Principia Space Diary: 8 minutes to space

In this creative writing activity children imagine what it is like to leave Earth on a journey into outer space.  It uses the context of British astronaut Tim Peake’s journey to the International Space Station as a stimulus to develop literacy skills.

This resource is part of the Principia Space Diary,...

Taking photographs from the International Space Station

During his mission to the International Space Station, Tim Peake shared many spectacular photographs of the Earth. During this interview, recorded in  March 2017, he talks about taking the photographs and what such images can be used for. The teacher guide will help you find the segment or sections that are most...

When will the Sun become a red giant?

Produced by the Royal Observatory Greenwich, this booklet guides students to use Einstein’s mass-energy equivalence equation to determine when the Sun will become a red giant. Included is an online video that discusses how we can determine how old the Sun is. Details on the relationship between mass and energy in...

What’s the Universe made of?

Produced by the Royal Observatory Greenwich, this booklet introduces the concepts of dark matter and dark energy. Included is an online video that discusses how the Universe will end, including the role of dark matter and energy. The booklet describes the composition of the Universe, this is followed by questions...

Unusual orbits in the Andromeda galaxy

Produced by the Royal Observatory Greenwich, this uses understanding of Kepler’s third law and the Doppler equation guide a lesson on plotting and interpreting a velocity vs radius graph for the Andromeda galaxy. A brief overview of the lesson is provided for the teacher as well as key questions to ask students...

Time dilation by a black hole

Produced by the Royal Observatory Greenwich, this booklet introduces time dilation and the Schwarzschild radius of a black hole. Included is an online video that discusses what is inside a black hole and how light and time behave near one. Equations for time dilation and the Schwarzschild radius are introduced and...

The probability of life in the Milky Way

Produced by the Royal Observatory Greenwich, this booklet introduces the Drake equation. The Drake equation is used to estimate the number of planets in the Milky Way that have intelligent life. Included is an online video that discusses what is required for life and where and how we might look for it. The terms of...

Star trails and sidereal day

Produced by the Royal Observatory Greenwich, this booklet introduces the sidereal day and shows how star trials can be used to calculate the length of one sidereal day. Included in the booklet are instructions on how to create a star trial photograph using a DSLR or bridge camera. Supporting documents that help the...

Searching for life on extrasolar planets

Produced by the Royal Observatory Greenwich, this booklet uses the context of life on extrasolar planets to introduce light absorption spectra. Included is an online video that discusses where we might find alien life and how we can search for it. Questions and answers are included that test a student’s...