bubblezispwnage: Astronomy :)

Proficiency #1 -I can analyze galaxies and the differences between galaxies. I will compare the Milky Way Galaxy to other types of galaxies.

The Milky Way Galaxy is also referred to as the Milky Way or the Galaxy. It’s the galaxy in which the Solar System is located in. The Milky Way is a barred spiral galaxy. All the stars that a human eye can see in the night sky are a part of the Milky Way Galaxy. The diameter of the Milky Way is 100,000 light years. The thickness of the Milky Way is 1,000 light years. There are over 200 billion stars in the Milky Way. The Milky Way can be compared to many other galaxies and it has many characteristics and history to it.

If you’re comparing the Milky Way to other galaxies, you could say that some of them aren’t spiral shaped. They are usually an irregular galaxy which means it is an undefined shape and has lots of young stars, dust and gas. The Milky Way on the other hand, has middle-aged starts along with clouds of gas and dust. For a long time many scientists always thought that the Large Magellanic Cloud was the closest to the Milky Way but they were wrong. But in 1994 Sagittarius Dwarf Elliptical Galaxy was discovered at 80,000 light-years away while Large Magellanic Cloud was about 179,000 light-years away. Sagittarius Dwarf Elliptical Galaxy now holds the honor.

Our Milky Way galaxy is a pretty typical large galaxy in the universe. Most of the stars are in a disk that is about 100,000 light-years across in diameter and 3,000 light-years thick. Most of the galaxies in the universe are actually smaller than the Milky Way. The Sun orbits the center of the Milky Way at about 250 km/s and it takes about 220 million years to complete just 1 orbit!!

The Milky Way is a part of a group of galaxies known as the Local Group. All of these are moving relative to each other due to their gravitational interactions with speeds of up to 100 km/s or less. People have been saying for years, thinking our Milky Way was once a Quasar, but people really don’t know. A Quasar is an enormously bright object at the edge of our universe which emits massive amounts of energy. However, whether or not it was a quasar is still up for debate.

Scientists have wanted to know why we can see the galaxies in the deep space image that are billions of light years away, but we can’t study or even see the center of our own galaxy. Some of the scientists have reported that it isn’t true that we can’t study or even see the center of our galaxy. This is a very active research topic of astronomers, particularly using radio, infrared, x-ray and gamma-ray telescopes.

"Milky Way - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia." Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. N.p., n.d. Web. 4 Jan. 2011. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Milky_Way>.

Proficiency #4-I can analyze the origins of our solar system. Starting with the sun, my research will emphasize how our solar system formed, the differences between the inner planets and outer planets, and analyze the future of our sun and the solar system.

diagrams, solar butterfly. "Curious About Astronomy? The Sun." Curious About Astronomy? Ask an Astronomer. N.p., n.d. Web. 6 Jan. 2011. <http://curious.astro.cornell.edu/sun.php>.

"Solar System." Space Projects - Space Information - Space Shop. N.p., n.d. Web. 6 Jan. 2011. <http://www.aerospaceguide.net/solar_system/index.html>.

McDonald, Kim. "News Releases." UC SAN DIEGO NEWS CENTER. N.p., n.d. Web. 6 Jan. 2011. <http://ucsdnews.ucsd.edu/newsrel/science/mcmeteorite.asp>.

" Supernova – - Black Wallpapers ." Black Wallpapers . N.p., n.d. Web. 6 Jan. 2011. <http://wallpaperblack.com/supernova/>.

"Space." MWCS - Home of the YellowJackets. N.p., n.d. Web. 6 Jan. 2011. <http://mwcs-inet.mwcsk12.org/faculty/tdashnaw/stusites/webkc/spacekc.htm>.

"Outer Planets." MWCS - Home of the YellowJackets. N.p., n.d. Web. 6 Jan. 2011. <http://www.mwcsk12.org/faculty/wgotsch/studentsites/websg/spacesg.htm>.

Proficiency #3-I can research the history of constellations. My research will delve into the stories and the myths associated with each constellation. I will create my own constellation either changing the story of a real constellation or creating one on my own.

There are two different versions of the Orion myth, trying to figure out who his parents were of. The first of these were the sea-god Neptune, as Orion’s father, and the great huntress as Queen Euryale of the Amazons as his mother. Orion inherited his mother’s talent, becoming the greatest hunter in the world! Although, he inherited his father’s strength and thought he could kill any animal on the earth. Orion got killed by a scorpion sting.

The other version of Orion’s myth is that he had no mother, but Orion was a gift to a peasant on Jupiter, Mercury, and Neptune. Orion was supposed to have great strength, be able to walk on water, and stand taller than any other person. Orion fell in love with Merope, the daughter of Oenopian and princess of Chios. Merope’s father would not let Orion marry his daughter, even after Orion got rid of the wild beasts on their island. One day, observing Orion walking through the ocean with his head above the water, Apollo pointed it out to his sister saying she could not hit that black thing in the water. The archer-goddess fired a arrow at the black thing in the water. The waves rolled the body of Orion to the land, and she was very upset by her mistake.

