This is an activity about similarities and differences between the Earth and Mars. Learners will investigate how Mars compares to the Earth, working together to create an Earth-Mars Comparison Poster to post in the program facility/library and share with their community. Their poster will feature basic facts about Mars and the Earth, as well as a scale model using balloons to represent the two planets. It also includes specific tips for effectively engaging girls in STEM. This is activity 2 in Explore: Life on Mars? that was developed specifically for use in libraries.

This activity focuses on the relationship between science of looking for life and the tools, on vehicles such as the Mars Rover, that make it possible. Learners will create their own models of a Mars rover. They determine what tools would be necessary to help them better understand Mars (and something about life on Mars/its habitability). Then they work in teams to complete a design challenge where they incorporate these elements into their models, which must successfully complete a task. Teams may also work together to create a large-scale, lobby-sized version that may be put on display in the library to engage their community. The activity also includes specific tips for effectively engaging girls in STEM. This is activity 6 in Explore: Life on Mars? that was developed specifically for use in libraries.

This is a set of three activities about how scientists study other worlds. Learners will explore and compare the features of Mars and Earth, discuss what the features suggest about the history of Mars, and create a model to help them understand how scientists view other worlds. The activities help to show why scientists are interested in exploring Mars for evidence of past life, and address the question: "Why are we searching for life on Mars?" It also includes specific tips within each activity for effectively engaging girls in STEM. This is activity 4 in Explore: Life on Mars? that was developed specifically for use in libraries.

This is a lesson about using evidence to construct sequences of geologic events. Learners will interpret real NASA science data to identify features on the surface of Mars, determine the surface history of the area, calculate the size of features, and develope investigable questions. Students will study images taken by NASA's Mars Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS) camera orbiting Mars. Students will use the THEMIS images to analyze the surface features and geological history of Mars. The lesson models scientific inquiry using the 5E instructional model and includes teacher notes and vocabulary.

This activity focuses on how the search for life on Mars is portrayed in fiction and videos. Learners will consider depictions of Mars from science fiction books and video clips. As a group, children discuss what they know about Mars and compare their ideas with the way Mars and imaginary martians are presented in the science fiction works. They then use what they‰Ûªve learned to create their own Mars Science Fiction ‰ÛÏMovie Trailer‰Û� Zines. It is recommended that this activity is preceded by two or three of the previous activities in the series so that the children will already have an understanding of what life needs and how Mars compares to Earth. This activity may be extended to serve as a tween and/or teen science fiction book club. It also includes specific tips for effectively engaging girls in STEM. This is activity 7 in Explore: Life on Mars? that was developed specifically for use in libraries.

This is a lesson about determining planetary composition. Learners will use a reflectometer to determine which minerals are present (from a set of knowns) in a sample of Mars soil simulant. Requires the use of ALTA II spectrometers (which may be borrowed from the Lunar and Planetary Institute or purchased online) and Mars soil simulant. The activity is part of Project Spectra, a science and engineering program for middle-high school students, focusing on how light is used to explore the Solar System.

This is an activity about image comparison. Learners will analyze and compare images taken by the Solar Dynamics Observatory. They will match four magnetic solar images, or magnetograms, to their corresponding extreme ultraviolet, or EUV, light images by studying solar features in the images. At the end, they will recognize that areas of high magnetic activity on the Sun correspond to extreme solar activity.

This article explores how statistics can be interpreted in different ways to yield different conclusions. It describes the outcome and discussion of two class activities. In the first, the results are interpreted to "show" that taking a group rather than an individual perspective is ultimately beneficial to the individual. In the second, a variation is added "showing" that telling the truth is better that lying. This resource is from PUMAS - Practical Uses of Math and Science - a collection of brief examples created by scientists and engineers showing how math and science topics taught in K-12 classes have real world applications.

This activity introduces measurement and scale using hands-on activities. In this activity, students use the concept of similar triangles to determine the height of a tree. This activity is one of several available on an educational poster related to NASA's Space Interferometry Mission.

