Journey beyond the Solar System to explore exoplanets, distant stars, and the search for new worlds. From planets orbiting faraway suns to potentially habitable worlds light-years from Earth, discover how astronomers are uncovering new corners of the universe.
This Kahoot explores the science of exoplanet discovery, space exploration, and the technologies that allow us to detect and study worlds we cannot directly see while revealing how each new discovery expands our understanding of the cosmos.
Watch the related videos linked below, then take the Kahoot and see how much you know about the incredible worlds waiting to be discovered beyond our Solar System.
What shark has a head shaped like a hammer — and uses it like a high-tech hunting tool? Hammerhead sharks may look unusual, but every part of their unique design helps them survive.
Explore the fascinating world of these extraordinary sharks and discover how their wide heads help them see more, sense hidden prey, and make sharp turns while hunting. Learn why some hammerheads gather in schools of hundreds, travel thousands of miles across the ocean, and face growing conservation challenges that make protecting them more important than ever.
It’s officially the “Beijing International Automotive Exhibition,” but its friends call it “Auto China,” and it’s now the largest car show in the world. Nearly 1000 companies flock to the exhibits taking up more than 380,000 square meters, or over 50 football fields! Or 1,246,719 feet and 50 soccer fields, if you’re from America! Or 9,329,989 beep-boop-zoinks and 50 astro-space-ball fields if you’re a Martian from outer space! Any way you spin it, this car show is a big deal, and there were two standout trends.
The first was electric vehicles. There’s always been an issue with charging, as makers have tried to maximize how far cars can travel on single charge while minimizing how long that charge takes. Now, a company called BYD claims to have an ultra-fast charging system that can provide 400 km of range with only 5 minutes of charging. What’s more, it’s designed to operate under extreme weather conditions. Since batteries are usually sensitive to high or low temperatures, addressing this is a major step in making electric vehicles as reliable as gas cars.
The other big topic was also fully autonomous, or self-driving cars. The company Geely developed a self-driving car built specifically for ride-hailing, so there’s no steering wheel or driver’s seat. That means you can pick your nose without fear of the driver judging you! Xpeng’s driverless car uses a combination of lasers, radar, and cameras to build a real time picture of the road, but we hope it works just as well in the clouds, because they may be extending this technology into flying cars as early as next year. It’s a bird! It’s a plane! No, it’s just my Uber! That’s one way to beat traffic.
In late May, Blue Origin's New Glenn rocket exploded during a routine engine test. No one was hurt. But the explosion badly damaged the launch pad, and that's a serious problem.
New Glenn had flown once before, in a test flight in January 2025. Now the next flight is delayed by months. That delay affects more than just Blue Origin — it pushes back NASA's entire Moon program.
Here's the plan that's now on hold: a robotic lander was set to touch down near the Moon's south pole later this year, scouting the best site for a future Moon base. A crewed mission would follow in 2027. Then two more astronaut landings. Then, in 2028, construction would begin on the base itself.
Each step in that timeline now needs to move back.
Not all the news is bad. While Blue Origin investigates what went wrong, rival company SpaceX successfully launched its own rocket, a Falcon 9. One setback hasn't slowed the space industry down.
Ever wanted to hop onto a fluffy cloud? Catch a falling star? Bottle sunshine? Well, you can’t. But what you can do is hold some of the Moon in your hand… if you’re one of the few qualified scientists who are researching new lunar material. Sharing is caring, but these researchers have a great reason for being very precious with moon dust.
Moon dust is some of the rarest material on the planet and, for the first time, China has shared its samples of moon dust internationally. These samples have now racked up some serious frequent flyer miles, traveling across the globe after being taken all the way from the Moon. Talk about jet lag. Until now, scientists have been using samples collected decades ago. It wasn’t until 2020 that China’s spacecraft went to an unexplored spot of the Moon, then returned with 2 kilograms of moon rock. This dust is now being studied, and researchers are working carefully (VERY carefully) to uncover the evidence it has to offer about our universe’s environmental history.
A total lunar eclipse happens when the Earth moves directly between the Sun and the Moon, blocking sunlight from reaching the Moon’s surface. During the eclipse, the Moon can appear dark red or copper-colored as sunlight bends through Earth’s atmosphere.
