Meteors and Meteor Showers

pin requirements

This Project is No Longer Funded, the website is here for archival purposes.

Have you ever stretched out on the grass in your yard and watched a meteor shower?  Did you wonder what causes them or look for any meteorites afterwards?  Complete these requirements for a cool pin and learn about meteors and meteor showers.  Have you had your meteor shower today?

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1. Complete a PRE-TEST to see what you already know about meteors and meteor showers.

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2. Show your leader that you can find the following constellations:

a)Ursa Major and Ursa Minor

b)One of the following:

Ø     Leo the Lion, if you are observing in the spring,

Ø     Corona Borealis, the Northern Crown, if you are observing in the summer,

Ø     Lyra, the Harp, if you are observing during the fall,

Ø     Orion, the Hunter, if you are observing during the winter.

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3. Explain to a fellow Girl Scout what causes meteor showers and how they are named.

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4. Watch a meteor shower, keeping count of the meteors you see in an observation log.  Write the name of the comet, which created the debris trail that becomes a meteor shower on Earth.

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5. Hunt for and collect micrometeorites and observe them using a magnifying glass.  Do they have any interesting properties?  Record your findings.

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6. Complete a research project with your troop.  After your troop has researched ONE of the following, prepare a presentation with a visual aid, to share with other participating Girl Scouts troops.  Research topics include, but are not limited to the following:

Ø     Myths or folklore about meteor showers, from a particular country or culture.  (Perhaps you could use your project for your Thinking Day display…)

Ø     Exciting meteor showers in the past,

Ø     Meteor showers in the arts – literature, paintings, movies, etc…

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7. Complete a Post-Test to see what you have learned about meteors and meteor showers.