In Astronaut School students ages 9 to 14 prepare to become members of a team of young astronauts that will fly a simulated space mission at a Challenger Learning Center.
Prior to the culminating mission, students will complete a series of challenging NASA science projects under the guidance of a trained instructor. Topics include: communication skills, chemical analysis, XY coordinate navigation, vital life support and medic training, and reading scientific equipment. Students will be able to apply what they’ve learned during the simulated space mission.
The final class is a one-day field trip to a Challenger Learning Center in CT where students will experience what it is like to be part of a real space mission! Students will fill specialized positions as members of a shuttle crew in an orbiting space station or as part of the mission control team.
Restricted to ages 9 - 14. Student must be able to work independently at a 4th grade level for reading, writing and math.
FRC Member Fee: *$25 per class
Nonmember Fee: *$50 per class
Fee includes 18 hours of classroom instruction and admission to the Discovery Museum & Planetarium's Challenger Space Center in Bridgeport, CT. The fee does not include transporting the student to the museum - this is the responsibility of the parent.
NOTE: Student admission to Discovery Museum is included with program registrations. The FRC requires that every student have a parent chaperone with them at the simulation location and these parents plus any other adults or children entering the Discovery Museum must pre-register with FRC and pay a discounted admission fee of $7.00 per person. Under age 4 is FREE. Coupons and Library Passes will not be accepted.
*Monthly billing is available - additional $5 per month transaction fees apply.
Charlton, MA
Tuesdays 9:30am - 11:30am, September 8, 2009 - June 1, 2010
9/8, 10/6 11/3 12/1, 1/19, 2/23, 3/9, 4/6, 5/4, 6/18 is the simulation day in CT
Snow Dates: 1/26, 3/23
Raymond, NH
Thursdays 9:30am - 11:30am, September 10, 2009 - June 18, 2010
9/10, 10/15, 11/12, 12/3, 1/21, 2/18, 3/11, 4/8, 5/6, 6/18 is the simulation day in CT
Snow Dates: 1/28, 3/25
Independent Home Study Option:
Students who cannot make it to the locations listed above have the option of still joining us for the Moon Mission if they register to complete the curriculum at home independently. Click here for details.
Challenger Moon Mission
Discovery Museum & Planetarium, 4450 Park Avenue, Bridgeport, CT
Live Simulation: Friday, June 18, 2010
9:30am - 11:30am for Charlton students
12:30pm - 2:30pm for Raymond students
NOTE: If each program location does not meet the minimum number of students needed to run a mission, we may combine all students for one mission. If that is the case, we will run a 12:30pm - 2:30pm mission only.
September:
Acids & Bases
Scientists use many skills to assist them in their
research. Among other things, they need to be able
to conduct tests and analyze and classify data. For
example scientists use the pH scale to identify and
classify compounds. The pH scale is a measure of
how acidic or basic a sample is. Students will test
common solutions by using the pH scale. They will
interpret the data and classify the solutions as acids,
bases, or neutrals.
Chromatography
Chromatography is a technique used to separate
mixtures and to analyze their individual components.
Chromatography comes from the Greek words "color
writing". It is very useful for identifying unknown
substances and has many scientific applications,
such as monitoring the environment and investigating
evidence from a crime scene. Students will use filter
paper as an absorber, water as a solvent, and water
soluble ink for a mixture, to demonstrate how mixtures
can be separated into their component parts.
October:
X & Y Coordinates
One piece of information that is essential to us on a
daily basis is our location. Students will use an X & Y
coordinate system to locate enemy ships and sink
them as well as create their own game using the X&Y
coordinate system. What better way to learn the topic
than to play games with it?
Latitude & Longitude
Astronomers and geographers use coordinate systems
for designating positions. Students will become
familiar with the system of longitude and latitude used
regularly by geographers to define positions on the
Earth's surface. In pairs, students will construct a
model demonstrating the longitude and latitude lines
on Earth then use those lines to find locations on their
model.
November:
Average Temperature
The Earth orbits the Sun in an elliptical path that is
very nearly a circle. The Earth experiences seasons
because its axis of rotation is tilted with respect to its
orbital plane. The tilt of the Earth's axis causes
surface temperature variations as the Earth orbits the
Sun. Students will record temperature data then
calculate the daily average, weekly average, and
create a temperature vs. time line graph.
Pulse & Blood Pressure
Reading of vital signs, such as pulse and blood pressure,
provides important data on a person's health. In the
treatment of patients in emergencies, vital signs are
indispensable data. Many jobs require employees to be
physically fit. This is especially true for astronauts because
of the stresses of lift-off, re-entry, and working in a low
gravity environment. Students will learn to use a
stethoscope and a blood pressure cuff. Students will
monitor and record vital signs of fellow classmates.
