HS-ESS1-4

Use mathematical or computational representations to predict the motion of orbiting objects in the solar system.

  1. Physics

    After 30 years, this supernova is still sharing secrets

    It’s been 30 years since astronomers first witnessed the stellar explosion known as SN 1987A. Today, researchers are still learning from this cataclysmic phenomenon.

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  2. Physics

    Eclipses come in many forms

    Eclipses are one of nature’s most awesome spectacles, and scientists have learned a lot by observing them and related celestial alignments — occultations and transits.

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  3. Planets

    How Earth got its moon

    How did our moon form? Scientists are still debating the answer. It may be the result of some one big impact with Earth — or perhaps many small ones.

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  4. Science & Society

    Cool Jobs: Reaching out to E.T. is a numbers game

    From figuring out if we’re alone in the universe, to writing messages to aliens, scientists use math in many ways in their search for extraterrestrial intelligence.

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  5. Planets

    Scientists Say: Dwarf planet

    Dwarf planets are distinct from the full-size models. A little too small, they also have a lot of space stuff filling their path around the sun.

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  6. Planets

    New solar system found to have 7 Earth-size planets

    A neighboring star system hosts seven Earth-like planets. Especially surprising: Three of those planets appear to reside in a zone that could support life as we know it.

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  7. Space

    Cool Jobs: Probing Pluto

    The New Horizons mission captivated the world as it flew by Pluto. Here are some of the people who made that possible.

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  8. Space

    Scientists Say: Comet

    Comets are small solar system objects. When they pass close to their sun, their melting gases and water give them a tail.

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  9. Scientists consider how to visit the closest exoplanet

    Even at only a little more than four light-years away, a trip to our closest exo-world could take some tens of thousands of years — unless we’re willing to settle for virtual visits.

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  10. Planets

    Jupiter’s Great Red Spot is really, really hot

    The Great Red Spot, a storm churning on Jupiter for at least 150 years, may be helping to keep the planet warm, a new study finds.

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  11. Space

    A new, nonexplosive source of black holes?

    At least one black hole may have formed from the collapse of a cloud of gas, which is not the usual birthing scheme. This might even be how some of the earliest gargantuan black holes developed.

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  12. Planets

    New clues in search for Planet Nine

    New details about Planet Nine, a hypothetical object on the edge of our solar system, might help scientists actually find it.

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