atlantis on 18 October
1989. It had a mass of 2.22 tonnes. Half of
this was fuel, yet it did not carry enough
fuel to reach Jupiter on its own. So Galileo
was launched facing away from Jupiter,
towards Venus, to gain the speed it needed.
2 Galileo was attracted by the gravity of
Venus, so gained speed. The spacecraft flew
62
past Venus on 10 February 1990. Venus
deflected Galileo back towards the Earth.
3 Galileo again picked up speed as it flew
towards the Earth. On 8 December 1990,
Galileo passed 960 km from the Earth.
4 The Earth’s gravity flung Galileo out to
the edge of the asteroid belt, where it
photographed the asteroid Gaspra on
19 October 1991. Gaspra is a grey asteroid
19 km long.
5 Again Galileo came close to the Earth, this
time only 303 km away. The date was
8 December 1992. Again Galileo gained
more speed and the Earth’s gravity flung the
spacecraft further into space. This time Galileo
was off to Jupiter.
6 On its way Galileo passed through the asteroid
belt. There it photographed the asteroid Ida
and discovered that Ida has its own kilometre-
sized moon. One unexpected bonus for Galileo
was to photograph the impact of Comet
Shoemaker–Levy 9 on Jupiter.
7 In July 1995 Galileo was approaching Jupiter
at 47 km a second. It released an 85 cm long
probe crammed with measuring instruments.
8 Galileo used its engines and slowed dramatically.
Galileo had to remain above the probe to
receive the radio signals sent from it. Data
including measurements of the temperature,
radiation, magnetism, chemical composition
and much more, was relayed back to Earth.
9 In December 1995 the probe entered the
atmosphere of Jupiter. Parachutes slowed the
probe. The probe fell through the atmosphere
of Jupiter like a meteor. The shock wave
reached a temperature of 15 500°C. The probe
descended 623 km into the thick atmosphere
before the pressure and heat destroyed it.
Measurements from the probe were radioed
back to Galileo and then to Earth. These radio
signals were picked up at the Tidbinbilla
Tracking Station near Canberra.
10 Galileo continued to orbit Jupiter, passing close
to the moons discovered by Galileo himself in
1610. The spacecraft detected evidence of an
ocean under the icy surface of Europa,
believed to be the most likely location in our
solar system to find primitive life forms like
those on Earth. It also sent back details of the
other major moons, and discovered 21 new
moons around Jupiter.
 SPACESHIP EARTH 63

The Galileo spacecraft had travelled 4500
million kilometres. Its radio signals, travelling at
the speed of light, took 52 minutes to reach Earth.
Eventually its nuclear fuel began to run out, and
its detectors and communications equipment
were switched off to save energy. Periodically,
Galileo was switched back on again to view
and measure unusual events, or to verify other
information.
In 2003, six years after its planned ‘use-by’ date,
Galileo was running on empty. Had scientists not
intervened Galileo would have crashed into the
moon Europa, possibly contaminating it with Earth
bacteria that found their way into Galileo when it
was being built. This may have contaminated the
pristine ecosystem on Europa (if there is one) with
organisms from Earth.
As a result, scientists on Earth sent the
command to Galileo to fire its rockets for the final
time and set its course for the giant planet. At the
end of September 2003, with its detectors and
radio systems beaming information back to Earth,
Galileo made its final plunge into the tremendous
heat and pressure of Jupiter. Galileo would have
been vaporised, and is now an insignificant part
of this giant planet.
In 2004 a similar probe, Cassini, made many
observations and measurements of the next largest
planet, Saturn, over an extended period of time.

5
3
1

2
4
6

7 9
10

Jupiter

The path of the spacecraft Galileo

COPY AND COMPLETE

CHECKPOINT:

Galileo was a famous __________ who proposed that the ___ is at the ______ of the _____ ______, and discovered
____ _____ around _______.
The Galileo __________ was built to _______ _______. It is a remote _____ with _________ which were
__________ before it left Earth. The ______ took ___ years.
The __________ Galileo was launched from the _____ _______ Atlantis on 18 October 1989. In July 1995 _______
was approaching _______ at 47 km a second. In December 1995 the _____ entered the __________ of _______.
_______ continued to _____ Jupiter.

