Higher Learning Mod II
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Modules for Northern Students and Teachers
This section features educational videos and classroom activities that have a distinct connection to Canada’s northern sky.
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Introduction to the Solar Cycle and the Solar Dynamics Observatory |
Mod II: Introduction to Solar Maximum
Scientists are predicting the strongest Solar Maximum in 50 years will arrive between 2010 and 2012, setting the stage for what should be the greatest northern lights spectacle of the new millennium. Every 11 years the Sun completes one cycle of sunspot activity. Like an enormous heartbeat, our star shifts from solar minimum to solar maximum, and back to solar minimum to complete one solar cycle. counting sunspots, watching for solar flares and measuring the polarity of the solar magnetic field, which is known to reverse during the excitement of solar max.
Classroom Activities
The Canadian Space Agency and the Solar & Heliospheric Observatory present lessons and activities that allow students to explore the Sun from its deep core to the outer corona and the solar wind.
- Building and Using a Sundial Grade 6
- The Reasons For the Seasons Grade 6
- The Solar Cycle Grade 6
- SOHO Sunspot Cycle Lesson Plans Grades 6-12
