| All of Solar System | |
| Gurnett Lecture | www-pw.physics.uiowa.edu/~dag Professor Gurnett gave the U. of Iowa President's Lecture on February 15, 2009. This lecture presents his work with Prof. Van Allen on artificial satellites and his own contributions to various space missions. |
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Lunar and Planetary Institute | lpi.usra.edu This site has a wealth of information and photos primarily related to the Moon and planets. The site has a section of educational resources. Some resources cover stars and galaxies. | Nine Planets | nineplanets.org; facts, history of observations, and links for the sun, planets, comets, asteroids, spacecraft, more |
| Planets | JPL; photos, facts, spacecraft that have explored the planets |
| Planetary Data Table LSW | www.lswpub.com; This site has a good table of data for the 8 planets (no Pluto). |
| Planetary Satellites LSW | www.lswpub.com; This site has a good table of data for the full set (e.g. 63 satellites of Jupiter) of natural satellites. |
| Planetary Satellites SkyPub | skytonight.com; This site has text and data for the natural satellites. You will need to click on "Next Page" at the bottom of each page to move through the solar system. |
| Planetary Society | planetary.org "Dedicated to exploring the solar system and seeking life beyond Earth, The Planetary Society is non-governmental and nonprofit and is funded by the support of its members" |
| Rosetta Spacecraft | www.esa.int/esaMI/Rosetta/index.html This is the web site for the Rosetta spacecraft. It has images of asteroid flybys and info on the spacecraft. "The Rosetta orbiter will rendezvous with Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko and remain in close proximity to the icy nucleus as it plunges towards the warmer inner reaches of the Sun’s domain. At the same time, a small lander will be released onto the surface of this mysterious cosmic iceberg." |
| Size of Planets | www.messenger-education.org This simple interactive page lets the user compare the sizes of two planets (and the Moon and Pluto). There are links on the page for the Messenger mission to Mercury. |
| Solar System Exploration | solarsystem.nasa.gov This site has a wealth of resources and links for the Solar System. There is a nice multimedia section. The download section has some nice lithograph PDF files. |
| Solar System Missions | solarsystem.nasa.gov/missions This site has information and links for various missions to explore the Solar System. You can also search for historical information about the exploration of space. |
| Solar System Simulator | space.jpl.nasa.gov This site lets you locate planets or spacecraft locations in the solar system. Start by selecting the target object from a drop down list. To view the inner solar system reduce the field of view angle to 5 degrees. I also prefer to check the Extra Brigtness selection. |
| Solar System Viewers | janus.astro.umd.edu This site has computer animations of orbits of planets, asteroids, comets in the solar system. There are also more technical tools and calculators related to the solar system. |
| Space Audio | www-pw.physics.uiowa.edu/space-audio This site has 'These are the "sounds of space" collected by U Iowa instruments on various spacecraft.' The sounds are the translations of radio waves detected by spacecraft in our solar system. |
| Sun Fact Sheet from NASA | nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov This site is a page of data for the sun, along with some basic data on Earth, and Sun/Earth ratios. |
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| Apollo Program | |
| 40th Anniversary | nasa.gov This NASA site has links to recent images of the Apollo landing sites, restored video for Apollo 11, audio files, 40th anniversary events, and more. |
| First Footprint | nasa.gov This site has images of the left and right boot prints in the lunar soil, pdf document on technology spin offs (products and impact on our lives) from Apollo, benefits of Apollo, videos, link to NASA YouTube site, etc. |
| French Video | www.futura-sciences.com This is a French web site that has a 27 minute video of Apollo 11 narrated by Jim Lovell. I think Lovell narrated the video at a press conference or meeting in France some months after the flight of Apollo 11. |
| Google Moon | google.com/moon This site has images of the moon and details on the Apollo landing sites. |
| Images | apolloarchive.com This site has a multitude of hihg quality photos for the entire Apollo program. Photos are available from the training periods as well as the actual flight. |
| Lunar Surface Journals | hq.nasa.gov/alsj/frame.html This site has a large amount of images, video clips, mission reports, press kits, debriefings, flight plans, etc. The journals are for Apollos 11 - 17. |
