Contents: -Information/Research Packet - Jumbled Image packet - Comic book cover page -Comic book pages -Example finished comic
Nicolaus Copernicus Nicholas Copernicus was a Polish astronomer who lived between 1473-1543. He was born in Torun, Poland to a middle class family. He attended school at Cracow and eventually moved on to Italy where he received a degree in mathematical science. Before Copernicus, people believed in the popular Ptolemaic model of the solar system, which said that the Earth was the center of the universe or the geocentric theory. But the geocentric model was bad at helping astronomers know the positions of the planets, so in 1543, Copernicus started a scientific revolution when he published the heliocentric theory (helios means Sun in Greek). In Copernicus heliocentric model all the planets, including Earth, revolved around the Sun. This was a very upsetting idea at the time and Copernicus was seen as a troublemaker because of this idea. He also introduced a system which could calculate the positions of the planets correctly at any time. The heliocentric model was added to by other astronomers Johannes Kepler and Galileo Galilei. Galileo Galilei Shortly after the death of Copernicus the next great Astronomer was born. His name was Galileo Galilei ( Feb. 15, 1564-Jan. 8, 1642). Galileo was the first Astronomer to use what we call science to find out what the Universe is made of. Copernicus was right, but he was only guessing. Galileo was not going to guess. 1
In the fall of 1609 Galileo heard about a new invention called a telescope. He decided to build a telescope and use it to look at the Universe. Up until now people had only been able to guess what the Universe was, but Galileo was actually going to look at it and find out the truth. He looked at the Milky Way and discovered that it was made up of millions of stars, each at a different distance from the Earth. When he looked at the Moon he discovered mountains, valleys, and craters. Everyone at that time thought the Moon was also a perfectly round ball. Galileo discovered that it was not. He noticed that the planets Mercury and Venus pass through phases just like the Moon. The only way they could do that is if they circled the Sun, and not the Earth, like Copernicus said. And most importantly of all Galileo discovered four moons around Jupiter. This meant that everything in the Universe did not circle the Earth. He could clearly see four moons which circled Jupiter. The most important thing about Galileo is that he was not guessing. He could clearly prove to anyone that what he had discovered was true. 2
Johannes Kepler Johannes Kepler made major contributions in the areas of astronomy and optics. In fact, some consider him to be the founder of modern optics and he was the First to explain the principles of how a telescope works; Kepler's theories and discoveries have helped give us a better understanding of our world. Johannes Kepler was born on December 27th, in the year 1571. He was born in Weil Der Stadt, in the southwestern part of Germany. Which at the time was part of the Roman Empire. In February of 1600, Kepler met Tycho Brahe. He stayed with Tycho for the next two months and the two astronomers began to exchange ideas.after Tycho died Kepler was able to use his data and many contributions to the field of astronomy were greatly helped by Tycho Brahe's research. Giving up the ancient belief that the planets must move in perfect circles, Kepler concentrated on the planet Mars. He proved that the orbit of Mars is not a perfect circle but an ellipse. In his discovery that planets go around the sun in elliptical orbits Kepler came up with what we now call "Kepler's 3
Three Laws" of planetary motion that mathematically describe the elliptical orbits of celestial objects. Kepler lived until 1630. Isaac Newton Isaac Newton was born on Christmas Day in 1642 His father died only a few weeks before he was born and his mother was very poor. No one really expected that a genius would be born into a family lacking riches or money, but Newton proved them wrong. He invented Calculus a difficult type of math, he discovered prisms which help scientists better understand light, he invented a new type of telescope and he discovered the laws of motion which explain how things move in space. 4
