Some students think that there is no gravity on the Moon
Earth and Space
| Forces and Motion
Misconception
This possibly arises from seeing videos of the Apollo astronauts.
Diagnostic Resources
The following worksheets may help to identify whether students hold this particular misconception.
For more information, see the University of York BEST website.
Resources to address this
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Action at a distance and gravitational fields (11-14)
Ref - SPT ES01 PN03
This resources explains about the size of gravity on the Moon.
PN11 as uses the video of the Apollo astronauts to show hammer and feather both falling, but at the same rate because there is no air resistance.
View Resource
References
The following studies have documented this misconception:
- Stein, H., Galili, I. and Schur, Y., () Teaching a New Conceptual Framework of Weight and Gravitation in Middle School, Journal of Research in Science Teaching, 52 (9)
1234-1268.