Even though the Moon travels around Earth about every 28 days, total lunar eclipses are rare. That’s because the Moon’s orbit is tilted slightly, so most months, the Moon passes a little above or below Earth’s shadow instead of through it. Only every six months or so are the Sun, Earth, and Moon lined up closely enough for a possible lunar eclipse.
Last September, millions of people around the world watched the rare event during organized watch parties and backyard gatherings. Astronomers encouraged people to bring blankets, snacks, and telescopes to enjoy the nighttime spectacle together. While cloudy skies blocked views in some places, observers across parts of Africa, Asia, the Middle East, and Australia were able to see the eclipse from beginning to end under clear skies.
Research in Antarctica is important, but it’s not the most accessible place — have fun finding an Uber willing to take you (and your lab equipment) all the way there! Scientists no longer have to rely on foot travel, as they did decades ago, but taking to the air needs a bit of extra thought, because the technology has to work in Antarctica’s severe weather.
A promising solution is a new drone, tested in a part of North Wales known as “Snowdonia,” where the frigid temperatures put the drone through its cold weather paces. The drone has a few benefits — it doesn’t need a pilot on board (so it can go to remote places), it can travel up to 1000 km in one trip, and needs significantly less fuel than a normal plane. It does still need someone controlling it from the ground, but this can be from a computer, at base, perhaps with a mug of hot cocoa.
Researchers Rebecca and Tom will be conducting Antarctic research with this drone, with the goal of using radar on the drone to draw a picture of what’s under the ice sheets, to help predict how fast they could melt.
Tiny but mighty, bees play a huge role in keeping our world alive and blooming. As they travel from flower to flower, they carry pollen that helps plants reproduce — supporting ecosystems and much of the food we eat. Inside their hives, bees work together in highly organized communities, each with a job to do.
From pollination to honey-making, this is the ideal quiz to help students ages 8–14 develop their "hive mind."
This Planet Earth Passport is your students' perfect guide (just right for ages 8–11) to exploring some of the most-watched videos clips from the iconic BBC series Planet Earth. And it's right in time for Earth Day on April 22!
You can take part by showing your class our playlist of eight amazing animal videos and using our passport as a companion. Students will follow the map to each location and answer questions at each stop. They'll explore:
- Polar Bears in Antarctica
- Bobcats in the Rocky Mountains
- Catfish in France
- Marine Iguanas in the Galápagos
- Cave Swiftlets in Borneo
- Mouse Lemurs in Madagascar
- Dolphins in Western Australia
- Emperor Penguins in Antarctica
To make copies of the passport, print on both sides flipped on the long edge. Make sure you collate and then cut them in half (there are two passports per set).
In Preparing Flowers for Chinese New Year, a farm in Kunming, China’s Spring City, prepares flowers for the busy Chinese New Year season. Flowers travel from farm to auction, where buyers purchase them for shops. This video is excerpted from BBC’s Chinese New Year: The Biggest Celebration on Earth, a documentary series detailing the world's largest annual human migration (Chunyun), where over 1.5 billion people celebrate the Lunar New Year.
This video playlist brings together 10 fascinating clips from the BBC’s Got Science? series, where everyday questions lead to surprising scientific discoveries. Students explore what’s really happening in the body and brain — from what your brain is doing during sleep paralysis to what it truly means to be “left-brained” or “right-brained.” They’ll investigate what happens when the body becomes dehydrated, how cold temperatures and high altitudes affect how we function, and the unexpected ways our bodies trick us every single day. Packed with “What! Really?” moments, this weird-but-wonderful playlist helps learners connect real science to daily life in unforgettable ways. Get ready to see the familiar become fascinating.
Welcome to Death Valley! First watch The Desert Locust Finds New Feeding Grounds, a short clip from the award-winning BBC series Planet Earth. Sir David Attenborough introduces you to the desert locust, whose eggs can hatch after being in the ground for 20 years! Traveling in massive swarms, these creatures communicate with each other in massive swarms.
Once your students have watched the video, invite them to check for understanding with this quick, 8-question quiz!
