Astronomy

GLOSSARY

planet： a large， round thing that moves around a sun

Activity 1

Do you know what ‘astronomy’ means？

Do you think that there are animals and plants on other planets？

Activity 2

Put words a–e in the spaces to complete sentences 1–5.

a. alien b. life c. space

d. spacecraft e. Earth

1. Animals and plants are examples of ______

2. ______ is the area outside our planet， where the stars are.

3. Something used for travelling outside our planet is a（n） ______

4. The planet we live on is called ______

5. ______ means it is from another planet.

Activity 3

In the text below called ‘Life on other planets？’， Suzie Lee answers some questions about astronomy. Choose which questions a-e go with which of her answers （1-5） from the text.

a. Amazing！ Can we go and visit the TRAPPIST-1 planets？

b. Is there anything new happening in astronomy at the moment？

c. Oh， so what will happen next？

d. Suzie， what is astronomy？

e. Why is that important？

Life on other planets？

1. Astronomy is the science of stars， planets and space. Someone who studies astronomy is an astronomer.

2. Yes！ Now is a very exciting time for astronomers. In early 2017， seven planets were discovered around a star called TRAPPIST-1. These planets are a similar size to our planet， Earth， and we believe that at least three of these planets possibly have water.

3. If a planet has water， it can also have life！ These planets are very similar to Earth. It’s the first time we’ve found planets like this and it’s very exciting！

4. Erm， no. Unfortunately， that’s not possible. TRAPPIST-1 is very far away. Our fastest spacecraft need over 200，000 years to get there.

5. Well， finding these planets around TRAPPIST-1 means that there are probably other planets like Earth in space. All astronomers want to find alien life. In the past， I thought it was impossible， but now it looks as if we are getting close.

Activity 4

Decide if the sentences below are true or not true.

1. Astronomy is about people.

2. Nothing new is happening in astronomy at the moment.

3. The TRAPPIST-1 planets are about the same size as Earth.

4. If planets have water， it is possible that animals and plants live there.

5. It’s possible to visit the TRAPPIST-1 planets.

6. Suzie thinks we might find alien life soon.

READ MORE

You can read more about the TRAPPIST-1 planets， look at some pictures and watch some videos here： http：//www.bbc.co.uk/newsround/39049747

You can find out lots more information and see more pictures on this website： https：//exoplanets.nasa.gov/trappist1/

Activity 5.1

Match words 1–3 with their meaning a–c.

1. discover                     2. look as if                       3. similar

a. almost the same         b. find for the first time     c. probably going to happen

Activity 5.2

Use words 1–3 from Activity 5.1 in sentences 1–3 below. You may need to add ‘s’ or ‘ed’ to the verbs.

1. It ______ it’s going to rain. You should take an umbrella.

2. I’m sure that we’ll ______ some new medicines in the future.

3. David and James like ______ types of music， so they go to concerts together.

Answers

Activity 2

1. b; 2. c; 3. d; 4. e; 5. a

Activity 3

1. d; 2. b; 3. e; 4. a; 5. c

Activity 4

1. Not true （NT）; 2. NT; 3. True （T）; 4. T; 5. NT; 6. T

Activity 5.1

1. b; 2. c; 3. a

Activity 5.2

1. looks as if; 2. discover; 3. similar