| Panoramas | panoramas.dk This site has interactive panoramas for each lunar landing site. Quicktime is required to view the panoramas. You can drag on the panorama to change your viewing direction. There is audio of the astronauts for each panorama. |
| PBS Apollo Program | PBS site, Virtual Reality photos from Apollo landing sites; interviews; more |
| Restored Video | nasa.gov/multimedia This site has restored and enhanced video clips from the Apollo 11 moon landing mission. The videos have a .mov file extension. They will play in Quicktime. |
| Smithsonian Apollo Pages | nasm.si.edu The Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum site has images and facts for the Apollo Program. Apollo 1, 7 - 17 are covered. There is also information focused on the Saturn rocket, the Lunar Rover, Patches, etc. |
| Spinoffs Database | sti.nasa.gov This is a database of spinoffs (practical benefits) from NASA. |
| We Choose | wechoosethemooon.org This site has 11 segments of the Apollo 11 mission with audio tracks for each segment. |
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| Sun | |
| Big Bear Solar Obs | bbso.njit.edu This site has recent photos of the Sun using different filters. |
| High Altitude Observatory | Realtime solar photos at various wavelengths |
| Eclipse NASA | sunearth.gsfc.nasa.gov; Solar and Lunar eclipse information for Past, Present, and Future eclipses. Also, the site has information on Mercury and Venus transits across the disk of the sun. |
| Solar Dynamics Observatory | sdo.gsfc.nasa.gov This satellite provides high resolution images and video of the Sun. The amazing images became available to the public in April 2010. |
| SOHO Observatory | sohowww.nascom.nasa.gov This satellite collects images and data on the Sun. It has been used to discover 1500 comets. Amateurs have used the SOHO images of the Sun and nearby space to identify some of these comets. The site provides information on space weather (solar wind) as well as on the Sun. |
| Solar Eclipse | video archive, information about eclipses, world map of future eclipses |
| Solar Science Marshall | solarscience.msfc.nasa.gov Marshall Space Flight Center .. This page gives information on solar structure, solar features, etc. The site gives a summary of major questions about the Sun. There is a description of the importance of magnetic effects in the Sun. There is a section on "The Sun in Action" that has animations. |
| Solar Storms | solarstorms.org; Dr. Sten Odenwald's site; This site has background information on space weather: the transfer of energy and matter from the sun to the earth. The site also has pages that discuss environment, health, electrical utilities, and technology (satellites). There is also a page of Internet links for information about the sun. |
| Solar Storm Watch | solarstormwatch.com This site ivites you to help astronomers identify developing storms on the Sun so an early alert can go out. This site has videos that explain the importance of your participation. The concept of this site is similar to the very successful Galaxy Zoo site. |
| SpaceWeather | spaceweather.com This site has updates on solar activity, solar wind, predicted effects on the Earth (aurorae). There is also a list of upcoming close approaches by near Earth asteroids. |
| Stereo Sun Mission | stereo.gsfc.nasa.gov These satellites orbit the Sun. One is ahead of Earth in its orbit and the other is trailing the Earth in its orbit. This gives scientists depth perception to better study events on the Sun. The site has excellent photos of the Sun and excellent videos of the Sun. The site also has images and video of auroras. |
| Space Weather | swpc.noaa.gov This has a solar image and graphs of space weather activity. |
| Sun Earth | sunearthday.nasa.gov This is the parent site to the Space Weather site. |
| Sun Trek | suntrek.org This site's purpose is to teach children about the Sun and its effects on Earth. |
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| Mercury | |
| Mercury Messenger Mission | messenger.jhuapl.edu This site has science results and future activites for the Messenger Mission that will go into orbit around Mercury in March, 2011. You can view images, videos, color enhanced images, etc. The FAQ has useful information about the mission as well as about Mercury. |
| NASA Info. | solarsystem.nasa.gov This site has basic information: Planet overview, facts, photos, etc. |
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| Venus | |
| NASA Info. | solarsystem.nasa.gov This site has basic information: Planet overview, facts, photos, etc. |
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| Earth | |
| Aurora | asc-csa.gc.ca Canadian Space Agency. This site has great videos of Aurora's over Yellowknife, Northwest Territories, Canada. The site also has background on auroras and educational resources for Canada's reach into space. |