Journey beyond the Solar System to explore exoplanets, distant stars, and the search for new worlds. From planets orbiting faraway suns to potentially habitable worlds light-years from Earth, discover how astronomers are uncovering new corners of the universe.
This Kahoot explores the science of exoplanet discovery, space exploration, and the technologies that allow us to detect and study worlds we cannot directly see while revealing how each new discovery expands our understanding of the cosmos.
Watch the related videos linked below, then take the Kahoot and see how much you know about the incredible worlds waiting to be discovered beyond our Solar System.
What shark has a head shaped like a hammer — and uses it like a high-tech hunting tool? Hammerhead sharks may look unusual, but every part of their unique design helps them survive.
Explore the fascinating world of these extraordinary sharks and discover how their wide heads help them see more, sense hidden prey, and make sharp turns while hunting. Learn why some hammerheads gather in schools of hundreds, travel thousands of miles across the ocean, and face growing conservation challenges that make protecting them more important than ever.
It’s officially the “Beijing International Automotive Exhibition,” but its friends call it “Auto China,” and it’s now the largest car show in the world. Nearly 1000 companies flock to the exhibits taking up more than 380,000 square meters, or over 50 football fields! Or 1,246,719 feet and 50 soccer fields, if you’re from America! Or 9,329,989 beep-boop-zoinks and 50 astro-space-ball fields if you’re a Martian from outer space! Any way you spin it, this car show is a big deal, and there were two standout trends.
The first was electric vehicles. There’s always been an issue with charging, as makers have tried to maximize how far cars can travel on single charge while minimizing how long that charge takes. Now, a company called BYD claims to have an ultra-fast charging system that can provide 400 km of range with only 5 minutes of charging. What’s more, it’s designed to operate under extreme weather conditions. Since batteries are usually sensitive to high or low temperatures, addressing this is a major step in making electric vehicles as reliable as gas cars.
The other big topic was also fully autonomous, or self-driving cars. The company Geely developed a self-driving car built specifically for ride-hailing, so there’s no steering wheel or driver’s seat. That means you can pick your nose without fear of the driver judging you! Xpeng’s driverless car uses a combination of lasers, radar, and cameras to build a real time picture of the road, but we hope it works just as well in the clouds, because they may be extending this technology into flying cars as early as next year. It’s a bird! It’s a plane! No, it’s just my Uber! That’s one way to beat traffic.
In late May, Blue Origin's New Glenn rocket exploded during a routine engine test. No one was hurt. But the explosion badly damaged the launch pad, and that's a serious problem.
New Glenn had flown once before, in a test flight in January 2025. Now the next flight is delayed by months. That delay affects more than just Blue Origin — it pushes back NASA's entire Moon program.
Here's the plan that's now on hold: a robotic lander was set to touch down near the Moon's south pole later this year, scouting the best site for a future Moon base. A crewed mission would follow in 2027. Then two more astronaut landings. Then, in 2028, construction would begin on the base itself.
Each step in that timeline now needs to move back.
Not all the news is bad. While Blue Origin investigates what went wrong, rival company SpaceX successfully launched its own rocket, a Falcon 9. One setback hasn't slowed the space industry down.
Ever wanted to hop onto a fluffy cloud? Catch a falling star? Bottle sunshine? Well, you can’t. But what you can do is hold some of the Moon in your hand… if you’re one of the few qualified scientists who are researching new lunar material. Sharing is caring, but these researchers have a great reason for being very precious with moon dust.
Moon dust is some of the rarest material on the planet and, for the first time, China has shared its samples of moon dust internationally. These samples have now racked up some serious frequent flyer miles, traveling across the globe after being taken all the way from the Moon. Talk about jet lag. Until now, scientists have been using samples collected decades ago. It wasn’t until 2020 that China’s spacecraft went to an unexplored spot of the Moon, then returned with 2 kilograms of moon rock. This dust is now being studied, and researchers are working carefully (VERY carefully) to uncover the evidence it has to offer about our universe’s environmental history.
A total lunar eclipse happens when the Earth moves directly between the Sun and the Moon, blocking sunlight from reaching the Moon’s surface. During the eclipse, the Moon can appear dark red or copper-colored as sunlight bends through Earth’s atmosphere.
