In general, the larger the star, the shorter its life, although all but the most massive stars still live for billions of years. When a star has fused all the hydrogen in its core, nuclear reactions cease. Without the energy production needed to support it, the star's core will begin to collapse into itself and becomes much hotter. Hydrogen is still available outside the core, so hydrogen fusion continues in a shell surrounding the core. The increasingly hot core also pushes the outer layers of the star outward, causing them to expand and cool. This process transforms the star into a Red Giant. If a star is sufficiently massive, the collapsing core may become hot enough to support more exotic nuclear reactions that consume helium and produce a variety of heavier elements up to iron. However, such reactions offer only a temporary reprieve. Gradually, the star’s internal nuclear fires become increasingly unstable—sometimes burning furiously, other times dying down. These variations cause the star to pulsate and throw off its outer layers, covering itself in a cocoon of gas and dust. What happens next depends on the size of the star's core.

The James Webb Space Telescope (Webb) formerly known as NGST or “Next Generation Space Telescope” was renamed in September of 2002 for the former NASA administrator, James Webb. It is expected to launch by March 2021. The Webb will be able to see light in the infrared part of the spectrum. Standing at three stories tall and spanning the length of a tennis court the Webb will be the largest, premier observatory ever launched into space in this decade serving thousands of astronomers worldwide. The Webb is going to orbit 1 million kilometers from Earth studying every phase in the history of the Universe, ranging from the first luminous glows after the Big Bang, to the formation of solar systems capable of supporting life, to the evolution of our own Solar System. In this activity, you will have the chance to make your own representation of the life cycle of a massive star.

If you travel near the North Pole or the South Pole, you may be in for a special treat. Frequently, there are beautiful light shows observed there in the sky. These ribbons or dancing lights are known as auroras. At the North pole it is called an aurora borealis or northern lights. At the South Pole it is called aurora australis or southern lights. Even though auroras are best seen at night, they are actually caused by the sun. The sun sends us more than just heat and light; it sends energy and small particles. To receive the full force of radiation that the sun provides would be too much for life on Earth. Instead, the protective magnetic field around the Earth shields us from most of the energy and particles.

The sun does not send the same amount of energy all the time. There is a constant streaming of solar wind as well as solar storms. There is a particular solar storm called the coronal mass ejection where the sun "burps" out a huge bubble of electrified gas that can travel through space at high speeds. When the solar storm comes towards us, some of the energy and small particles travel down the magnetic lines at the north and south poles into Earth’s atmosphere. There, the particles interact with gases in our atmosphere resulting in the beautiful displays of light. Each color that you see represents the sun's radiation interacting with a specific element of gas in our atmosphere.

The colors of auroras are the result of atoms in the atmosphere interacting with energy from the sun. The atoms get energized (excited) by the radiation and release bursts of light energy. This is similar to how neon lights work.

Contrary to popular belief, outer space is not empty. It is filled with electromagnetic radiation that crisscrosses the universe. This radiation comprises the spectrum of energy ranging from radio waves on one end to gamma rays on the other. It is called the electromagnetic spectrum because this radiation is associated with electric and magnetic fields that transfer energy as they travel through space. Because humans can see it, the most familiar part of the electromagnetic spectrum is visible light: red, orange, yellow, green, blue and violet. Simple spectroscopes, are easy to make and offer users a quick look at the color components of visible light. Different light sources, either incandescent or fluorescent may look the same to the naked eye but will appear differently in the spectroscope. The colors are arranged in the same order but some may be missing and their intensity will vary. The appearance of the spectrum displayed is distinctive and can tell the observer what the light source is.