A planetarium is an invaluable tool for teaching introductory astronomy, but one that few astronomy educators have ready access to. Here we describe a do-it-yourself planetarium that can be built with modest funding. There have been other planetarium construction projects described in the literature and online, most of which use cardboard to make…

Originally an empirical law, nowadays Malus' law is seen as a key experiment to demonstrate the transverse nature of electromagnetic waves, as well as the intrinsic connection between optics and electromagnetism. In this work, a simple and inexpensive setup is proposed to quantitatively verify the nature of polarized light. A flat computer screen…

We present a versatile experimental apparatus for exploring rotational motion through the interplay between the moment of inertia, torque, and rotational kinetic energy of a wheel. The heart of this experiment uses a 3D-printed wheel along with easily accessible stock components that allow for the adjustment of the moment of inertia while keeping…