December:
Electromagnetic Spectrum
Galaxies, stars, and most of the planets in
our Solar System are too far away for humans
to visit. So astronomers, engineers, and other types
of space scientists have to be clever to learn more
about these celestial objects. Scientists have done
just this by studying the light, or radiation, that comes
from these objects. Students will observe that light can
be separated into a color spectrum. They will also
observe that light sources emit only parts of this
spectrum and this ‘fingerprint’ can be used to
determine properties of this light source.
Reading Equipment with Scales
In an effort to fully understand our universe and to better
prepare for future missions, scientists examine a wide range
of measurements about our Solar System and beyond.
Scientists use various units of measurement and different
types of scales in order to ensure precise and uniform
measurement. Students will apply the metric system to
reading various forms of measuring devices to find the length,
width and height of several objects. They will also calculate
volume, area and density.
January:
Lunar Craters
If you look at the moon with a pair of binoculars you
will see craters - lots of them. In fact, it's hard to find
any place on the Moon where there aren't any craters.
In this lesson students will simulate crater impacts
by dropping marbles into a pan of flour and cocoa.
Students then determine if this model accurately
depicts what has happened on the lunar surface.
Moon Phases
Watching the night sky, primitive civilizations believed that the Moon
actually changed shape over the course of a month. These changes in
apparent shape are known as the phases of the Moon. Students will use
a model to demonstrate the phases of the Moon and use diagrams to
verify their models.
February:
Communication Project
At the Challenger Learning Center, students
accomplish their teams goals by following directions
on task cards. Students will be assigned partners
for this project. In paired teams, they will each
design a simple object using Lego bricks. They then
create a set of task card instructions for making their
object. They take turns giving verbal instructions to
their partner for the construction of their object.
During the construction students are in constant
one-to-one verbal contact with their partner.
Distance to the Moon
In astronomy, distances and sizes are...astronomical.
One must travel hundreds of thousands of miles to visit
even the closest planetary neighbor in the Solar
system, our Moon. However, this is a small leap relative
to the millions of miles between Earth and the other
planets. Students will predict the distance between the
Earth and the Moon using similar triangles then
determine the actual distance to the Moon.
March:
Water on the Moon
On March 5,1998, it was announced that data returned
by the Lunar Prospector spacecraft suggested water
ice is present at both the north and south lunar poles.
If these reports are confirmed, near-pure water ice may
be present in discrete, confined deposits buried
beneath as much as 18 inches of dry regolith. The
discovery could open a number of interesting options
for future explorations of space. Students will construct
a solar water collector. Using the collector students
will collect and calculate the amount of water in an
area of simulated lunar permafrost. They will evaluate
the prose and cons of using this system on the Moon.
Lunar Geology
Geologists are scientists who study the formation,
structure, history, and processes (internal and on the
surface) that change Earth and other planetary bodies.
Rocks and the minerals they are composed of give
geologists key information about the events in a planet's
history. By collecting, classifying, and analyzing rocks,
we can learn how they were formed and what processes
have changed them. Students will cut cross sections of
simulated lunar samples to determine the mineral
content. Using this information students will identify
different types of lunar rocks.
April:
Basic Life Support
If you look into a terrarium, you can see a mini-biosphere.
In order for life to survive, there must be a balance between
organisms and the system in which they live. Earth is the
ultimate example of this. It holds and sustains all of the
processes needed for life as we know it. The Moon is the
Earth's closest neighbor. The discovery of the possible
presence of water has renewed interest in further lunar
exploration missions and establishing a long-term human
presence on the Moon but this would require constructing a
basic Life Support System because of the differences between
the environments of the Earth and Moon. Students will
determine the basic elements required to sustain life then
construct a biosphere to better understand the concept of
basic Life Support Systems.
May:
Job Application
In preparation to fly a mission at a Challenger Learning
Center, students “apply” for available positions and are
assigned by the FRC staff to their roles. Everyone one
will be a member of the crew and everyone will get a job.
The application process is to decide which job they will
do during the mission. Jobs are assigned to students
who submit job applications along with student logs only.
Creating A Mission Patch
While in training, the crew of every Space Transport System (STS)
designs a patch that identifies its unique mission. Since the
first mission in April 1981, more than 450 astronauts have
participated in more than 100 missions. Most Shuttle crews
consist of the commander, a pilot, mission specialists, and
payload specialists. Each member of the crew contributes to
the patch design. The team uses color, shape, images, and
text to represent different aspects of their mission. Students
will identify attributes of mission patches then design and draw
their own mission patch. All designs will be considered and one
will selected to represent the crew for this mission.
June: Challenger Mission - Live Simulation
