Day: May 25, 2017

Keep on Scrolling

by dougpete, posted in Education

A big shout out to Peter Vogel for sharing this resource.  Ever since I sat down with it the first time, I’ve been hooked.  I’m also saying “Billions and Billions” under my breath.

The resource is “If the Moon were only 1 pixel“.  So, right from the start, we’re marrying astronomy and computers.  It’s not a bad marriage and this is more fun than staring at the traditional chart of planets that adorn many classroom walls.

So, if the moon was only 1 pixel indeed, what is everything else?

Screenshot 2017-05-24 at 09.58.31

Let the fun begin!

You start at the Sun.  It’s really important to understand the Scale as you begin to scroll your screen to the left.  Well, actually you’re going to scroll the contents on the screen; the screen itself doesn’t move.

You’ll quickly realize that you’re on a long trip to get to Mercury.  Fortunately, there are quips and facts to read along the way. I couldn’t help but think that this was a more realistic representation of the distance than what you could get on a wall chart.

And, if kilometres aren’t your game, you can spice things up by changing the units of distance.

Screenshot 2017-05-24 at 10.07.37

Enjoy exploring.

 

Advertisement

OTR Links 05/25/2017

by dougpete, posted in Links

Posted from Diigo. The rest of my favorite links are here.