For thousands of years, navigators have looked to the sky for direction. …
For thousands of years, navigators have looked to the sky for direction. Today, celestial navigation has simply switched from using natural objects to human-created satellites. A constellation of satellites, called the Global Positioning System, and hand-held receivers allow for very accurate navigation. In this lesson, students investigate the fundamental concepts of GPS technology trilateration and using the speed of light to calculate distances.
The purpose of this lesson is to teach students about the three …
The purpose of this lesson is to teach students about the three dimensional Cartesian coordinate system. It is important for structural engineers to be confident graphing in 3D in order to be able to describe locations in space to fellow engineers.
Students learn how engineers navigate satellites in orbit around the Earth and …
Students learn how engineers navigate satellites in orbit around the Earth and on their way to other planets in the solar system. In accompanying activities, they explore how ground-based tracking and onboard measurements are performed. Also provided is an overview of orbits and spacecraft trajectories from Earth to other planets, and how spacecraft are tracked from the ground using the Deep Space Network (DSN). DSN measurements are the primary means for navigating unmanned vehicles in space. Onboard spacecraft instruments might include optical sensors and an inertial measurement unit (IMU).
This document is an attempt to correlate the free OpenStax Astronomy textbook …
This document is an attempt to correlate the free OpenStax Astronomy textbook and several other resources including lecture tutorials and lab activities. Below is a list of the items in the correlation followed by a chapter breakdown of the text and where one of the resources could be used.
The purpose of this lesson is to introduce the students to the …
The purpose of this lesson is to introduce the students to the Sun. They explore various aspects of the Sun including its composition, its interior workings, and its relationship to the Earth.
Students are introduced to the fabulous planet on which they live. Even …
Students are introduced to the fabulous planet on which they live. Even though we spend our entire lives on Earth, we still do not always understand how it fits into the rest of the solar system. Students learn about the Earth's position in the solar system and what makes it unique. They learn how engineers study human interactions with the Earth and design technologies and systems to monitor, use and care for our planet's resources wisely to preserve life on Earth.
A collection of activity guides about the solar system. Would be best …
A collection of activity guides about the solar system. Would be best geared toward students 3rd - 8th grade. Some activities could be done in school some done at home. Varies the tools required but many are done with household products or pen and paper. (More accessible)
Students explore the outermost planets of our solar system: Saturn, Uranus and …
Students explore the outermost planets of our solar system: Saturn, Uranus and Neptune. They also learn about characteristics of Pluto and its interactions with Neptune. Students learn a little about the history of space travel as well as the different technologies that engineers develop to make space travel and scientific discovery possible.
On December 16, 2010, the Zooniverse launched the original Planet Hunters to …
On December 16, 2010, the Zooniverse launched the original Planet Hunters to enlist the public's help to search data from the NASA's Kepler spacecraft for the characteristic drop in light due to an orbiting extrasolar planets (exoplanets) crossing in front of their parent stars. Back then we didn't know what we would find. The project was a gamble on the ability of human pattern recognition to beat machines just occasionally and spot the telltale dip from a transiting planet that was missed by automated routines looking for repeating patterns. It may have been the case that no new planets were discovered and that computers had the job down to a fine art. The gamble paid off. The original Planet Hunters project discovered a bounty of unknown planet candidates and several confirmed planets, resulting from the efforts of nearly 300,000 volunteers worldwide.
Planning to take a vacation soon? Visit Phobos! Small and cozy, Phobos …
Planning to take a vacation soon? Visit Phobos! Small and cozy, Phobos orbits the fourth planet from the Sun in less than eight hours. From your observation deck on Phobos, you will have a superb view of Mars. You will see its mountains, polar ice caps, and the largest volcano in the solar system. Call your cosmic travel agent today!
Try this creative activity to help your students explore the solar system in an imaginative manner.
This activity is a classroom investigation where the students create, in size …
This activity is a classroom investigation where the students create, in size and distance, a solar system model in proportion to a selected sphere representing the earth.
How much space is in space? Students build a simple model and …
How much space is in space? Students build a simple model and practice fractions to see how much space exists between different objects in our solar system.
Information about how a Girl Scouts program can give young girls the …
Information about how a Girl Scouts program can give young girls the opportunity to work with NASA. Informative and can apply to many age ranges for young women!
Detection and measurement of radio and optical signals encountered in communications, astronomy, …
Detection and measurement of radio and optical signals encountered in communications, astronomy, remote sensing, instrumentation, and radar. Statistical analysis of signal processing systems, including radiometers, spectrometers, interferometers, and digital correlation systems. Matched filters and ambiguity functions. Communications channel performance. Measurement of random electromagnetic fields. Angular filtering properties of antennas, interferometers, and aperture synthesis systems. Radiative transfer and parameter estimation.
"2010 marks the 400th anniversary of Galileo's astonishing sightings of features on …
"2010 marks the 400th anniversary of Galileo's astonishing sightings of features on the moon, stars, and moons around Jupiter that no one had seen before. Recreate these new ways of seeing and exploring from the materials and techniques Galileo had on hand, while you reflect on the times and works of Galileo. What was it like to improvise new ways of seeing and exploring from the materials and techniques on hand? What do we notice? What surprises us? How can we relate to past experience and ideas? What are we curious to research? How does our experimenting grow into our learning? Let your own curiosity drive your explorations."
One of the exciting challenges for engineers is the idea of exploration. …
One of the exciting challenges for engineers is the idea of exploration. This lesson looks more closely at Spaceman Rohan, Spacewoman Tess, their daughter Maya, and their challenges with getting to space, setting up satellites, and exploring uncharted waters via a canoe. This lesson reinforces rockets as a vehicle that helps us explore outside the Earth's atmosphere (i.e., to move without air) by using the principles of Newton's third law of motion. Also, the ideas of thrust, control and weight all principles that engineers deal with when building a rocket are introduced.
Students learn how and why engineers design satellites to benefit life on …
Students learn how and why engineers design satellites to benefit life on Earth, as well as explore motion, rockets and rocket motion. Through six lessons and 10 associated hands-on activities, students discover that the motion of all objects everything from the flight of a rocket to the movement of a canoe is governed by Newton's three laws of motion. This unit introduces students to the challenges of getting into space for the purpose of exploration. The ideas of thrust, weight and control are explored, helping students to fully understand what goes into the design of rockets and the value of understanding these scientific concepts. After learning how and why the experts make specific engineering choices, students also learn about the iterative engineering design process as they design and construct their own model rockets. Then students explore triangulation, a concept that is fundamental to the navigation of satellites and global positioning systems designed by engineers; by investigating these technologies, they learn how people can determine their positions and the locations of others.
Students explore orbit transfers and, specifically, Hohmann transfers. They investigate the orbits …
Students explore orbit transfers and, specifically, Hohmann transfers. They investigate the orbits of Earth and Mars by using cardboard and string. Students learn about the planets' orbits around the sun, and about a transfer orbit from one planet to the other. After the activity, students will know exactly what is meant by a delta-v maneuver!
Everyone and everything has a shadow. Shadows illustrate how three-dimensional objects can …
Everyone and everything has a shadow. Shadows illustrate how three-dimensional objects can be viewed in two dimensions. Younger students can learn about the Sun’s relative motion in the sky as they experiment with shadows.
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