NASA astronaut and Expedition 64 Flight Engineer Victor Glover works on the Plant Water Management experiment that is exploring hydroponics as a way to sustain plants in microgravity from germination through harvest. Credit: NASA
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Welcome to Day 2!
Welcome to Day 2!
Welcome to Day 2 of To the Moon & Beyond Summer Camp. Yesterday, we laid some groundwork for your camp experience by addressing what we know and want to learn, creating a mission patch for our grand adventure, and learning about the relative size of and distance between objects in our solar system.
Today, we’ll learn about the Engineer Design Process, and put it into practice by designing a key component to space travel and a shelter to survive on the moon.
Ready? Set... LAUNCH!
Getting Started
Getting Started
Engineer Design Process
Engineer Design Process
For today’s activities, we’ll be utilizing the Engineer Design Process (EDP) as we create!
Engineers use this process when they’re creating new products or designing solutions to problems. It's a set of steps focused on examining a problem, brainstorming solutions, and testing them out.
Engineers don’t always follow the steps in order, and they often repeat a step more than once before they reach a solution that works.
As you go through today’s challenges, follow the steps of the EDP and don’t be afraid to try lots of ideas before you come up with the best solution!
Learn more about what engineers do and how they use the Engineer Design Process every day!
Learn more about what engineers do and how they use the Engineer Design Process every day!
Space Survival: Living on the Moon
Space Survival: Living on the Moon
Ready to go to the moon? First, we have to be prepared to create a safe place to stay when we arrive!
Ready to go to the moon? First, we have to be prepared to create a safe place to stay when we arrive!
A close-up view of astronaut Buzz Aldrin's bootprint in the lunar soil, photographed with the 70mm lunar surface camera during Apollo 11's sojourn on the moon. Credit: NASA
Introduction:
Introduction:
No human has walked on the Moon since the Apollo 17 mission in December 1972. But NASA's Exploration Technology Development Program is working on a plan to make the Moon a place where a crew of astronauts can live for months.
This means that explorers from Earth will have to build their own habitat, or home. Their home must protect them like no home on Earth would ever need to do. Why?
On the moon, the temperature varies from 387 degrees Fahrenheit BELOW zero at night to 253 degrees Fahrenheit ABOVE zero in the day. Tiny micro-meteoroids (space rocks) rain down on the Moon's surface. There is no atmosphere like on Earth, which means no protection from the Sun's harsh radiation. Additionally, the moon is exposed to solar wind, a stream of charged particles released from the upper atmosphere of the Sun. Some of these particles can reach speeds up to 80% of the speed of light and can cause damage to spacecraft and solar panels, disrupt electronics, or affect electric currents.
Credit: NASA
Credit: Purdue University/Mark Simon
So a Moon habitat for humans will have to be very tough and very sturdy. It will have to be airtight, so the inside can be filled with breathable air for explorers and be temperature controlled. It will need a water recycling system, a power generating system, as well as food storage and preparation facilities.
The materials to build the Moon habitat should be lightweight, since they will have to be boosted out of Earth's gravitational field using rockets.The habitat will have to be sent to the Moon in pieces and assembled by the explorers once they arrive. So it should be easy to put together, since the Moon explorers will be working in space suits.
STEM@HOME Challenge: Design a Shelter
STEM@HOME Challenge: Design a Shelter
Your Goal:
Your Goal:
You are tasked with designing a shelter so that you and your fellow explorers can be safe from dangerous winds and meteoroids.
Credit: NASA
Materials Needed:
Materials Needed:
Ruler
Scissors
Empty cereal box or cardboard
Tape
Plastic wrap or bubble wrap
Other building materials of your choice
Examples: toothpicks, straws, string, paper clips, etc.
Pencil and paper
Hair dryer or fan - If you don’t have access to one, you can flatten the box that your camp supplies came in and wave it at your creation to test how it stands up to gusts of wind.