This is an activity about coronal mass ejections. Learners will calculate the velocity and acceleration of a coronal mass ejection, or CME, based on its position in a series of images from the Large-Angle Spectrometric Coronograph (LASCO) instrument on NASA's Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO) spacecraft. This is Activity 2 of a larger resource, Exploring the Sun. The NASA spacecraft missions represented by this material include SOHO, TRACE, STEREO, Hinode, and SDO.

How big and how old is the universe? This culminating telescope investigation for high school students has them first taking images of galaxies near and far; then measuring and calculating their distances; then predicting how they might expect galaxies to be moving based on various models of gravity; and then comparing their results with the galaxy velocity measurements in a NASA database. From this data, students explore the concept of an expanding universe and can actually determine an estimate for the age of our universe. This activity is part of a DVD that is a professional development resource for educators. Many new astronomy learners, students and adults alike, are unfamiliar with the universe beyond the solar system. Instructions for obtaining the DVD and registering for the professional development workshop are contained on the website.

This is an activity about the measurement of time. Learners model the rotation of Earth over one day by holding a flashlight for the Sun and a blow up globe, and record their observations. Then, they use those observations to create devices that will track time and test their devices outside. This final part of this activity requires access to a sunny outdoor location for an extended period of time so learners can test their time measurement devices.

This is an activity about measuring the interplanetary magnetic field, or IMF. Learners will utilize cardboard boxes with a magnet inside to design a spacecraft, and experiment with ways to attach a magnetometer that will measure the IMF rather than the magnetic field of the spacecraft. This is Activity 2 in Session 3 of the Exploring Magnetism in the Solar Wind teachers guide.

This is a lesson about magnetism and solar flares. Learners will evaluate real solar data and images in order to calculate the energy and magnetic strength of a solar flare moving away from the Sun as a coronal mass ejection. This is Activity 3 in the Exploring Magnetism in Solar Flares teachers guide.

In this activity, students learn about the advantages of the metric system, by comparing the ease of calculation and conversion between the English and metric systems of measurement. This resource is from PUMAS - Practical Uses of Math and Science - a collection of brief examples created by scientists and engineers showing how math and science topics taught in K-12 classes have real world applications.

This is a website about microbiology. Learners may explore information about microorganisms, extremophiles and extreme habitats, as well as the ecology, diversity and evolution of micro-organisms.

This 28-minute film was created to explain how our current understanding of the Milky Way was reached using many different wavelength of the electromagnetic spectrum. Please note, the link is to a direct download of the video; this is a large file - 336 MB.

In this activity, learners work in teams to assess environmental conditions, resources, and scientific relevance of different locations on the Moon using data collected from previous lunar missions. Each team selects the site they believe has the best potential for a future lunar outpost. The teams debate their conclusions and work together to determine which single site to recommend to NASA. This activity takes approximately 1.5 hours, and can be divided into parts. Learners should be familiar with NASA's LRO Mission and the lunar environment through other Explore! To the Moon and Beyond! activities. These activities were developed specifically for use in libraries.

In this online card game, players prepare five important NASA Earth missions. The object of the game is to be the first to complete three of five missions. A mission is completed when all four of its required components have been supplied. Each mission needs a rocket, an orbit, a spacecraft, and a science objective. There are different kinds of each of these components; each mission needs a different combination of the components. The game is based on real NASA Earth missions: Aqua, Aura, CloudSat, IceSat, and Terra.

In this activity, student teams design small-scale physical models of hot and cold planets, (Venus and Mars), and learn that small scale models allow researchers to determine how much larger systems function. There is both a team challenge and competition built into this activity. Experimental findings are then used to support a discussion of human outposts on Mars. The resource includes an experimental design guide for students as well as a handout outlining a method for the design of controlled experiments, and student data sheets. Student questions and an essay assignment are provided as classroom assessments. This is Activity A in the second module, titled "Modeling hot and cold planets," of the resource, "Earth Climate Course: What Determines a Planet's Climate?" The course aims to help students to develop an understanding of our environment as a system of human and natural processes that result in changes that occur over various space and time scales.