• What was the mission or aim of your project?

Mars is a very rocky planet with a vast rough terrain. In order to traverse these we will need capable rovers that can transport materials and hopefully reduce the work load on humans. So we built three robots with different designs and with these designs we chose the most suitable one for Mars.

• Why was this your mission?

This was our mission because we need to be able to travel not just to Mars but on it. We needed to figure out which robot would be the best for Mars so that we could have an easier time traveling on Mars.

• What action/experiment did you take? 

For the experiment, we made 3 different rovers and we put them through an obstacle course. The course was designed on a table, with obstacles on the path of the robots such as pencils, sticks, erasers, dirt, and a blow dryer to simulate wind conditions on Mars. Each robot would go one at a time and the robot with the fastest time after a few tests would be chosen as the design that is most suitable for Mars. (based on the selection of rovers)

• How did you use what you learned in grade 9 science in the design? 

• We used Microbits in class at a certain point and when we had the idea of creating rovers, we also came up with the idea of a Microbit controlled one. We learned about inputs and outputs in the lesson about Microbits and this helped us figure out how to provide information to the Microbit to stimulate movement. When we had special guests come in to teach us about circuits, they showed us how to wire circuits and this helped us build the robots. If they didn't show us how to connect the wires and which wires to connect, we wouldn't have known how to make them.

• Include your Instagram post (We did at the bottom)

• How does your project fit or connect with the other projects in the class? 

It connects with nearly all the other projects in class through a fact; If humans are able to construct robots, not only on Mars but on Earth too, they could replace humans by doing all of the difficult jobs with little to no human involvement. They could grow food, build houses, and hopefully with enough advances in technology they will even be able to be used for healthcare. Finally, if big enough they would be able to transport large loads with ease. Consider this!

Our project fits or connects with other projects in the class because almost everything needs to be transported from the ship to somewhere else, and with rovers, it makes that process much easier. Different variations of rovers could also help to farm and collect food, similar to what's done on earth to harvest food. The rovers would be solar-powered because having access to fossil fuels would be a problem. Our rovers can also transport the materials needed to build infrastructure on Mars.

• How successful was your action (its OK if it didn't go as planned)?  Did you meet your goal?

Our action was fairly successful. The obstacle course went well and all the robots did their runs, but one of our robots (Robot B) which was supposed to be controlled, could not be controlled. The app to control it could not be downloaded, therefore we had to make a compromise and let it only drive in a straight line. This led to Robot B not being able to finish a run. At the end of the day, with all the data gathered, we were able to determine which robot would be the best for Mars. 

• What contributed to your group's success (or lack of success)? 

During this project, some people were often absent. Therefore, more work fell to other people to do, and when they would return to school, often they were confused about what we were doing. Whenever someone was absent, not everyone could be on the same page about work and decisions, and many had to be made without them. People were absent during the project pitch, but when they came back they were informed of what was being done and from thereon, things started to improve. In the remaining time in which we had to do the rest of the project, everyone was finally at school all at once. When everyone was present, we all worked and collaborated well to complete our trials in time. 

• What would you do differently if you could? 

If we could do something differently, it would be doing more work earlier on. We were guilty of leaving work to do later but ended up not working on it as much as needed. This happened quite often with all the times people were absent in our group. So if we were to ever do this again, we would certainly try to get more work done earlier into the timeframe, so that it would leave us with less work to do later.

• Pitch a next phase for your project.

Now that we have picked the best robot for Mars, our next phase would be to improve the robot. We could improve the robot by making a bigger version of it that is more powerful and that is capable of climbing over bigger obstacles. We would also definitely try to find a way to control the robot so that it could take the best path through the obstacles.

• Inspire a future group of students to pick up where you left off.

Even though this project was a lot of work, we still had lots of fun and we learned some important skills like time management, collaboration, and problem-solving. It was also something different. It's unique, it is not the type of project that you would get in any other of your classes, and that is what makes it even more fun and interesting to do.  