Requirements:
Requirements:
A 5 x 5 in. base (approximate)
A door that opens inward (so it can be opened from the inside if it gets blocked by debris)
Airtight
Should withstand 10 seconds of dryer force winds
Don’t forget the NASA logo! Click here for a printable version or to visualize it so you can sketch in on your shelter.
Bonus challenge: Can you build a successful storm shelter using only 4 kinds of materials?
Credit: TeachEngineering.org
How well did your shelter survive the winds? Did it do better or worse after you redesigned it? What other materials would you use if you had them?
Instructions:
Instructions:
Gather your materials and examine them. Brainstorm how you might be able to use them in your design.
Before you start building, sketch and label your design in your notebook. Architects and engineers start with blueprints of their design to help them during construction.
Build your shelter.
Test it out using a blow dryer (preferred), fan or make your own using a flattened cardboard box and a little muscle power. Start at low speeds and gradually increase. See if your shelter can withstand 10 minutes of high force winds.
Evaluate: What was successful? What could be improved?
Redesign: Think about what you would change if you built a new prototype. If you’d like to make improvements and try again, rebuild your storm shelter.
Safe Landings: Parachutes
Safe Landings: Parachutes
This explanation was adapted from NASA: https://mars.nasa.gov/
Meet Col. Paul Lockhart
Meet Col. Paul Lockhart
Paul Scott "Paco" Lockhart is an American aerospace engineer, retired United States Air Force Colonel and NASA astronaut, a veteran of two Space Shuttle missions. Learn about how he came to be the pilot for the Endeavor Space Shuttle!
To learn more about Col. Lockhart check out his site at Virtus Adventures.
Credit: NASA
What is the parachute?
What is the parachute?
Parachutes are devices that are used to slow the motion of an object through an atmosphere by creating drag, or air resistance. The parachute helps slow the spacecraft down during entry, descent, and landing. It is located in the backshell of the spacecraft.
What is the parachute's design?
What is the parachute's design?
The design of the parachute depends on the load it will carry. Loads are the forces the parachute experiences as it fully inflates. Loads are calculated by using atmospheric density, velocity, parachute drag area, and mass. NASA engineers use data from previous expeditions to improve on parachute designs for new projects. For example, the parachute for the Mars Exploration Rover was 40% larger than Pathfinder's because the Rover weighs more than twice as much as the Pathfinder; 8,000 lbs compared to 18,000 lbs.
What is the parachute made of?
What is the parachute made of?
The parachute is made out of two durable, lightweight fabrics: polyester and nylon. The parachute has a triple bridle (the tethers that connect the parachute to the backshell). This bridle is made out of Kevlar, the same material used in bullet-proof vests.
The materials used to make the parachute must be strong, yet lightweight enough to fit inside a very small area and to prevent excess weight within the backshell. The amount of space available on the spacecraft for the parachute is so small that the parachute must be pressure packed. Before launch, a team must tightly fold together the 48 suspension lines, three bridle lines, and the parachute. The parachute team loads the parachute in a special structure that then applies a heavy weight to the parachute package several times to compress the contents (like sitting on a suitcase to pack down clothes to fit inside).
Credit: NASA
Credit: NASA
What parts work in tandem with the parachute?
What parts work in tandem with the parachute?
Rocket assisted descent (RAD) motors: Because the atmospheric density of Mars is less than 1% of Earth's, the parachute alone cannot slow down the Mars Exploration Rover enough to ensure a safe, low landing speed. The spacecraft descent is assisted by rockets that bring the spacecraft to a dead stop 10-15 meters (30-50 feet) above the Martian surface.
STEM Challenge: Design a Parachute
STEM Challenge: Design a Parachute
Use the handout at the link below to design and test out your very own parachute.
Want to explore more?
Want to explore more?
Learn about one of the first astronauts, Georgia “Tiny” Broadwick, and see her parachute:
Watch SpaceX test a spacecraft parachute:
Read about and watch NASA/JPL-CalTech break the record for the fastest inflation of a parachute of its size as they test a parachute for the 2020 mission to Mars:
Credit: Sciencebuddies.org
Reflection
Reflection
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