Introduction
Greeting Astrostudents
After years of studying math and science, NASA has selected you to journey into the unknown world of space! You've received months of training, and you and your fellow astrostudents are off. Your mission is to travel to Mars, place a neuronfibrolator on the planet, and then return home.
10...9...8...7...6...5...4...3...2...1...LIFT OFF
At first everything is running smoothly, but suddenly you hear a loud BANG. The spaceship starts to shake, error lights are flashing, and every alarm imaginable is going off.
The space ship is hurdling towards a large planet, but you are moving too fast to tell where you are. Everyone braces for impact and BOOM.
As everyone starts to regain conscienceness, you look around and realize you have no clue where you are. The radio controls have been messed up in the crash, but Astrostudent Reggie says he can fix it to emit one message to let the people at NASA know where you. The trick is there will only be one shot to contact them, so you have to know for sure which planet you are on.
Task
Team Assignments
You and your four companions must compile research of the planet in order to correctly deduce what planet you are on. This can come by observing your surroundings, taking samples, and viewing key points about the atmosphere.
Each team member will receive his own set of tasks:
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Team Member One:
You will be in charge of learning about the atomsphere of the planet; what gases and resources are found on the planet, and is there any life sustainability?
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Team Member Two
You will focus on what is surrounding the planet. How many moons are there, if any? Are there rings on the planet? What is the radius of the planet in kilometers?
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Team Member Three
You are in charge of finding the distance of the planet from the sun, the duration it takes the planet to do a full rotation on its axis, and how long it takes the planet to orbit around the sun.
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Team Member Four
Your job is to find unique characteristics of this planet. What makes it identifiable when it is compared to other planets?
Now that each member has his tasks, you must work quickly and diligently so that you can figure out the clues to what planet you are on, and return home safely.
Process
Step One:
Within your group, you must decide which role each team member wants to take. (See the previous slide to determine the tasks for your roles).
You will also pick which planet you would like to investigate (this will be the planet you are on).
Step Two:
Investigate your planet. Use web resources, literature, and/or videos to help you better understand your planet, and its unique characteristics.
Step Three:
Your group will convene with each team member having answers to their individual tasks. You will create a presentation that fully answers these questions, and gives fellow astrostudents information about your planet.
Ideas for your presentation:
PowerPoint
Poster
Picture Display
3D Model
Trifold
Step Four:
You will present your presentation to the class.
Evaluation
| Team and Individual Achievements | Possible Points |
|---|---|
| Did the team collaborate well and every individual do his/her own work? | 20 |
| Did the team accurately identify their planet? | 20 |
| Did each team member conduct full research on his/her share of the presentation? | 20 |
| Was the presentation well prepared? | 20 |
| Were all areas covered in the presentation? | 20 |
| Total Points | 100 |
Conclusion
Great Job Astrostudents!
Because of your quick thinking and great teamwork, you successfully identified your planet and made it back home safe! The Admiral was blown away by your presentation and you have just been promoted to Educator Mission Specialist!