This is a lesson about designing and building an effective sunshade for a model MESSENGER craft. Learners will build a model of MESSENGER. They will use a scientific approach to solve problems and work as a cooperative team. They will discover their... (View More) own strengths, and those of others, and will witness firsthand the importance of both successes and failures. This is activity 4 of 4 for the Pre-K - 4 range of "Staying Cool." (View Less)

This activity is about the discovery of water ice on Mars. Learners will record and graph temperature data and use a model of an ice-rich and ice-free surface on Mars to examine how ice content in the martian soil would impact the temperature of a... (View More) Mars microbe after impact. A student information sheet introducing the subject of ice and the search for water on Mars is provided. The activity requires access to a freezer the night before the activity. Note: Find the latest information and updates on Mars missions at the NASA Mars Exploration website (see Related & Supplemental Resources to the right). (View Less)

Learners will use simple sports balls as scale models of Earth and the Moon. Given the astronomical distance between Earth and the Moon, students will determine the scale of the model system and the distance that must separate the two models. This... (View More) activity is in Unit 1 of the Exploring the Moon teachers guide, which is designed for use especially, but not exclusively, with the Lunar Sample Disk program. (View Less)

This is a lesson about mapping objects using triangulation. Learners hunt distant meteorites using geometric properties and relationships, demonstrate and experience triangulation, and apply triangulation to directed and group-challenge mapping... (View More) activities. Activities, vocabulary words, and experimental extensions are included. This is lesson 2 of 19 in Exploring Meteorite Mysteries. (View Less)

This is a lesson about the path meteorites take to get from the asteroid belt to Earth and how rare it is for the Earth to be hit by a large asteroid. Three activities comprise the lesson. Learners will draw circles and ellipses to illustrate basic... (View More) shapes of orbits in the solar system (Activity A); construct a scale-model of the inner solar system, observe relative distances and sizes, plot paths meteoroids might take and manipulate models to demonstrate the ecliptic plane (Activity B); and graph the locations of Earth and a near-earth asteroid, observe the significance of time and space, and estimate when the asteroid might cross the orbit of Earth (Activity C). Activities, vocabulary words, and experimental extensions are included. This is Lesson 4 of 19 in Exploring Meteorite Mysteries. (View Less)

This is a lesson about impact craters; the relationships between crater size, projectile size and projectile velocity; and the transfer of energy in the cratering process. Learners will create plaster of Paris or layered dry impact craters and... (View More) conduct controlled experiments using mass and velocity as the independent variables. Energy calculations for advanced classes, and vocabulary words are included. This is lesson 6 of 19 in Exploring Meteorite Mysteries. (View Less)

Learners will conduct an investigation, observe and record the physical characteristics of an unknown rock (meteorite), determine the mass of the unknown rock using math skills, determine the density of the rock, describe and classify a meteorite,... (View More) apply observations and knowledge to the process of a scientific investigation, present evidence to verify classification decisions, and explore concepts of spatial relationships. Completion of all parts of the lesson is necessary to identify the unknown. Advanced preparation and procedural tips are included. This is lesson 13 of 19 in Exploring Meteorite Mysteries. (View Less)