Locate Polaris and the directions around the horizon. Locate and identify several major constellations in the current evening sky. Locate and identify the planets in the current sky. State three ways to distinguish planets from stars. Name the planets in order of their distance from the sun and tell something about their physical nature.
Astronomy is an observational science.
Controlled experiments are usually not possible because we cannot manipulate celestial events. But we can still learn about things in space by observing them and asking questions. Students should begin to do this with things in their local environment before attending the planetarium program. This is in fact the way scientists explore nature from the smallest atom to the farthest galaxies in the universe. Suggested pre-visit activities.