The Planets Teaser Hero

Among the stars in the night sky wander the eight-plus worlds of our own solar system—each home to truly awe-inspiring sights. Volcanoes three times higher than Everest, geysers erupting with icy plumes, cyclones larger than Earth lasting hundreds of years. Each of our celestial neighbors has a distinct personality and a unique story. In this five-part series, NOVA will explore the awesome beauty of “The Planets,” including Saturn’s 175,000-mile-wide rings, Mars’ ancient waterfalls four times the size of any found on Earth, and Neptune’s winds—12 times stronger than any hurricane felt on our planet. Using unique special effects and extraordinary footage captured by orbiters, landers and rovers, we’ll treat viewers to an up-close look at these faraway worlds. We’ll stand on the dark side of Pluto, lit only by the reflected light of its moons, watch the sun set over an ancient Martian waterfall, and witness a storm twice the size of Earth from high above Saturn. And, we’ll reveal how each of them has affected our own planet: Earth. (A five-part series premiering July 24, 2019 at 9 pm on PBS)

The life of our solar system told in five dramatic stories spanning billions of years.

The Planets

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In this collection, you’ll find media resources that examine black holes and related topics—from stellar life cycles to the basics of spacetime.

Black Hole Apocalypse Collection

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NOVA&#x27;s Finding Life Beyond Earth media resources and lesson plans enable educators to engage audiences with this program&#x27;s subject and encourage a better understanding of the existence of life in our solar system.

Finding Life Beyond Earth Collection

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Learn how NASA engineers identified and solved a problem with the F-1 rocket engine, in this video from NOVA: Apollo’s Daring Mission.

Rocket Engine Design Problem

Extreme Habitats and the Search for Alien Life  - Hero Image

Learn how studies of life in harsh environments here on Earth are guiding scientists searching for life elsewhere in the solar system, in this video from NOVA Wonders: Are We Alone?

Extreme Habitats and the Search for Alien Life

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Learn about the tools and techniques that scientists use in their search for signs of life on distant planets, in this video from NOVA Wonders: Are We Alone?

Using Light Signatures in the Search for Alien Life

NOVA Education tailors NOVA&#x27;s digital resources for educators in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. Our free educator library is produced according to teaching standards and includes videos, audio segments, lesson plans, and interactives designed to facilitate effective classroom integration. Please let us know how we&#x27;re doing and what you might like to see. NOVA Education is committed to creating digital learning resources that work for you.

NOVA Education supports STEM education and engagement nationwide through the creation of resources from NOVA's broadcast and digital productions.

NOVA Education

NOVA Education supports STEM education and engagement nationwide through the creation of resources from NOVA&#x27;s broadcast and digital productions.

Koch Foundation

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<div class="rich-text">Imagine you have a pair of quantum dice. You put the dice in your cup, throw them, and they are both a “six.” You do it again, and they’re both a “three.” You do it again, and they’re both a “one.” No matter how many times you throw the dice, they are always the same number. This is a seemingly random process, but quantum entanglement ensures that these dice will always act in unison.The thought of tackling quantum entanglement in your classroom can be intimidating. Even Albert Einstein was skeptical of the concept, calling it “spooky action at a distance,” and didn’t think it was possible. If this was a tough sell for Einstein, how can you teach this idea to middle and high school students?</div>
 

 
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 <div class="rich-text">Quantum physics are the laws that govern subatomic particles. It can help explain the movements, interactions, and behaviors of very small things like photons and electrons. How small are particles in the subatomic world? Imagine something a million times smaller than the width of a human hair, or making a soccer ball into the size of the Earth and moving inside. This is how we can understand the scale of the world of atoms and subatomic particles.Quantum physics is rooted in probability. An electron doesn’t have a specific location in space until it is looked for or detected. When we picture an atom, we often imagine its electrons orbiting the atom’s nucleus in clear defined paths. However, electrons are not the ever-present tiny spheres we imagine them to be. They are really a “fuzzy wave of probability,” ready to be in an infinite amount of locations around the nucleus of an atom until we look at it. The simple act of observing an electron changes the electron’s location.</div>
 

 
 <div class="rich-text">Quantum entanglement takes this idea one step further, and is a phenomenon where two particles act in unison, no matter the distances between them. Unlike a row of dominoes that rely on the actions of each previous domino to be knocked down over time, entangled particles change instantly once one is detected, no matter how far apart they may be. For example, if a particle on Earth is entangled with a particle in the Andromeda galaxy, they will change at the exact same time once a change is made to one of the particles.While quantum physics pertains to the smallest units in the universe, the ways in which it impacts our daily lives are immense. Quantum theory played a role in the Manhattan Project and the atom bomb and in the development of lasers and transistors. Our increasingly digital world relies on quantum entanglement to send encrypted messages and quantum computers with massive processing power to solve problems a normal computer could never accomplish.Quantum physics impacts the technology students use every day. Use these resources from NOVA broadcasts, NOVA Digital, and What the Physics!? to introduce quantum concepts to your students.</div>
 

