Today’s homework. A bigger story.
Pick a topic, meet the people behind the ideas, and try something together.
20 pioneers with prepared, book-cited stories. Explore all 315 profiles
Why might repeated measurements be better than a single guess?
Explore stars & measurement with Ulugh Beg, then try the activity below.
The legacy behind the lesson
Ulugh Beg was a ruler, astronomer, and mathematician in the fifteenth century.
He built an observatory at Samarkand for observations of the Sun, Moon, and planets.
Its instruments included a large masonry arc used for astronomical measurements.
“Why might repeated measurements be better than a single guess?”
Keep a sky notebook
Gather: Paper, a pencil, and a grown-up.
- 1
Choose a safe place to look at the evening sky with a grown-up.
- 2
Draw the Moon if it is visible. Write the date and time beside your drawing.
- 3
Look again on another evening from the same place. Add a second drawing.
- 4
Compare what you noticed. Which questions would need more observations?
Never look directly at the Sun. Watch from the ground with a grown-up.
Sign in to add this to your passport