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Solar Water Heater
Learners work in teams to design and build solar water heating devices that mimic those used in residences to capture energy in the form of solar radiation and convert it to thermal energy.

Weather Stations: Phase Change
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In this activity, learners observe the water cycle in action! Water vapor in a tumbler condenses on chilled aluminum foil — producing the liquid form of water familiar to us as rain and dew.

Rain Machine (Solar Still)
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In this activity, learners work in groups to build simple solar stills filled with salt water. After the stills are complete, learners observe what happens when they place the stills in the sun.

Solar Convection
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In this activity, learners add food coloring to hot and cold water in order to see how fluids at different temperatures move around in convection currents.
Finding the Right Crater
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This quick demonstration (on page 11 of PDF) allows learners to understand why scientists think water ice could remain frozen in always-dark craters at the poles of the Moon.

Using Solar Energy
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In this activity, learners discover how solar energy can be used to heat water.

Exploring the Universe: Ice Orbs
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“Exploring the Solar System: Ice Orbs” is a hands-on activity in which visitors investigate a frozen orb, trying to learn about objects hidden inside.

Portable Potable Pressure
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In this activity, learners use plastic water bottles, wood, and water to build an inexpensive and portable tool to demonstrate one atmosphere of pressure at sea level.
What Does Life Need to Live?
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In this astrobiology activity (on page 11 of the PDF), learners consider what organisms need in order to live (water, nutrients, and energy).

Canned Heat
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In this activity, learners explore how light and dark colored objects absorb the Sun's radiations at different rates.
Effects of Solar Radiation on Land and Sea
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In this activity, learners explore the different heating properties of soil and water.
Making An Impact!
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In this activity (on page 14 of PDF), learners use a pan full of flour and some rocks to create a moonscape.

Mars from Above: Carving Channels
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In this activity, learners create channel features with flowing water, comparing their observations to real images of Mars and Earth taken by satellites/orbiters.

Geyser
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This Exploratorium activity can be used in many contexts because geysers are great opportunities for learning about heat and temperature changes as well as geological/space science phenomena.
Why is the Sky Blue?
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In this activity, learners create a "mini sky" in a glass of water in a dark room.

Why is the Sky Blue?
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In this activity, learners use a flashlight, a glass of water, and some milk to examine why the sky is blue and sunsets are red.

Solar Cooker
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Learners build a simple solar oven from a shoebox, black construction paper, and aluminum foil. Over the course of a few hours, the oven heats up water enough to brew tea.

Weather Stations: Storms
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In this activity, learners test how cornstarch and glitter in water move when disturbed. Learners compare their observations with videos of Jupiter's and Earth's storm movements.

Habitable Worlds
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In this group activity, learners consider environmental conditions—temperature, presence of water, atmosphere, sunlight, and chemical composition—on planets and moons in our solar system to determine

Mystery Matter
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This interactive demonstration reintroduces learners to three states of matter (solid, liquid, gas), and introduces them to a fourth state of matter, plasma.