Newton's Laws of Motion and Gravity Applied to Meteorites main content.
Overview: Newton's laws of motion and law of gravity changed our understanding of the universe. These laws are demonstrable in what students have learned while studying meteorites.
Resource Use
The activity Newton's Laws of Motion and Gravity Applied to Meteorites was designed to help students identify examples of Newton's laws in the processes that exist in our dynamic solar system.
Have students work in pairs or in small groups. Present Newton's laws of motion and his law of gravity (below) to students. Ask them to recall what they've learned about the creation of the solar system; and what happens when a meteorite enters the Earth's atmosphere.
Newton's Laws of Motion:
Newton's Law of Gravity:
Each body in the universe attracts each other body.
Drawing upon what students have learned studying meteorites, have them cite examples of each of the laws. For example, the accretion of small particles in the early solar nebula is an example of Newton's Law of Gravity - each body in the universe attracts each other body. When groups are done, have them present their findings to the class.
As an extension to this activity, have students contemplate how the first and third laws of motion relate to space ships traveling through space.