He is most important for being the first person to explain how gravity works. After seeing an apple drop from a tree he thought that if the force of gravity reaches to the top of the highest tree, might it not reach even further; in particular, might it not reach all the way to the orbit of the Moon! Using math I showed that the gravity of earth pulling down on the rotating moon explains its circular orbit. Newton then reasoned that if gravity explained the curved path of the moon, then couldn't it also explain the curved path of all the planets and celestial bodies in the solar system? Newton said that just as the earth holds the moon, the sun would hold the earth and all the other planets. This is called the Universal Law of Gravitation. The sun's force of gravity will hold all the planets in their orbits. When Newton died on March 20, 1727, at the age of 85, he was buried in Westminster Abbey. This was an honor reserved for only the greatest men of England. EDWIN HUBBLE (1889 1953) Edwin Hubble received his first telescope a gift built by his grandfather when he was only 8 years old. Hubble developed an early passion for astronomy but put off pursuing his dream because his father, an 5
insurance agent, wanted him to study law. Yet, he continued to pursue astronomy studies, and in 1915 earned time on one of the Yerkes Observatory telescopes, launching his new career. Using the Hooker 100-inch reflector on Mount Wilson, Hubble found that the Andromeda nebula, a cloudy patch in the sky, was so far away it could not be within our own galaxy. This illustrated that the universe is vast, and the Milky Way is just a small object within it. Later, by examining the light of distant galaxies, he showed that the universe is expanding, and that everything in it is moving away from everything else. This is called Hubble s Law. Hubble s discoveries would change the way we viewed the universe and Today, the famous Hubble Space Telescope, which has gathered important data and images since it went into orbit in 1990, is named in his honor. 6
7
Dfgfgdfgfg; kdsjffvfffffff fffffffffffffff fffffffffffffff fffffffffffffff 1
fffffffffffffff fffffffffffffff fffffffffffffff ffffffffffffm mmmmmm 2
mmmmmm mmmmmm mmmmmm mmmmmm mmmmmm 3
mmmmmm mmmmmm mmmmmm mmmaaaaa aaaaaallllllll 4
lllllllllllllllllllll lllllllllllllllllllll llllllllwwww wwwwww wwwwwm 5
The ASTRONOMERS The Issue 1 featuring: Featuring: Illustrated By:
My name is and I lived from until. As an astronomer I Questioned the popular model which said that the known planets orbited around. Because the model couldn t tell the right positions for planets I invented the model. In this model planets in our System orbit the. this model was added to by other astronomers like and.
My name is and I lived from until. In 1609 I was the first person to use a to look at the universe. Using my I discovered that The has valleys, mountains and craters, it is not a perfectly round ball The is made up of millions of stars, each at a different distance from earth. Mercury and pass through phases just like the moon. This proved idea that the planets orbited the, not the earth. And most important, I discovered four moons around. This proved that everything in the Universe did not circle the.
My name is and I lived from until. Early on I worked with another astronomer,, and my findings were helped by his research. I proved, using math, that the planets in our solar system do not orbit the in perfect....but have orbits. My findings are called the Laws of motion, there are of these Laws. I am also considered to be the founder of modern which helped improve telescopes
My name is and I lived from until. I invented a difficult type of math called. I discovered, which help scientists better understand light. I discovered the laws of which explain how things move in space As a scientist I discovered many things which have helped astronomers understand the universe But I am most famous for explaining how works. Using math I showed that the gravity of earth explains the orbit of the moon and reasoned that the same must be true about the sun and the which orbit it. After seeing an apple drop from a tree I thought that if gravity could reach to the top of the highest tree, it might reach even further, maybe even to the moon!
My name is and I lived from until. I discovered that the, a cloudy patch in the sky, was so far away it could not be within our own. This proved that the universe is very large, and the Milky Way is just a small part of it. When examining the light of distant galaxies I discovered that that the universe is, and that everything in it is moving from everything else. This is called Law. Today, the famous Hubble Space, which has gathered important data and images since it went into orbit in 1990, is named in my honor.
Comic book page 2: Questions 1. Why might this astronomer s discoveries be important in our understanding of the universe? 2. What questions do you have about the universe? 3. How might you begin to answer them? What tools might you use? Which astronomers work would help you find answers?
My name is and I lived from until. Moon Earth Venus Sun Mars As an astronomer I Questioned the popular model which said that the known planets orbited around. Because the model couldn t tell the right positions for planets I invented the model. In this model planets in our System orbit the. The Sun Mercury Venus Earth Saturn Uranus Neptune Mars Jupiter Pluto and Charon this model was added to by other astronomers like and.