Into the Void
Autumn Term - Into the Void
As MIT researchers look towards a future of space homes and interplanetary travel, they aren’t only thinking of science experiments and exploration. They’re also thinking about quality of life, and bringing comforts of home to outer space. What would you like to have in space? Design an object to be used on the International Space Station to improve the human experience away from Earth. Choose the field that is most interesting to you—food, sports and exercise, or art.
Intro Video - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WLgK5kr8HlA
Questions and Answers - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nrdbenqtc9s&t=4s
Final Reflections - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YyMOceR7xR4&t=1s
Additional resources
https://www.media.mit.edu/groups/space-exploration/overview/
https://www.media.mit.edu/people/aekblaw/overview/
https://www.media.mit.edu/posts/zero-gravity-flight-2019/
https://www.media.mit.edu/projects/space-craft/overview/
https://www.media.mit.edu/projects/Interplanetary-Gastronomy/overview/
Spring Term - Mission Moxie
NASA is preparing for human exploration of Mars, and MOXIE (Mars Oxygen In-Situ Resource Utilization Experiment) will help future explorers produce oxygen from the Martian atmosphere for breathing and propellant for travel (like coming home to Earth!). MOXIE makes oxygen like a tree does: by inhaling carbon dioxide and exhaling oxygen. But Mars is a very, very dusty place. In order to make oxygen on Mars all of that dust has to be filtered out of the carbon dioxide. MIT Professor Jeffrey Hoffman challenges you to learn all you can about filters and design the best filter for MOXIE to produce oxygen for humans on Mars.
Cool Fact: Perseverance is on it’s way to Mars right now, and should land on February 18th, 2021. MOXIE is on Perseverance and will be running tests during the rover’s time on Mars, while you work on this challenge! (this challenge is from 2021)
Intro video - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jqPHCbOBveY&t=1s
Questions and Answers - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cfUKluLGlxI&t=11s
Final Reflections - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1FH81kv1diY&t=3s
Additional resources
https://mars.nasa.gov/mars2020/spacecraft/instruments/moxie/
https://www.nasa.gov/sites/default/files/atoms/files/fs_moxie_150908.pdf
https://news.mit.edu/2020/perseverance-and-little-moxie-mit-going-to-mars-0729
https://mars.nasa.gov/mars2020/spacecraft/instruments/moxie/for-scientists/
Summer Term - Space Sustainability
What happens to thousands of satellites when they stop working? What about the Skycrane that lowers the rover onto Mars or all of the other equipment used in space and then discarded? At MIT, researchers aren’t only thinking about exploring space, we’re thinking about how to take care of space. Professor Danielle Wood and the Space Enabled Research Group works on the problems of space debris. She’s challenging you to come up with ways to encourage new satellite engineers to create zero space debris, and have all satellites leave no trace in space. How can you retrieve space debris that is orbiting Earth and clean up outer space? It’s a big, complex problem that needs a thoughtful, interdisciplinary approach. How can math, political science, engineering, biology and art be combined now to come up with creative ideas and solutions for future generations?
Intro Video - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qpzg8snj0M4&t=3s
Questions and answers - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_VzEVNRfFfs&t=2s
Final Reflections - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GP2mn4VA608&t=1s
Additional Resources
https://www.media.mit.edu/people/drwood/overview/
https://www.media.mit.edu/groups/space-enabled/overview/
https://news.mit.edu/2019/space-sustainability-rating-system-mitigate-debris-0506
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WwE4UeKegDs