UNIT 1: THE UNIVERSE VOCABULARY Asteroids Asteroid belt Astronomical unit (AU) Black hole Celestial body Cluster of galaxies Comets Constellation Dwarf planets Galaxy Light-year (LY) meteorites Milky Way Nebula Gaseous planets Rocky planets Satellites shooting stars Spiral arms Stars Universe 1
1.a) Look at the pictures and try to guess what element of the Universe is................ b) Read and translate these short definitions: Galaxies: are groups of stars and clouds of gas and dust. Stars: are celestial bodies which emit their own light. Planets: are spherical bodies which move around the sun. Satellites: celestial bodies that orbit around the planets. Asteroids: fragment of rocks which move between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter which is called the Asteroid Belt. 2
Comets: celestial bodies that travel around the sun, usually in a highly elliptical orbit. They have long luminous tails. 2. Listen and read this information about the solar system. THE EARTH IN THE SOLAR SYSTEM Our Solar system is in the Milky Way galaxy. It is located on one arm of the galaxy. The Solar system consists of the Sun and all the celestial bodies travelling around it. The Sun is our star and eight planets orbit around it. The Earth is the third planet from the Sun. 3. Number the planets from the nearest to the furthest from the Sun. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 3
4. LISTENING COMPREHENSION: fill in the gaps with the following words: tail planet bodies Sun light orbit The Solar System (Listening) The Solar System is a group of astronomical. It is made up of the Sun and the other bodies. Planets are astronomical bodies that orbit the. They get light from the Sun. The Earth is a in the Solar System. Satellites are astronomical bodies that planets. The Moon is the Earth's satellite. Comets are astronomical bodies that orbit the Sun. They have a that reflects from the Sun. 5. Read and translate THE PLANETS' CLASSIFICATION. Eight planets orbit the Sun. Mercury, Venus, the Earth and Mars are closer to the Sun. They are small, rocky planets. Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune are further from the Sun. They are big planets made mostly of gas. 6. Match the planets to their description. This is the fourth planet from the Sun. It is cold and lifeless. It is often called the Red Planet :... This is the only planet supporting life and has the most varied surface. It has one Moon:... This is the largest planet. It is a giant gas planet and the fifth planet from the Sun:... This is a small, rocky planet with layers of sulphuric acid. It is very hot and the second planet from the Sun:... This is the second largest planet. It has a beautiful rings made of ice, which can be seen from Earth:... 4
This is the eighth planet from the Sun and is a giant gas planet with eight moons:... This is a small rocky planet, which is the closest range:... to the Sun. It has an extreme temperature It is a blue-green colour and has a faint ring system. It is the seventh planet from the Sun:... 7. Complete with the right planet. a. is the hottest planet (+ 500 ºC). b. is the second planet from the sun. c. is the biggest planet (diameter: 142,600 Km). d. is called the red planet. http://iteslj.org/cw/1/ck-planets.html 8. Find ten words related to the Universe: A R E D C F G T R E S A S S G A L A X Y U O P Ñ A K G D E R T P D U O D T C X S T A R I C R G E E S D F R Y O U O O Y U L D B P H R Z E M T A Y L N O P E T T A E A W R I Y G T C E R V T N Y A T H S C M X E A Y U K L E A B U H G F E E S L W X Z R T N O O M O I I O A Q C G T H V U I Y M F 5
9.-Read the following text: HOW WAS THE UNIVERSE FORMED? Scientists believe that the Universe was formed by a huge explosion, the Big Bang. This happened around 15 billion years ago. The theory states that all of the material and energy in the Universe was packed into a small space before the explosion. When the explosion happened, this material expanded in all directions in the form of gas and dust. As the material cooled, the first stars were created. These stars came together to form galaxies. Today, the Universe is still expanding, and the galaxies are moving away from each other. 10. Look for and underline the words above in the text: Big Bang Expanding Cooled Theory Dust 11. Look for the correct word in the text after your teacher describes the definition. An idea about something A huge explosion 15 billion years ago To became cold Material grows bigger Small particles in space 6
12.-Reading comprehension: SHOOTING STARS Sometimes on a clear night, points of light cross the sky at an amazing speed. They look like stars that are falling. We call them shooting or falling stars. We give them this name because they shine like stars, but they are short-lived. They only last an instant in the sky. Then they disappear. In fact, they are not really stars at all. They are pieces of rock or meteors from space that are falling to the Earth. When they enter the atmosphere, they heat up and burn. That is why they shine. In the city, we don't see many shooting stars. But in the country, it is easier to see them because the sky is darker. Some nights it is possible to observe a large number of them. When we do, we say there is a shower of shooting stars or a meteor shower. a) Answer the questions: What are shooting stars? Why do they shine? Where do you see shooting stars better? Why? b) Look for and underline the following words in the text: sky meteor shine star disappear c) Match these words with their meanings: Sky: Meteor: Shine: Star: Disappear: 1) Stop existing or happening. 2) The space around the Earth. 3) Give out bright light. 4) A piece of rock or metal which is travelling through space and burns when it enters the Earth's atmosphere. 5) A self-luminous celestial body. 7
Name: Date: The Universe (optional quiz) Across 2. Planet closest to the Sun 5. Comets have these 6. An idea about something 8. Small particles in space 10. Example of a satellite 11. A huge explosion 15 billion years ago Down 1. The planet we live on 3. To become cold 4. Self-luminous celestial bodies 7. Material grows larger 9. Earth orbits around this 8
THE SOLAR SYSTEM SONG THE SUN I am the Sun I'm a burning ball of... I'm very... indeed Life on...depends on me I am the Sun MERCURY JUPITER I am Mercury I am Jupiter I'm the...planet to the Sun I'm a...giant I'm a ball of... I'm the biggest and I spin the.... I have no... I have the...moon I am Mercury I am Jupiter VENUS SATURN I am Venus I am Saturn I'm the same...as the Earth I'm a gas giant But I spin the other way much...slowly My rings are made of... I have no... Titan is my...moon I am Venus I am Saturn EARTH URANUS I am the Earth I am Uranus The place where we all... I'm an icy gas... There's land and lots of sea, so I look... I'm the...planet in our solar system I have a... And I have...made of dust I am the Earth I am Uranus Mars NEPTUNE I am Mars I am Neptune I'm a rocky...planet I'm an...gas giant My mountains are the... in the solar system I'm the...planet from the Sun I have...moons I have... storms I am Mars I am Neptune We are the solar system We are the solar system 9
Final task: In pair, explain this picture in front of the class. You have to identify each element and say, at least, a sentence about them. 10