QUESTIONS 3 What were the achievements and discoveries of the

Galileo space probe mission?
1 Why was the name Galileo chosen for a space probe
4 The Galileo spacecraft achieved one unexpected
to explore Jupiter?
bonus. What was that?
2 Why wasn’t Galileo sent straight to Jupiter, but sent
5 Why did scientists crash Galileo into Jupiter? Could
towards Venus first?
bacteria from Earth survive on Jupiter?
 3.7
Is anyone out there?
Is there intelligent life somewhere in space? If radio signals from space was in 1995. The search
there is, would it be possible for us to meet them was called Project Phoenix, and was funded by a
and talk with them? private research foundation called SETI. SETI is
In our Milky Way galaxy there are about one
hundred thousand million stars. Some of these
stars are like our Sun, and some of these may
have planets like our Earth. Could there be
intelligent life on these planets?
There are two ways to try to contact aliens.
One is to send out messages to nearby stars, and
wait for a reply. The second is to listen for radio
messages in space, and hopefully hear a radio
signal that could only have been made by an
advanced civilisation.
People on Earth have used both methods. The
giant radio telescope at Aricibo (Arri-see-bo) in
Puerto Rico sent a powerful radio message into
space. The Aricibo radio telescope has a dish that
is 305 metres across, and is nestled between hills.
The dish itself is immobile, but the detector high
above the dish can move.
In 1974 the giant telescope beamed a powerful
message into space. It was in the direction of a
cluster of stars called M31. M31 consists of 300 000
closely packed stars, that are 24 000 light years
away.
The three minute message consisted of 1679
consecutive characters, arranged into 73 groups
of 23 characters each. Both 23 and 73 are prime
numbers, and these numbers are the only factors
of 1679. There were two types of characters,
reproduced as white or black squares. The
diagram shows the message that was sent. The
radio frequency chosen for this message was the
vibration of hydrogen atoms. It is also used as the
unit of measurement in the message. The message,
which is unlike any natural radio signal, attempts
to outline aspects of the living things that sent it
into space. If any civilisation responds to the
message, we will not know about it for another
48 000 years.
If any intelligent life in this cluster of stars was
observing our Sun in the radio frequencies, the
radio brightness of our Sun would increase by 10
million times for a three minute period.
It is more convenient to listen for messages.
The first regular searches for radio signals from
space were in 1960. The most organised hunt for
The Aricibo radio message

64
 SPACESHIP EARTH 65

the acronym (= word made from the first letters
of a name) for Search for Extra Terrestrial
Intelligence. The radio telescope at Parkes in New
South Wales was used to scan radio signals from
172 nearby stars. The radio signals looked for
were the ones we use for TV, radio and mobile
phone communications. There are only a few
natural sources of these in space. Some unusual
radio signals were received, but none of them
were repeated.
Another way of telling any aliens about us is to
put signs and plaques on the sides of spaceships
and space probes. The Pioneer 10 space probe was
the first human-made object to leave our solar
system. It has on its side a gold-plated plaque. The
information on it shows what people look like,
and which star it came from, and from which
planet orbiting that star.
Another way of meeting aliens is waiting for
them to contact us. There are lots of stories about
alien spaceships, abductions of people, and even
crashes, but so far there is no direct evidence.
If humans made contact with an advanced
civilisation in space, what would the extraterres-
trial beings look like? Science fiction movies and
television serials like Star Wars and Star Trek
usually show aliens having a human form. Would
this really be the case when/if humans make
contact with aliens?

Would real aliens have a human form? The plaque attached to the Pioneer 10 spacecraft

COPY AND COMPLETE

CHECKPOINT:

In our _____ ___ galaxy there are about one hundred ________ _______ stars. Some of these _____ are like our
___, and some of these may have planets like our _____. Could there be intelligent ____ on these _______?
There are two ways to try to _______ aliens. One is to send out ________ to nearby stars, and wait for a _____. The
second is to ______ for radio messages in _____, and hopefully hear a _____ signal that could only have been made
by an advanced ____________.
Another way of telling ______ about us is to put signs and plaques on the sides of __________ and _____ ______.
The Pioneer 10 space probe was the first human-made object to _____ our solar system. It has on its ____ a gold-
plated ______. The information on it shows what _____ look like, and which ____ it came from, and which ______
orbiting that star.