"The Mythology of the Constellations: Orion." comfychair.org. N.p., n.d. Web. 4 Jan. 2011. <http://comfychair.org/~cmbell/myth/orion.html>.

Once upon a time in a universe far, far, away lived two gods Neptune and Queen Euryale. They were both married and have been married for over 1,000,000 years. One day a baby was brought to life from these 2 gods, and they named him Orion. Orion grew up to be the fiercest hunter in the universe! He inherited his mother’s hunting skills and his father’s mighty strength! He would always say he couldn’t be killed by any animal or any human in the entire universe!

He has fought many animals and humans but his hardest opponent of all was Charazard! Charazard is a fierce fire breathing dragon that will take down anyone who says not. Orion heard about this creature and wanted to take him down. Charazard would always attack citizens of the city when they came to see him in the dungeon where the 3 headed teletubbies would guard. The teletubbies were no match; all they did was watch the TV in their stomachs while they were waiting for people. With Orion’s hunting abilities he was able to kill the 3 headed teletubbies without the Charazard waking up. Orion kills silent and clean. When Orion shoots at Charazard he wakes up and starts to growl and breathe fire from its mouth. All of Orion’s arrows reflect off of Charazard because he is so big and Orion’s arrows are so small. Since Orion’s arrows aren’t working he takes out his Dark Bow with fire dragon arrows that are poisoned and starts unleashing his special attack on Charazard which is hurting him very much! Charazard walks toward Orion on the ground and Orion tries to run away but Charazard grabs him by the leg! Orion takes his Dark Bow and fires his arrows right into Charazard’s fingers which are then all bloody and Charazard lets go. To finish Charazard off Orion shoots another special attack with the Dark Bow aimed at Charazard’s head and Charazard falls to the ground with a mighty grunt and lies there dead. Then the Savior RastaBeanz comes with the helicopter and takes Charazard’s body and dumps it in the ocean. Orion is talking to himself. “If you’re out there, we’re waiting down here on earth. We will be prepared for you guys."

Proficiency #6 -I can analyze the differences between comets, asteroids, meteors and moons. I will research orbits and discuss differences of what we see from the Earth’s surface (phases). I will analyze the effect the moon’s orbit has on our planet. I will predict what would happen if Earth had a 2^nd moon or the distance to the moon was increased or decreased.

"Comets - Astronomy For Kids - KidsAstronomy.com." Astronomy For Kids - KidsAstronomy.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 20 Jan. 2011. <http://www.kidsastronomy.com/comets.htm>.

"Asteroids - Our Solar System - Night Sky Nation - 20 Jan 2011." Earth At Night - Our Planet - Night Sky Nation - 20 Jan 2011. N.p., n.d. Web. 20 Jan. 2011. <http://www.nightskynation.com/objects/asteroids>.

"planets." Kumphyk9. N.p., n.d. Web. 20 Jan. 2011. <http://www.kumphyk9.com/gabe/meteors.html>.

"Moon Multimedia." Welcome to StarrySkies.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 20 Jan. 2011. <http://starryskies.com/The_sky/events/lunar-2003/multimedia.html>.

"Welcome To ISRO :: Press Release :: October 29, 2008 ." Welcome To Indian Space Research Organisation - Home Page . N.p., n.d. Web. 20 Jan. 2011. <http://www.isro.org/pressrelease/scripts/pressreleasein.aspx?Oct29_200

Proficiency #2- I can identify key technological advancements that helped in making our knowledge of space expand. My research will show the past, but I will also predict what future advancements may stretch our limits even more.

Category. "Did Galileo Invent the Telescope - FAQ Did Galileo Invent the Telescope." Space & Astronomy at About.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 8 Feb. 2011. <http://space.about.com/cs/basics/a/spacefaq12.htm>.

"Who Invented the Telescope?." EzineArticles Submission - Submit Your Best Quality Original Articles For Massive Exposure, Ezine Publishers Get 25 Free Article Reprints. N.p., n.d. Web. 8 Feb. 2011. <http://ezinearticles.com/?Who-Invented-the-Telescope?&id=87883>.

"Who Invented the Space Shuttle? - Associated Content from Yahoo! - associatedcontent.com." Associated Content from Yahoo! - associatedcontent.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 10 Feb. 2011. <http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/1864631/who_invented_the_space_shutt

Proficiency #5- I can effectively explain the different theories of the universe. I will discuss theories starting from Ancient Greece through the theories discussed in present day. I will analyze all theories and make a judgment based on my research on which is most valid.

"Google." Google. N.p., n.d. Web. 8 Feb. 2011. <http://www.google.com/#q=timeline+on+space+advancement&hl=en&safe=active&sa=X&prmd=ivns&tbs=tl:1&tbo=u&ei=_G9RTduSG8Oltwf2moHlCQ&oi=timeline_result&ct=title&resnum=11&ved=0CGQQ5wIwCg&fp=49bd3033340e275d>.