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Sunday, March 13, 2016

March 13: Planet Uranus Discovered (1781)

image from easyscienceforkids.com

Uranus, one of the bigger planets, was discovered on this day in 1781. How does it stack up in diameter compared to the other planets?


Planets’ Diameters

Materials:

  • Measuring tape
  • String
  • Ruler
  • Sidewalk chalk

Directions:

  1. What is the diameter of each planet in our Solar System? Check out EnchantedLearning.com to find out.
  2. This is best done outside in a space where you can use sidewalk chalk, but could also be done indoors with string and tape.
  3. Try different scales depending on space, but to offer some perspective, if 1 inch equals 1000 miles, Mercury is only three inches across while Jupiter is nearly three feet!
  4. To mark a planets’ diameter with chalk, measure a piece of string to HALF the diameter of the planet.
  5. Once a piece of string is cut to length, one person needs to hold one end steady while a second person holds the other end.
  6. Keeping the string tight, the second person rotates around the first person, tracing a circle with the chalk as he/she moves. This represents the planet’s diameter.
  7. Repeat for each planet.
Source(s): Toolbox Training’s book 100 Science Activities for Kids (activity F10).


Check out the full March calendar. It includes floating holidays, specialty weeks, and specialty months.

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