 
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 <div class="rich-text"><h2>Einstein’s Quantum Riddle Resources</h2><a href="https://mass.pbslearningmedia.org/resource/nveqr-sci-entanglement/quantum-entanglement-einsteins-quantum-riddle/">Quantum Entanglement</a>: Conceptualize quantum entanglement, the idea that particles can instantaneously influence each other even when they are spatially separated, in this video from NOVA: Einstein’s Quantum Riddle.<a href="https://mass.pbslearningmedia.org/resource/nveqr-sci-electronduality/waveparticle-duality-of-electrons-einsteins-quantum-riddle/">Wave Particle Duality of Electrons:</a> Conceptualize the nonintuitive idea that electrons can behave both as a wave and a particle (wave–particle duality) in this video from NOVA: Einstein’s Quantum Riddle.<a href="https://mass.pbslearningmedia.org/resource/nveqr-sci-evidence/collecting-evidence-for-quantum-entanglement-einsteins-quantum-riddle/">Collecting Evidence for Quantum Entanglement</a>: Learn why different experimental designs were needed to collect evidence for quantum entanglement in this media gallery of videos from NOVA: Einstein’s Quantum Riddle.<h2>What the Physics!? Resources</h2><a href="https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/video/seeing-quantum-with-the-naked-eye/">Seeing Quantum with the Naked Eye</a>: How can you train yourself to be a quantum detector? You can detect quantum mechanics all over—if you know how to look for it. In this episode of What the Physics!? find out how simply squinting at a lamp reveals the quantum nature of light.<a href="https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/video/the-biggest-puzzle-in-physics/">The Biggest Puzzle in Physics:</a> Sometimes the biggest puzzle in physics seems like the worst relationship in the universe. Quantum mechanics and general relativity are the two best theories in physics, but they have never been able to get along. Find out why in this episode of What the Physics!?<h2>NOVA Digital Resources</h2><a href="https://mass.pbslearningmedia.org/resource/arct14.sci.nvqconf/quantum-confidential/">Quantum Confidential</a>: Watch how a technique called quantum cryptography could save a state secret from falling into enemy hands in this video from NOVA Digital.<a href="https://mass.pbslearningmedia.org/resource/nvnd-sci-voterfraud/wgbh-nova-digital-using-quantum-physics-to-prevent-voter-fraud/">Quantum Physics to Protect Votes:</a> Voters want to be assured that every election is fraud-proof and hack-free. With the help of quantum mechanics, it’s possible to do just that — encrypt and transmit a vote in ways that can’t be tampered with.</div>
 

 
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Quantum physics impacts the technology students use every day. Use these resources from NOVA broadcasts, NOVA Digital, and What the Physics!? to introduce quantum concepts to your classroom.

Bring "Spooky Action at a Distance" into the Classroom with NOVA Resources

Learn about the challenges that engineers overcame to build a solar-powered airplane that flew around the world, in these videos from NOVA: The Impossible Flight.

Overcoming the Challenges of Solar-Powered Flight

Explore how humans and plants influence carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere, with these videos from NOVA: Decoding the Weather Machine.

Trees Mitigate Climate Change

Learn how variations in Earth’s tilt and orbit create a predictable cycle of natural climate changes and consider how human emissions of carbon dioxide affect global climate in this video from NOVA.

Understanding Natural Climate Cycles

Learn about gerrymandering—the manipulation of district boundaries for political advantage—and see how geometry can be used to detect and help solve the problem in this video from NOVA.

Can Math Help Detect Gerrymandering?

Learn how scientists have definitively linked global warming to human activity in this video from NOVA Decoding the Weather Machine.

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The Planets

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Black Hole Apocalypse Collection

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Extreme Habitats and the Search for Alien Life

Using Light Signatures in the Search for Alien Life

Explore Topic: NOVA Education

Bring "Spooky Action at a Distance" into the Classroom with NOVA Resources

Overcoming the Challenges of Solar-Powered Flight

Trees Mitigate Climate Change

Rocket Engine Design Problem

Understanding Natural Climate Cycles

Can Math Help Detect Gerrymandering?

Evidence Links Human Activity to Global Warming