• Why is this an important cause?  Why should they continue with it?

Rovers are extremely important for colonizing a different planet like Mars. They can act as scouts to explore unknown parts of the planet and can be used for studying the planet by getting samples of the martian soil and rocks. They are also very important for traveling and transporting people and equipment on Mars. If we didn't have rovers, then it would be almost impossible for us to set up camp because we can't carry heavy equipment that far. We would definitely need something to transport humans and materials. Rovers are expendable so they would be able to scout the terrain without risking human life.

• Where would you like to see it go next?

After we have built enough robots for ground travel, we could shift our focus towards air travel or drones. Drones would be very good because they can cover ground much faster than a robot can and they don't have the risk of getting stuck in a big crater or something likewise. It would also enable us to have more coverage of the planet. Drones could translate into air transportation but probably not in the near future.  

• Each member of the group should reflect on what they learned.  You may have learned some neat stuff about science, but you also learned some other great skills like time management, goal setting, collaboration, and problem-solving.

Khaled: I've learned about organization and how to work efficiently during class. Even though we started later than other group experiments, we still were able to finish just in good time because we pulled ourselves together and focused on working in class instead of wasting time. Luka and I collaborated and helped each other with things we had trouble with. We discussed our projects and shared our opinions when brainstorming for ideas, rather than only one person doing it.

Abdalla: I have learned many things while doing this space camp project, at the beginning, we wanted to build a rocket and find out how we would get to Mars but that did not work because the weather outside was bad and we would not be able to test anything with that rocket. About a week before the assignment was due we had to try something else and we settled on finding what rover would be best to use when we get to Mars. In the last couple of days, we were becoming stressed because we were behind so that taught me that time management is super important and I should focus on doing the work and not having to get stressed at the end. Problem-solving was also important because as I mentioned we ran into a problem at the start and had to research and think of ideas so we can continue with our project. This project has taught me many ways on how to finish work on time and how to solve problems quickly with the help of my group and also google.

Unais: Through the course of this essential space camp project, I learned many a thing. It was fun to construct the rovers, and it really tested our intuition. Setting up and testing the obstacle course for our trials was really fun. But one of the things that hit me most was how much you can accomplish with teamwork! We were fairly behind with 3 days left, but we sorted the tasks and did the right things in the right ways, and with our newly found capabilities, I found out just how much was achievable in short notice. I gained ground in friendships and gained chemistry with my group members through the journey of this project. Early on, we wanted to construct a bottle rocket. However, the winter season clouded this idea. After many days of confusion on what to do, we decided to design a rover and the rest is history! Through this project, I learned skills such as handling data and information because I worked tirelessly on our slides. I learned skills such as time management and consistency being on a tight schedule towards the end. I learned skills such as photography and video editing while capturing footage of our trials. I learned a lot through this inquiry and many of them can be thanked due to the circumstances, and my amazing team :)

Luka: Over the course of this big project I learned many a thing. For starters, this project was the first summative I've ever done. So this whole process has taught me about and shown me what a summative would be like. It is definitely a lot of work, it's not easy. What I learned is that if you work on it often, it doesn't have to be for too long because it all adds up toward the end. If you don't do that then all that work piles up until the deadline rolls around and you're panicking because you can't finish in time. I learned some new concepts like wiring, working with tools to build robots, and some coding. Though what I learned the most about were skills that really help you get through this project. Time management is extremely important because if you have time to work on it you shouldn't be doing something else like watching tv or playing video games instead. (It's also important to have some downtime too). You should be focusing on completing your task so that you don't have to stress about it later on. I learned some planning tips when Mrs. Miranda talked about staying organized. I learned some problem-solving. At one point early on in the project my group ran into a problem. The initial plan to do something with bottle rockets wouldn't be possible. So we had to think of something quick because the deadline to pitch our plan was right around the corner. After some discussions and brainstorming we came up with the rover idea. All of these skills are useful in life. They don't just have to be used for this project. They can be applied almost anywhere, so learning these skills is very important.