Even though the Moon travels around Earth about every 28 days, total lunar eclipses are rare. That’s because the Moon’s orbit is tilted slightly, so most months, the Moon passes a little above or below Earth’s shadow instead of through it. Only every six months or so are the Sun, Earth, and Moon lined up closely enough for a possible lunar eclipse.
Last September, millions of people around the world watched the rare event during organized watch parties and backyard gatherings. Astronomers encouraged people to bring blankets, snacks, and telescopes to enjoy the nighttime spectacle together. While cloudy skies blocked views in some places, observers across parts of Africa, Asia, the Middle East, and Australia were able to see the eclipse from beginning to end under clear skies.
Research in Antarctica is important, but it’s not the most accessible place — have fun finding an Uber willing to take you (and your lab equipment) all the way there! Scientists no longer have to rely on foot travel, as they did decades ago, but taking to the air needs a bit of extra thought, because the technology has to work in Antarctica’s severe weather.
A promising solution is a new drone, tested in a part of North Wales known as “Snowdonia,” where the frigid temperatures put the drone through its cold weather paces. The drone has a few benefits — it doesn’t need a pilot on board (so it can go to remote places), it can travel up to 1000 km in one trip, and needs significantly less fuel than a normal plane. It does still need someone controlling it from the ground, but this can be from a computer, at base, perhaps with a mug of hot cocoa.
Researchers Rebecca and Tom will be conducting Antarctic research with this drone, with the goal of using radar on the drone to draw a picture of what’s under the ice sheets, to help predict how fast they could melt.
Tiny but mighty, bees play a huge role in keeping our world alive and blooming. As they travel from flower to flower, they carry pollen that helps plants reproduce — supporting ecosystems and much of the food we eat. Inside their hives, bees work together in highly organized communities, each with a job to do.
From pollination to honey-making, this is the ideal quiz to help students ages 8–14 develop their "hive mind."
This Planet Earth Passport is your students' perfect guide (just right for ages 8–11) to exploring some of the most-watched videos clips from the iconic BBC series Planet Earth. And it's right in time for Earth Day on April 22!
You can take part by showing your class our playlist of eight amazing animal videos and using our passport as a companion. Students will follow the map to each location and answer questions at each stop. They'll explore:
- Polar Bears in Antarctica
- Bobcats in the Rocky Mountains
- Catfish in France
- Marine Iguanas in the Galápagos
- Cave Swiftlets in Borneo
- Mouse Lemurs in Madagascar
- Dolphins in Western Australia
- Emperor Penguins in Antarctica
To make copies of the passport, print on both sides flipped on the long edge. Make sure you collate and then cut them in half (there are two passports per set).
In Preparing Flowers for Chinese New Year, a farm in Kunming, China’s Spring City, prepares flowers for the busy Chinese New Year season. Flowers travel from farm to auction, where buyers purchase them for shops. This video is excerpted from BBC’s Chinese New Year: The Biggest Celebration on Earth, a documentary series detailing the world's largest annual human migration (Chunyun), where over 1.5 billion people celebrate the Lunar New Year.
This video playlist brings together 10 fascinating clips from the BBC’s Got Science? series, where everyday questions lead to surprising scientific discoveries. Students explore what’s really happening in the body and brain — from what your brain is doing during sleep paralysis to what it truly means to be “left-brained” or “right-brained.” They’ll investigate what happens when the body becomes dehydrated, how cold temperatures and high altitudes affect how we function, and the unexpected ways our bodies trick us every single day. Packed with “What! Really?” moments, this weird-but-wonderful playlist helps learners connect real science to daily life in unforgettable ways. Get ready to see the familiar become fascinating.
Welcome to Death Valley! First watch The Desert Locust Finds New Feeding Grounds, a short clip from the award-winning BBC series Planet Earth. Sir David Attenborough introduces you to the desert locust, whose eggs can hatch after being in the ground for 20 years! Traveling in massive swarms, these creatures communicate with each other in massive swarms.
Once your students have watched the video, invite them to check for understanding with this quick, 8-question quiz!