Travel to the Moon
Post date: Sep 27, 2018 3:36:50 PM
Big Question: How did we get astronauts to the Moon?
Assignments
10/10 - Newton's Laws and the Lunar Lander WS using the Lunar Lander Simulation - phet.colorado.edu
10/1 to 10/5 - Notes - To the Moon - NOVA (1999)
Objectives
Compare different models of the solar system.
Explain the two main variables that determine the force of gravity between stars and planets.
Describe how objects in the Solar System formed.
Explain the conditions that would cause one object to orbit another.
Evaluate design trade-offs in spacecraft.
Warm-ups
10/9 - Using Newton's Laws - physicsclassroom.com:
Why is Newton's First Law of Motion often called the Law of Inertia?
How is inertia measured?
10/8 - Opinion:
What do you think was the biggest challenge getting to the moon?
What has surprised you the most about how we made it to the moon?
10/5 - Why does the moon have so many impact craters, while the Earth only has a few that we can see?
10/4 - Discussion:
Make a hypothesis for how the moon became the moon.
What kind of evidence could support your hypothesis?
What test or evidence could prove your hypothesis wrong?
10/3 - How does a rocket work according to Newton's Third Law of Motion? (Old ES pgs. 598-600)
10/2 - NASA considered 3 modes to get to the moon: Direct Ascent, EOR, and LOR. Make a list of Pros and Cons for each.
What trade-offs led them to finally select LOR to get to the moon?
10/1 - What does NASA stand for? Why was it formed? (Old ES pg. 599)
9/28 - In your notebook: (Old ES 516)
Make an ellipse with two thumbtacks, string, and a pencil.
Label both focus points, the major axis and the minor axis.
Draw the sun at one of the focus points.
Label the Perihelion and Aphelion.
Describe what Kepler's second law says happens at Perihelion and Aphelion.
9/27 - Make a Venn diagram comparing geocentric and heliocentric models. (IS pg. 467-469)
10/8 - Opinion:
What do you think was the biggest challenge getting to the moon?
What has surprised you the most about how we made it to the moon?
Keywords
Geocentric (IS pg. 467)
Heliocentric (IS pg. 468-469)
Ellipse (IS pg. 509)
Satellite (Old ES 549)
Orbital Velocity (Old ES 601)
Sputnik (Old ES 602)
Thrust (Old ES pg. 600)
Escape Velocity (Old ES pg. 601)
Newton’s Third Law of Motion
Rocket
Inertia (physicsclassroom.com)
Direct Ascent uses a super large rocket to send a large spaceship to the moon that lands backwards and then comes back to earth.
Earth Orbit Rendezvous (EOR) uses 2 small rockets to take fuel and a large spaceship into Earth orbit where it is brought together and then proceeds to the moon.
Lunar Orbit Rendezvous (LOR) uses 1 rocket to take a Command Unit and small specialized lander to orbit the moon.
The Rendezvous That Was Almost Missed - nasa.gov
Websites
Astronomy Simulations and Animations - astro.unl.edu - Simulations and Animations from Astronomy Education at the Univ. of Nebraska-Lincoln (UNL)
Celestial Coordinate Explorer - Star map using celestial coordinates.
Rotating Sky Explorer - Animates stars as the Earth rotates on its axis.
Solar System Models Lab - Good source for models of the solar system before the Copernican Revolution.
Planetary Configurations Simulator - Shows retrograde motion of planets viewed from Earth.
Ptolemaic System Simulator - Simulation of Ptolemy’s astronomy including deferents, epicycles and equants.
Planetary Orbit Simulator - Kepler’s Laws demonstrator.
Newton's Law Calculator - Calculator for Newton’s Law of Gravitation to deal with the BIG numbers.
Astronomy Interactives - Interactive questions on basic astronomy.
Kepler’s First Law of Motion - Elliptical Orbits (Astronomy) - youtube.com
Kepler’s Second Law of Motion (Astronomy) - youtube.com
Understanding Kepler's 3 Laws and Orbits - youtube.com
Kepler's Laws of Planetary Motion - youtube.com
Gravity and Orbits - phet.colorado.edu - Simulation demonstrating how mass and distance between objects effects the force of gravity.
My Solar System - phet.colorado.edu - Configurable simulation showing gravitational relationships and motion among multiple objects.
Gravity Pitch Gizmo - explorelearning.com
Solar System Explorer Gizmo - explorelearning.com
Space Travel
NOVA: To the Moon (1999) 115 mins - youtube.com - Excellent video chronicling the engineering, history and personalities that put Americans on the moon. To the Moon Companion Website - pbs.org
The Rendezvous That Was Almost Missed - nasa.gov - History of Lunar Orbit Rendezvous (LOR).
Impact Theory of Moon Formation - classzone.com - Simulation show one of the lead theory for the formation of the moon.
Space Flight - evergreenmuseum.org - Air and Space museum in McMinnville. They have a real Mercury capsule!
The First Space Walk - bbc.co.uk
Lunar Lander - phet.colorado.edu - Test your skills landing the Lunar Lander with this simulation.
The impact of apollo 16's third stage booster has been found! - gizmodo.com
Space History - spacekids.co.uk - Timeline of major space travel events
Exploration Timelines - nationalgeographic.com
Chronology of Lunar and Planetary Exploration - nasa.gov - Chronologies from the one of the major sources - NASA.
Rosetta: rendezvous with a comet - rosetta.esa.int
Famous Craters
Terrestrial Impact Craters - solarviews.com
Impressive Craters on Earth - universetoday.com
Impact Crater Database - passc.net - Impact crater images.
Asteroid Impact Craters on Earth as Seen From Space - wired.com