QUESTIONS 4 If you could talk to someone from a very advanced

1 What do the letters SETI stand for?
2 What are the three ways we have used to try to make
contact with life elsewhere in the universe?
3 Movies and TV shows which have aliens in them show
the aliens looking like people or familiar Earth
animals. Why do they do this? Is this a fair guess
about the appearance of aliens?
alien civilisation, where they had overcome disease,
ageing, poverty, war, and having to go to school,
what is one thing that you would ask them to do for
everyone on Earth? You might think that a cure for
cancer, destroying all nuclear weapons, or stopping
pollution is most important.
Make a list on your own, then work in a group to
come up with five ideas, then write these on the
board. Compare your lists with other groups.
66 SPACESHIP EARTH
1 The possibility of aliens and UFOs has fascinated
PROJECT IDEAS
people for many years. Could they exist? Have
they been to Earth? Why don’t aliens make
contact with us? Collect information for a
lecturette (short talk) or assignment for the class.
Here are some ideas.
• What are UFOs? Are they real? Can you find
stories of them?
• What are alien abductions? Can you find any
reports of them?
• What was the Roswell Incident? It has been
ACTIVITY
AIM: To make a radio telescope array
Using a telescope to view the sky is a bit like using a
mirror to see yourself. A small telescope is like using
a small mirror or mirror tile.You do not see much of
yourself.
To see better you could use more mirrors. Spreading
out the mirrors like this gives you a bigger picture
but without a lot of detail.
Placing the mirrors like this
gives you a smaller picture with better detail.
Astronomers have the same problem. Big
telescopes are very expensive. An array of
telescopes is cheaper, and can be moved to give a
described in books and documentaries, and a
movie was made about it. Ask at your video shop.
2 Albert Einstein predicted that the fastest speed
that could be reached is the speed of light. But at
this speed time passes very slowly. Clocks slow
down, and people age slower. How would this
help us travelling to distant galaxies? What would
happen to your friends left behind on Earth?
3 Is time travel possible? Could we travel quickly and
easily through the universe through ‘wormholes’?
Could aliens be reaching Earth through wormholes?
big view with poor detail and then altered to give a
small view with good detail. The radio telescopes
don’t have to be moved but can be pointed to
different parts of the sky.
Your teacher will give you a copy of the cut-outs
for the radio telescope, printed on thin cardboard.
(These cut-outs are printed at the back of this book.)
1 Cut out the four shapes, and follow these
instructions.
2 Receiving dish—this should be cone shaped. Pull the
edges together and hold them with tape or glue.
3 Cut out the loop, and tape each end to the back
of the dish.
loop
tape each end of tape
receiving dish
4 Glue or tape together the guidance unit (box) and
the stand (cylinder). Make sure the box has a cut
through one edge.
5 Push the loop into the cut. Then tape the guidance
unit onto the stand. The tape should be on the
opposite side to the receiving dish.
receiving dish
loop guidance unit
sticky tape
stand
The completed model
With every person in your class making a model
radio telescope, there will be enough to make a
large array. These will function the same as a single
very large telescope.