| Earth Views | esa.int The European Space Agency has provided video (silent) of the Earth as viewed from various space platforms. Look for the "Earth Views" entry in the thumbnails. It is striking how thin our atmosphere is compared to the size of the Earth. The site has many other videos and images. |
| Earth Photos | earthobservatory.nasa.gov This site has photos of the Earth taken from low Earth orbit. You can search for a location by name. The site also has historical global data (e.g. temperature, snow cover, etc.) There are also collections of photos (e.g. cities, favorites of the week, etc.) |
| Seasons | jpl.nasa.gov This site has photos of Earth locations in different seasons. It also shows temperature and water vapor around the globe for different seasons. |
| Space Weather | windows2universe.org This site provides information about space weather and its effects on Earth. Space Weather is related to the stream of particles reaching Earth from the Sun and interaction with the Earth's magnetic field. Some pages at this site give space weather predictions and information on auroral activity. |
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| Moon | |
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ASP Moon Links | astrosociety.org The Astronomical Society of the Pacific has organized a web page that has links to various resources about the Moon. |
| Connect to the Moon | www.lpi.usra.edu/education/lprp This site (Lunar and Planetary Institute) has resources related to the Moon for the public, classroom teachers, students, and informal educators. |
| Google Apollo | www.google.com/moon Click on the Apollo tab to toggle viewing the Apollo landing sites. You can click on the Apollo flag to get more detailed information about each landing site. The projection of the moon is a rectangle so the polar regions are distorted. |
| Kaguya | www.selene.jaxa.jp/index_e.htm Kaguya was a satellite put into lunar orbit by the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency in 2007. The satellite downloaded HDTV video of the lunar surface as a public outreach. You can access the video and image archive by clicking on the "Links" menu item at the top of the window. Multiple other systems made various scientific measurements of the Moon. The satellite impacted the lunar surface, by design, in 2009. |
| LCROSS | nasa.gov This is the home page for the LCROSS mission. Lunar CRater and Observation Satellite. This satellite system will try to impact a crater near the south lunar pole and observe the debris in hopes of finding evidence for water ice. The tentative impact date is Ocotber 9, 2009. |
| LRO | nasa.gov The Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter orbits about 31 miles above the Moon. It is taking high resolution photos to study the lunar surface in support of future Moon exploration. It has imaged the Apollo landing sites. |
| LRO Camera | lroc.sese.asu.edu This site has images, video, and information about the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter. |
| LRO Video | svs.gsfc.nasa.gov Very nice tour of the Moon. Basins, Craters, Mountains, Rilles, Apollo 17 landing site, etc. The video is narrated. |
| LROC Nearside | wms.lroc.asu.edu This site has an interactive, composite, photo of the near side of the Moon. You can adjust the magnification and location. The level of detail is eye catching. |
| Moon Zoo | www.moonzoo.org This site asks users to help classify features on the Moon. You will see images from the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter. Humans can classify visual objects much better than computers. Your participation in this project will help scientists better understand the surface of the Moon. The Explore the Moon section has |
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Observe the Moon Sept. 18 | observethemoonnight.org This site hopes to promote public observation of the Moon on Sept. 18. The site has some moon maps and aids for observing some craters. The site is "under construction." |
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| Mars | |
| HiRISE | hirise.lpl.arizona.edu OR http://www.uahirise.org/ Home page for the HiRISE high resolution Mars orbiter. You may wish to join the search for the missing Mars Polar Lander that presumeably crashed on the surface. |
| Mars Exploration Program | NASA; Spirit and Opportunity Rovers, Mars Surveyor, Past Mars Missions |
| Mars Global Surveyor | photos of Mars from the orbiting surveyor spacecraft |
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Mars Hoax Explained | www.otastro.org/Mars2005 For several years an e-mail hoax has been circulating that claims that Mars will appear to be as large as the Full Moon in the sky. This never happens. This web site helps people do some critical thinking about the claim. The web site has been updated for August 2010. |
| Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter | mars.jpl.nasa.gov/mro This site has news releases, images, and video of the surface of Mars. |
