Science Projects

How Soon After Sunset Does the Sky Become Dark?

421 reviews

Summary

Areas of Science

Astronomy

Difficulty

Time Required

Very Long (1+ months)

Credits

*Note: For this science project you will need to develop your own experimental procedure. Use the information in the summary tab as a starting place. If you would like to discuss your ideas or need help troubleshooting, use the Ask An Expert forum. Our Experts won't do the work for you, but they will make suggestions and offer guidance if you come to them with specific questions.

If you want a Project Idea with full instructions, please pick one without an asterisk (*) at the end of the title.

Abstract

Here's an astronomy project idea from Dr. James Pierce, a professor in the Astronomy Program at Minnesota State University, Mankato: "Determine the length of twilight at different times of the year by observing the time at which certain bright stars first appear and comparing with the sunset time. Beware of variations due to stars appearing at different altitudes. Try using Polaris as a standard. Also note the time at which automatic streetlights turn on. Determine how soon after sunset stars of different magnitude (brightness) appear." (Pierce, 2004) A good book for learning to locate stars of different brightness for this project is The Stars: A New Way to See Them, by H. A. Rey (Rey, 1966) (available at Amazon.com).

Bibliography

Pierce, J., 2004. Ideas for Astronomy Science Fair Projects, Astronomy Program, Minnesota State University, Mankato. Retrieved December 01, 2011.
A great book for learning the constellations is (and yes, this is the same H. A. Rey who wrote Curious George):
Rey, H. A., 1966. The Stars: A New Way to See Them, Boston: Houghton Mifflin.

Ask an Expert

Do you have specific questions about your science project? Our team of volunteer scientists can help. Our Experts won't do the work for you, but they will make suggestions, offer guidance, and help you troubleshoot.

Post a Question

Careers

If you like this project, you might enjoy exploring these related careers:

Astronomer

Career Profile

Astronomers think big! They want to understand the entire universe—the nature of the Sun, Moon, planets, stars, galaxies, and everything in between. An astronomer's work can be pure science—gathering and analyzing data from instruments and creating theories about the nature of cosmic objects—or the work can be applied to practical problems in space flight and navigation, or satellite communications. Read more

Park Ranger

Career Profile

Park rangers are the law enforcement officials of our state and national parks. They protect and preserve parklands, keeping park resources safe from people who might try to damage them, deliberately or through neglect, and keeping people safe from dangers within the park. To achieve this goal, park rangers work in a wide variety of positions, including education and interpretation for park visitors, emergency dispatch, firefighting, maintenance, law enforcement, search and rescue, and… Read more

News Feed on This Topic

, ,

Cite This Page

General citation information is provided here. Be sure to check the formatting, including capitalization, for the method you are using and update your citation, as needed.

MLA Style

Science Buddies Staff. "How Soon After Sunset Does the Sky Become Dark?" Science Buddies, 20 Nov. 2020, https://www.sciencebuddies.org/science-fair-projects/project-ideas/Astro_p024/astronomy/how-soon-after-sunset-does-the-sky-become-dark. Accessed 7 June 2023.

APA Style

Science Buddies Staff. (2020, November 20). How Soon After Sunset Does the Sky Become Dark? Retrieved from https://www.sciencebuddies.org/science-fair-projects/project-ideas/Astro_p024/astronomy/how-soon-after-sunset-does-the-sky-become-dark

Last edit date: 2020-11-20

Explore Our Science Videos

Crayon Rock Cycle