AIM: To investigate the size of the Sun
EXPERIMENT
Many measurements in space are made indirectly,
because we cannot go and measure them. An
example is finding the diameter of the Sun.
aluminium foil
around ring clamp
measure this
distance in
millimetres
grid paper taped
to retort stand base
Finding the diameter of the Sun
This method involves the mathematics of triangles.
We set up two triangles which are similar to each
other. The only difference is that one triangle is
about one million times larger.
Wrap some aluminium foil around a ring clamp.
Pull it tight but do not tear it. Use a pin or needle to
Voyager 2
RESEARCH
The diagram shows the space probe Voyager 2. It
was launched in September 1977 and took the first
images of Uranus. Most of its technology is now
out of date, but the instrument names and
measurements are still current.
SPACESHIP EARTH 67
poke a tiny hole in the foil. Tape some 2 mm grid
paper onto the base of the stand.
Face the retort stand towards the Sun so that the
Sun’s rays go through the aluminium foil and hit the
grid paper. Never look at the Sun. Raise and
lower the ring clamp until the round circle of light
exactly fills one of the 2 mm squares. (This is about
200 mm to 230 mm.) The diameter of the circle
should be as close to 2 mm as you can make it.
Measure the distance, in millimetres, from the grid
paper to the aluminium foil.
The distance of the Sun from the Earth, found by
other means, is 150 million kilometres.
Use this mathematical formula to find the
diameter of the Sun.
2 X 150 000 000
Diameter of Sun = Distance from foil to spot
Your answer is in kilometres. Check your answer
with the exact value in a reference book.
Could this method be used to find the diameter
of the Moon? How would you do it? Would you use
the same grid paper? The Moon is an average
distance of 384 000 kilometres from Earth.
Use the diagram and the labels as a basis for your
research. Find which aspects of space and planets are
measured or viewed by each instrument. Also look at
the diagram of Galileo (on page 62) for another
space probe and its measuring instruments.
 Review and Research
Questions 1 to 7 are multiple choice questions. 9 In each case, place these in order, from largest
Select the best alternative. to smallest.
a Place in order of size: solar system, galaxy, star
1 The study of astronomy is about
b Place in order of number of stars: solar
a predicting the future
system, universe, galaxy
b the Earth’s history
c Place in order of size: asteroid, planet, solar
c extinct animals
system
d stars, planets and space
d Place in order of energy released: star, black
2 The galaxy that includes our solar system is called hole, quasar
a Andromeda e Place in order of strength of gravitational
b the Milky Way attraction: planet, black hole, Sun.
c the Crab Nebula
d the Magellanic Cloud Thinking questions
3 Distances in space are measured in 1 The Mariner and other space probes launched
a metres towards Mercury and Venus carried large solar
b kilometres panels to supply energy. The Voyager, Pioneer
c light years and Galileo probes did not have solar panels or
d nautical miles use solar energy. Explain why.
4 Stars produce lots of energy which they make 2 When astronomers in the 1800s looked at Mars
from with telescopes, they saw long straight lines on
a burning hydrogen the planet. Because they were called ‘canals’,
b melting hydrogen to make other elements people thought this meant Mars had intelligent
c fusion of hydrogen into helium beings on it. Many films, books and musicals
d chemical reactions have been written about an attack on the Earth
by Martians. What is wrong about the argument
5 A light year is defined as for intelligent life on Mars?
a the time it takes light to travel for one year
b the distance light travels in one year Research questions
c the time it takes to go between the Sun and
1 Distances in space are measured in light years,
Earth
or astronomical units (abbreviated to AU), or in
d the distance between two light waves
parsecs. What is the meaning of AU and parsec?
6 An optical telescope is used to view the night
2 Why do stars twinkle and planets (which look
sky using
the same) do not?
a light
b radio waves 3 What are some other space probes which have
c ultraviolet light explored other parts of our solar system? What
d microwaves information can you find without using the
Internet or encyclopaedias?
7 When a star explodes and releases bright light
and energy, Word Check
a it is called a galaxy
astronomy cosmologist star
b the result is a quasar
galaxy radio telescope optical telescope
c it can only be seen with a telescope
space telescope Milky Way light year
d it is called a nova
nova supernova nebula
pulsar quasar black hole
Questions 8 and 9 are written answer questions.
comet meteor meteorite
8 People once thought that the tail of a comet meteoroid crater asteroid
consisted of burning gases. space probe Galileo alien
a Why is it impossible to have burning gas in space? SETI
b What is the tail of a comet made of?

