The Schools' Observatory News
July 2025
International Joke Day!
Looking to lift the mood in your classroom or at home? International Joke Day, July 1st, is the perfect excuse to share some space-tacular humour!
Here are some of our favourite astronomy-themed jokes to get you giggling:
- What did Mars say to Saturn? Give me a ring sometime!
- Why don’t aliens visit our Solar System? Because they read the reviews… only one star!
- Why did the astronaut break up with the Moon? He needed space.
- Why did the star get detention? It had a bad altitude.
If you’ve got your own stellar jokes, we’d love to hear them! Just email us at SchoolsObs@ljmu.ac.uk.
World Youth Skills Day!
On World Youth Skills Day, July 15th, we celebrate the power of education and the importance of equipping young people with essential skills for their future. In today’s fast-changing world, STEM skills—science, technology, engineering, and maths—open doors to exciting careers and help tackle global challenges from climate change to space exploration.
Inspire your students to think about their futures with these engaging activities:
- Space Job Game – Encourage pupils to assess their skills and qualities and discover which job roles suit them best.
- Space for Everyone Quiz – Use this quiz to spark class discussions on inequalities and challenge stereotypes about those working in the STEM fields.
- Skills for Space video – Use this video, and accompanying quiz, to teach pupils about the necessary skills for a career in the space industry. Each quiz question is linked to one of our Career heroes - diverse, significant figures from the realms of space, science, and technology who serve as inspirational role models.
Apollo 11 Moon Landing Anniversary!
20th July marks the 56th anniversary of the Apollo 11 Moon landing when Neil Armstrong took that historic step onto the Moon’s surface and said, “That’s one small step for [a] man, one giant leap for mankind.”
Why not take this opportunity to explore the science, stories, and legacy of that moment through our Things To Do?
- Timeline of Apollo Missions – Follow the journey from Apollo 11 to Apollo 17 and see how astronauts reached the Moon.
- Read All About It – Man on the Moon! – Explore a newspaper-style article about the first Moon landing and its global impact.
- Find the Moon Missions – Use images taken with the Liverpool Telescope to see where astronauts explored on the Moon.
- The First Moon Landing – Test your knowledge about Apollo 11 with this short interactive quiz!
Love Nature: From Parks to Planets!
Late July brings two great opportunities to reconnect with our environment: Love Parks Week (25th July – 3rd August) and World Nature Conservation Day (28th July). These events remind us how vital it is to protect our green spaces — not just for our health and wellbeing, but for the planet too.
It’s a great time to get outside, enjoy some fresh air, and explore the parks near you. If you can't get enough of space you can always try walking the solar system whilst you're there. You can also try these nature-linked space activities:
- What Does Life Need? – Discover what life needs to survive and what that tells us about life on other planets.
- Investigate How the Sun Supports Life – Discover how sunlight helps plants make food and produce oxygen.
- Life on Earth – Explore the unique combination of elements that support life here.
- Hot, Cold, or Just Right? – Compare different planets to Earth and explore what conditions make a world habitable.
Look to the Sky!
Plan your stargazing adventures with our July astronomy calendar! Download it to display at home or in the classroom. Get ready for an exciting month of celestial events, including Meteor showers and conjunctions between the Moon and some of the Solar System’s most impressive planets. Don’t miss out on what the night sky has to offer!
Download and display July's astronomy calendar!
Enjoy your Summer Break!
As the term comes to a close, we want to wish all our educators, students, and supporters a wonderful summer break. Whether you’re exploring, relaxing, or stargazing, we hope your break is filled with joy and curiosity.
