BTEC Applied Science | The Schools' Observatory

Investigate the Milky Way

Galaxies are collections of millions, or billions of stars. The Milky Way is the galaxy in which we live, orbiting around it’s centre in a distant spiral arm.

Read more about Investigate the Milky Way

Make Your Own Star Wheel

Read more about Make Your Own Star Wheel

Measure a Day on Jupiter

You may know that the Earth takes 24 hours to rotate around its axis, but did you know other planets rotate as well? However, they do not all spin at the same rate.

Read more about Measure a Day on Jupiter

Measure the Sun's Rotation

You may know that the Earth rotates around an axis, but did you know the Sun does too?

So how long is a solar day? In this activity, you will find out!

Read more about Measure the Sun's Rotation

Our Sun Quiz

The Sun is our closest star and the centre of our Solar System. However, it is only one of several billion stars in our galaxy.

Read more about Our Sun Quiz

Measure Mountains on the Moon

Did you know there are mountains on the Moon? How tall do you think they are? Are they higher than mountains on Earth?

Read more about Measure Mountains on the Moon

Make a Sundial

Read more about Make a Sundial

Measure the Speed of Light

Einstein showed that the speed of light is a universal constant. This means that it always travels at the same speed in a vacuum.

Read more about Measure the Speed of Light

Calculate the Speed of the Planets

Did you know the Earth is travelling around the Sun at nearly 107,000 kilometres per hour?

Read more about Calculate the Speed of the Planets

Keep a Moon Diary

Have you noticed the Moon is brighter some nights than others? And it looks like the Moon changes shape? We call these changes the phases of the Moon.

Read more about Keep a Moon Diary

About Us