68

Newspaper Article
Meteor shower
Read the following article from the Sydney Morning
Herald, 7 November 1998. Answer the following
Satellites under threat from meteor storm
By RICHARD MACEY
Owners of more than 500 operational
satellites circling Earth are about to
begin a nervous watch for a looming cos-
mic hail storm.
Each November the Earth slices
through a dust stream trailing in the
wake of Comet Tempel-Tuttle. The
encounter usually triggers only a small
increase in meteors seen arcing across
the night sky.
However, scientists predict that this
year’s celestial show, on the morning of
18 November, Sydney time, may produce
a meteor storm so intense that it could
threaten scores of communications,
weather and scientific satellites, includ-
ing NASA’s $3 billion Hubble Space
Telescope.
Tempel-Tuttle circles the Sun about
once every thirty-three years. Each time
it leaves behind a fresh cloud of debris.
In 1966 the world was treated to a
spectacular meteor display that may be
repeated this month, for Tempel-Tuttle
swung by again in February.
‘We will run head on into the meteors
at 72 kilometres a second,’ the editor of
the Sydney-based Sky & Space maga-
zine, Mr Jonathan Nally, said yesterday,
adding that Earth-orbiting satellites
would have to run the gauntlet of celestial
bullets.
‘In 1966 people in North America
were seeing 50 000 to 100 000 mete-
ors per hour,’ he said. Then the space
age was still in its infancy, but today
there are more than 500 working satellites.
‘Russia’s cosmonauts aboard the Mir
space station will ride out the storm in
1 Why is the passing of this comet such a concern
to the following groups of people?
a amateur astronomers watching from home
b communication companies with satellites
c professional astronomers who rely on the
Hubble telescope
d Russia’s cosmonauts on the Mir space station
2 What is meant by the following terms?
a cosmic hail storm
b celestial bullets
c rubble stream
LIFE THROUGH
SPACESHIP
THEEARTH
AGES 69
NEWSPAPER
questions about the article and the information
in it.
their escape capsule, in case anything galaxies relatively close to us are similar
goes wrong.’ to their much younger cousins on the far
Sydney Observatory’s curator, Dr Nick side of the universe.
Lomb, said the storm’s peak was expect-
ed between 6 and 7.30 a.m., when it will COSMIC CALAMITY
be daylight in Sydney. However, NSW • How the telescope faces a meteor
residents might glimpse the start of the shower
show by rising before 4.30 a.m. and look- • Meteor fragments travelling at 72
ing north-east. km/s
‘The best view will be from around • Hubble turned to face away from
Japan and Taiwan.’ the oncoming shower
But the falling stars are bringing good • Peak meteor storm expected on 18
luck for astronomers at the University of November at 6.00 a.m.–7.30 a.m.
New South Wales. • Comet Tempel-Tuttle circles the Sun
To prevent Hubble’s delicate mirror every thirty-three years, leaving a
being damaged, the telescope will face trail of debris
the opposite direction until the world has • Meanwhile, back in Sydney: a NSW
traversed the rubble stream. University team will use Hubble,
Unwilling to waste Hubble’s valuable while it turns away from meteors,
time, NASA asked astronomers to find to study galaxies up to 10 billion
work for the telescope during the 10- or light years away.
12-hour storm. The university team, led
by Dr Michael Drinkwater, beat
twenty-six other proposals from
around the world.
They will use Hubble to investi-
gate the distance to, and make-up
of, about twenty galaxies strung
out across space from 5 billion to
10 billion light years away.
The galaxies have been chosen
because they are between us and
a quasar—the exceptionally bril-
liant core of a distant galaxy—
possibly 12 billion light years
away.
‘We are looking for clues to how
galaxies formed,’ Dr Drinkwater
said, adding the project should help
determine whether the older
Under threat: the Hubble Space Telescope
3 Did the editor of Sky and Space magazine expect
to see a spectacular display in the sky? What
evidence does he advance to help his argument?
4 How did the astronomers from the University of
New South Wales benefit from the meteor shower?
5 What is the purpose of publishing an article like
this in the newspaper? Do you think the article
is successful? Give reasons.
70 SPACESHIP EARTH

Newspaper Article There is no gravity acting on the astronauts.

NEWSPAPER

Living in weightlessness would create some

Living in space unique problems, such as having a meal or going
Astronauts and cosmonauts experience a feeling to the toilet. The following account is from Sally
called ‘weightlessness’. In a satellite, such as the Ride, the first woman in space. She travelled in a
space shuttle, the satellite is constantly falling. space shuttle mission.

