TELEVISION

Show Me Science Advanced - Astronomy & Space

Series: Show Me Science
4.3
(4)
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Episodes
8
Rating
NR
Year
2014
Language
English
Publisher
TMW Media Group

About

The award-winning, Show Me Science series, is an excellent in-class, library or home schooling tool for introducing the wonders of science. Each title uses incredible visuals to help build a solid understanding of the scientific discipline behind the topic. The programs show everyday real–life application of the subject and how we are all affected by advancements in science and technology, often in ways we never realize. Show Me Science covers oceanography, animal life, astronomy, biology, chemistry, health science, earth science, technology, environmental sciences, physics and more. The Wonders of Oceanography series covers subjects from Coral Reefs, Sharks, Manatee's, Endangered Species, studying Dolphins to the Ocean tides. Produced in cooperation with an advisory board of top educators, curriculum specialists and administrators. Each progarm comes complete with an online teachers guide which includes subject matter revision and suggestions on how to present material, questions to ask students, career possibilities and class projects to help illustrate the key concepts.

Related Subjects

Episodes

1. X-Ray Invisible Astronomy

11m

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Much of the cosmos cannot be seen through optical telescopes. But it can be detected in wavelengths of the electromagnetic spectrum ranging from gamma-rays, through x-rays and ultra-violet to infra-red and radio. They reveal cauldrons of starbirth, exploding stars, neutron stars and black holes. Most exciting are Gamma-ray Bursters – cosmic flashes as bright as a million trillion Suns. In this program, we learn more about visible light (7 colors and gradations) and infra-red light (outside the scope of human visibility) along with extraordinary images of atmospheric and galactic events.

2. Telescope New Eyes On The Cosmos

11m

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For many years the Hubble Space Telescope has collected breathtaking images of the cosmos with remarkable clarity. Now, ground based telescopes are fighting back. They are combining the sight of several instruments and correcting atmospheric shimmer. This program presents and explains the designs, uses and output of different types of telescopes used to see our universe. From the Keck in Hawaii, the Very Large Telescope in Chile and OWL, the Overwhelmingly Large Telescope.

3. The Big Bang & Black Holes - Zero To Zillions Theory

20m

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This programming explores theories of the Universe exploding from an infinitesimal speck to create matter, radiation, time and space. In the first trillion-trillion-trillionth of a second, the cosmos grew a hundred million times to less than the size of an atom. Then, in another instant, the Universe was the size of a galaxy. Now, billions of years later and strung along vast filaments, our Universe has some 50-billion galaxies that continue to expand as stars within them are born, live and die. In the second half of this program, the creation and disappearance of black holes is explored. These occur when a massive star dies. As the star's outer layers cascade into space, the core collapses to beyond the visible and becomes a voracious gravitational trap from which nothing, not even light, escapes.

4. Far Out - Measuring The Universe

11m

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How far is a star or a galaxy? Scaling and measuring the cosmos is a complex problem. Scientists are integrating mathematical applications and scientific technology to create standards. Distances are so vast they are described in light years – the distance light travels in a year. Nearby stars are measured by trigonometry – the technique of parallax. Farther out, astronomers use so-called "standard candles", the 'Type Ia supernovae' is the standard candle basis. Beyond that the electromagnetic "redshift" of galaxies reveals their distances.

5. Yonder To Infinity - The End Of The Universe

11m

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This program discusses the concept of the expanding Universe. Calculations by astrophysicists show that the cosmos seems to be speeding up. The 50-billion galaxies thought to comprise our Universe are rapidly moving farther apart. As our Sun's energy diminishes, scientists are working to understand the nature of space called "mysterious dark energy and dark matter" – believed to comprise 96 percent of the Universe. With each discovery made by astronomers and astrophysicists, we find there is so much more to learn.

6. Pluto - The Farthest Planet

11m

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Since its discovery in 1930, astronomers have been debating the status of the tiny world at the farthest reaches of our solar system-Pluto. In this program, students are given a firsthand look at the scientific process that initially classified Pluto as a planet and then reclassified it in 2006 as a Dwarf Planet. Not all scientists are in agreement with this definition and the future may bring further reclassification. Students will learn the scientific process of categorizing a planet and about this tiny world at the farthest reaches of our solar system.

7. Comet - Visitors From Space

11m

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Comets have been causing fear in the minds of humans for millennia. Now new spacecraft are giving us insights into their composition and behavior. Comets allow us to study what the solar system was like in its formative period. They orbit the Sun in the Kuiper Belt and the Oort Cloud. This program teaches students about comets and helps students understand why comets cause both fear and fascination.

8. Probing The First Stars & Galaxies

13m

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Visible light, which can be seen with our eyes, comprises a small sliver of the electromagnetic spectrum. The rest of the spectrum, from short wavelength gamma rays to long-wavelength radio waves, requires special instruments to detect. ALMA uses and array of radio telescopes to detect and study radio waves from space. Radio telescopes are typically large parabolic dish antennas used singly or in an array. Radio observatories are preferentially located far from major centers of population to avoid electromagnetic interference (EMI) from radio, TV, radar, and other EMI emitting devices. This is similar to the locating of optical telescopes to avoid light pollution, with the difference being that radio observatories are often placed in valleys to further shield them from EMI as opposed to clear air mountain tops for optical observatories. ALMA is an advanced tool for studying very old stars and galaxies. These objects now are seen at great cosmic distances, with most of their light stretched out to millimeter and sub-millimeter wavelengths by the expansion of the universe.
ALMA provides the unprecedented ability to study the processes of star and planet formation. Unimpeded by the dust that obscures visible-light observations, ALMA will be able to reveal the details of young, still-forming stars, and is expected to show young planets still in the process of developing. In addition, ALMA will allow scientists to learn in detail about the complex chemistry of the giant clouds of gas and dust that spawn stars and planetary systems.

Extended Details

  • Closed CaptionsEnglish