| Mars Rovers | marsrovers.jpl.nasa.gov This site has current information on the Spirit and Opportunity rovers that started roving on Mars in 2004. The site has images, panorama images, videos, podcasts, press releases, and more. There are text explanations given for the images and videos. |
| Mars Science Lab | mars.jpl.nasa.gov/msl/ This site has information on the Mars Science Laboratory. This rover is scheduled for launch in 2011. You can submit your name to go to Mars in a computer chip. Click on Send Your Name to Mars at the bottom of the home page, or click on Participate in the menu and then click on Send Your Name to Mars. |
| NASA Info. | solarsystem.nasa.gov This site has basic information for the planet: overview, facts, moons, photos, etc. |
| Viking Mission | nasa.gov/mission_pages/viking This site has information about the 1976 Viking landers and orbiters. There is a link to the archived mission site. |
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| Jupiter | |
| Galileo Spacecraft | www2.jpl.nasa.gov/galileo This is the home page for the now ended Galileo spacecraft mission to Jupiter. You can still access images and information about the mission. |
| NASA Info. | solarsystem.nasa.gov This site has basic information for the planet: overview, facts, moons, rings, photos, etc. |
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| Saturn | |
| Cassini Ciclops | ciclops.org This site provides access to Cassini Images and Videos. There are also news items on future events in the Cassini mission and background on the Cassini imaging istruments. |
| Cassini Mission | saturn.jpl.nasa Home Page for the Cassini mission to Saturn. |
| Cassini Mission Multimedia | saturn.jpl.nasa.gov Multimedia resources related to the Cassini mission to Saturn. PDF's, DOC's, audio files. The page has links to images and other resources. |
| Cassini Presentation | solarsystem.nasa.gov This site has information about Cassini and Saturn. |
| NASA Info. | solarsystem.nasa.gov This site has basic information for the planet: overview, facts, moons, rings, photos, etc. |
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| Uranus | |
| NASA Info. | solarsystem.nasa.gov This site has basic information for the planet: overview, facts, moons, rings, photos, etc. |
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| Neptune | |
| NASA Info. | solarsystem.nasa.gov This site has basic information for the planet: overview, facts, moons, rings, photos, etc. |
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| Kuiper Belt Objects Including Pluto | |
| New Horizons Spacecraft | pluto.jhuapl.edu This site has information on the New Horizons spacecraft. This spacecraft will fly by Pluto in July 2015. It will then continue into the Kuiper Belt to investigate more distant objects in our Solar System. The site has images and video made by the spacecraft as it passed Jupiter in 2007. |
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| Asteroids | |
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30 Years of Asteroid Discovery | youtube.com This video shows the four inner planets and Jupiter in orbit around the Sun. The main feature of the video is the orbitting asteroids discovered over the past 30 years. The dot for the asteroid is removed two months after its discovery so the screen doesn't get too cluttered. The red dots are asteroids that have earth-crossing orbits. |
| Dawn Spacecraft | dawn.jpl.nasa.gov This satellite will visit Vesta and Ceres, two of the largest asteroids. The rendezvous with Vesta takes place in 2011. The ion engine gives the spacecraft a shorter trip time to the asteroid belt, and allows the spacecraft to go into orbit around Vesta, leave orbit, and go into orbit around Ceres. |
| NASA Info. | solarsystem.nasa.gov This site has basic information and photos of asteroids. |
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| Comets | |
| NASA Info. | solarsystem.nasa.gov This site has basic information about comets and some photos. |
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| ExtraSolarPlanets | |
| Encyclopedia | exoplanet.eu Encyclopedia of Extrasolar Planets. This site seems to be updated on a very regular basis. It has a tutorial on the subject, a catalog of all discoveries of extrasolar planets, recent news, meeting information, etc. |
| Exoplanets | exoplanets.org; This site collects information about planets in orbit around other stars. |
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| Images | |
| NASA Images | solarsystem.nasa.gov This is a gallery of planetary, spacecraft, historical, infographics, video, etc. |
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| Sunrise Sunset Time | |
| Sunrise Sunset Time | usno.navy.mil This site has Astronomical Data Calculators, Precise Time, library resources, etc. |
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