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SPACE: PAST, PRESENT AND FUTURE
Star Trek is a fictional series but much of the science behind it is quite real. In this lesson students will explore the
history of space travel and the speed of light introduced in Star Trek.
Space Travel: Research the following scientists and significant events in the history of space travel. Create a timeline
in small groups or as a class to review why these people and events are significant. How are they relevant to the
present and future of space travel?
Johannes Kepler
Isaac Newton
Konstantin Tsiolkovsky
Robert Goddard
Hermann Oberth
Wernher Von Braun
October 4, 1957
November 3, 1957
April 12, 1961
February 20, 1962
July 20, 1969
THE SPEED OF LIGHT
Use your library or credible sources on the Internet to answer the following questions:
1.
What is the definition of the “speed of light?”
2. How many miles per second does light travel?
3. How is a vacuum related to the speed of light?
4. How long does it take light to get from the earth to the moon?
5. How is the speed of light different from the speed of sound?
6. If the speed of light and the speed of sound are different, why is it that the sound and the image from your
television appear to reach you at the same instant?
7.
What famous mathematical equation is the speed of light related to?
8. Who discovered this equation? (Learn more about this discovery at
)
9. How is the speed of light related to a light year? What mathematical equations are relevant to this relationship?
10. What is “warp drive” and how is it related to the speed of light?
11. Research the following scientists who studied the speed of light. What did each scientist learn?
• Galileo
• Ole Roemer
• Hippolyte Fizeau
• Leon Foucault
• James Bradley
• Albert Michelson
