What makes a shooting star happen and do fish sleep at night? Try our kids’ quiz
Ivy, 10, asks: what makes a shooting star happen?
Someone lights the star and it shoots across the sky
It’s when you wish on a star so hard it begins to fly
It’s when one star flies to see a friend
They’re not stars but dust and rock that burn up falling into our atmosphere
Edith, 7, asks: why does cooked halloumi squeak when you eat it?
To warn mice you have it
Its proteins squeak when they rub against your teeth
All cheese squeaks but halloumi is the loudest
It doesn’t squeak – you’re hearing things!
Evan, 7, asks: how do sheep eat stinging nettles without getting hurt?
Lasers in their mouths shoot the stings off nettles
They have rubber in their mouths to protect them
Researchers aren’t sure, but one theory is that they move their lips into a shape that avoids the stinging
They get stung, but they love nettles so don’t care
Mollie, 7, asks: do fish sleep at night?
No, fish swim all night and day
Yes, most fish rest at night
Yes, fish are always asleep
No, night-time is the only time they swim
Arlo, 7, asks: what is the universe’s smallest star?
EBLM JO555-57Ab is the smallest star, a tiny bit bigger than Saturn
Betelgeuse is the smallest
The sun is the smallest
A star called Twinkle, the size of your fingernail, is the smallest
Solutions
1:D - Shooting stars aren’t stars! They’re tiny bits of dust and rock falling into Earth’s atmosphere and burning up. The trail of light this makes is called a meteor, which we often call shooting stars. If any bits survive the fall and hit Earth without burning up, they’re called a meteorite., 2:B - Halloumi cheese is very dense in a type of protein called casein, and these strong protein strands squeak when they rub against your teeth., 3:C - Sheep are very clever, and one farming researcher discovered that as they go to eat nettles, they move their lips to a shape that helps them avoid the stinging., 4:B - Fish have an inactive phase at night that looks like “sleep” – though it might be more resting than sleeping. If you go snorkelling at night, you’ll see them resting in holes in rocks where they are protected, or floating on the floor of the ocean. Some fish are nocturnal but most rest at night., 5:A - The smallest star we know about is EBLM JO555-57Ab and it’s a little bigger than Saturn, which is nine times wider than Earth – so it’s huge!
Scores
5 and above.
4 and above.
3 and above.
2 and above.
0 and above.
1 and above.
Molly Oldfield hosts Everything Under the Sun, a weekly podcast answering children’s questions, out now as a book.
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