Using Spectroscopy to Find Life on Other Planets
This lesson helps students understand how using both a wave model and particle model of electromagnetic radiation can be used to collect and interpret the transmission spectra of a planet’s atmosphere.
This activity should take approximately two 50-minute class periods and is designed to be used in an introductory high school physics class or a high school astronomy course.
Topics
- SP2
- HS-PS4-1
- HS-PS4-3
- HS-PS4-5
- transmission spectra
- electromagnetic radiation models
- astrophysics
- engineering
- spectroscopy
- absorption
- diffraction
- dispersion
- electromagnetic spectrum
- energy
- exoplanet
- frequency
- light curve
- photoelectric effect
- photon
- spectrometer
- transmission spectroscopy
- transmitted
- wave-particle duality of light
- wavelength