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How Does the Earth’s Magnetic Field Cause Aurora Lesson Plan

An animation shows Earth’s magnetosphere fluctuating in size and shape as it interacts with the solar wind.
An animation shows Earth’s magnetosphere fluctuating in size and shape as it interacts with the solar wind.
Levels
  • Intermediate (6-8)
Material Type
  • Activity/Hands-on
  • Lesson Plan
Heliophysics Big Ideas
  • Big Idea 1.2 – The Sun is active…
NGSS
  • ESS1 - Earth's Place in the Universe
  • PS1 - Matter and its Interactions
Heliophysics Topics
  • Aurora
  • Space Weather
  • Coronal Mass Ejection
  • Solar Wind
  • Sun
  • Magnetosphere
Heliophysics Missions
  • Sounding Rocket
  • ARTEMIS (THEMIS)
  • Magnetospheric Multiscale (MMS)
Material Cost per Learner Free
Language English

In this 5E middle school lesson, students explore why our planet has a magnetic field (and why other planets don’t), model the Earth’s magnetic field looks like and moves, and learn the parts of the magnetic field.

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