Eating feels the same as it does On the space shuttle we don’t

The best part of being in space is
being weightless. It feels wonderful
to be able to float without effort; to
slither up, down and around the
inside of the shuttle just like a seal;
to be upside-down as often as right-
side-up and have it make no difference.
Without gravity you cannot walk,
so I had to learn how to move
around. I started out trying to ‘swim’
through the air, but that didn’t work
at all. Before long I discovered that I
had to push off from one of the walls
if I wanted to get across the room.
At first I would push off a little too
hard and crash into the opposite
wall, but I soon learnt to wind my way
around with gentle pushes.
on Earth. Some of the food we
carried on the space shuttle was the
same as we would eat at home:
bread, tuna, canned pudding, apples,
carrots, peanuts and biscuits. We
also had soups, vegetables, and
main courses like chicken and noodle
casserole, but these were freeze
dried and vacuum-packed in individ-
ual plastic cartons.
We didn’t eat at a table; our
tables were the trays strapped to
our legs. We didn’t sit in chairs; each
of us would find a comfortable
spot—maybe floating near the ceil-
ing, or upside-down in the middle of
the cabin.
We each had a knife and fork, but
our most useful pieces of silverware
were spoons and scissors. We need-
ed scissors to open the foil pouches
of hot dogs, the packets of peanuts
and the plastic cartons of macaroni.
Then we used the spoons to get the
food to our mouths. Most of the food
was deliberately made sticky enough
to stay on the spoon and not float
away as we tried to eat it. We could
flip our spoons and the food wouldn’t
come off—usually!
have a sink, bathtub or shower
because the water coming out of a
tap would float in little blobs all over
the cabin. Instead we had a water
gun—a hose with a trigger control
on the nozzle. I would put a wash
cloth next to the nozzle and wet it,
then use it with soap to wash.
The lavatory had a contoured seat
over a bowl and a long, flexible tube
with a removable cone-shaped urine
cup at the end connected to it. (Each
astronaut has a personal cup that
fits on the tube.) To use the urine
cup, I would hold it next to my body
while floating in the bathroom, and
then—a very important step—turn
on the air suction that flows through
the flexible hose. The air suction
replaces gravity, and pulls the urine
down the tube and into the waste
tank beneath the floor.
To use the toilet, I sat on the seat,
and adjusted two leg restraints to
stop myself from floating away, then
turned on the air suction and opened
the bowl. Again, the air suction
replaced the effect of gravity and the
waste is pulled into the bowl.

Read the description and then answer these
questions.
1 Why is there no gravity when travelling on the
space shuttle or in a space station?
2 Why is there no floor in the space shuttle?
3 Astronauts and cosmonauts take pre-packaged
food with them. Why is cooking food over a
hotplate not done in space? Could a microwave
oven be used?
4 How do astronauts shower in space?
5 If you drank a cup of tea and then spat it out,
what would happen to the tea?
6 Why is suction important in going to the toilet?

Concept map
Draw a concept map of the information in this chapter.
 SPACESHIP EARTH 71

SPACEWORDS CROSSWORD
Some of these clues refer to the 1 2 3 4
names and colours of planets.
Look in Book 1 Chapter 6 if you 5 6 7

get stuck. 8
Across
5 The Sun and planets
8 Usually regarded as a planet, this
9
orbits outside Neptune
9 Star which emits pulses of energy
10 11 12 13 14
10 Fuel which makes stars glow
13 Name given to a distant Sun 15
15 Liquid form of this chemical is
common on Earth 16
16 Galaxy we live in is the _____ Way
17 These orbit our Sun 17 18 19 20
22 Planet with the shortest year
24 Planet on its side 21
25 Clouds of dust or gas in space
22 23 24
Down
1 This topic is about this
2 Has the strongest gravity
3 Eighth planet from the Sun 25
4 A computer _____ can simulate
movement of planets
6 Refers to the Sun
7 Colour of our Sun
11 Without water
12 Group of billions of stars
14 Size of planet (or circle) measured
from centre to outside
18 Size of galaxy compared to solar system SPACE CODE
19 Word which means ‘same as’
20 One down is the study of this
This puzzle shows the names of three planets written in code.
21 Found in nebulae Each letter in the names has been replaced by one symbol.
22 Russian satellite with permanent crew
23 Main colour of Mars The names of the planets are:

oMg=o/
VgM%i
Break the code and then decode the sentence. You will have to
guess the three missing code letters.

%iVMV ?/ :=V /%gM ?=

%iV /:jgM /./%V*
SOLUTIONS PAGE 234