Humans are going back to the moon by 2024! It’s long over due being over 50 years since we last visited and so so much of the technology that we have today was dependent on those early space missions. To put it into perspective, there is more than 100,000 times more computing power in your phone than the original rockets that took us to the moon in 1972!
So how are we currently getting there?
To get to space it takes A LOT of fuel to get there. Most of the rockets that you currently see going to space are just fuel to get out of the earths very thin atmosphere. It can cost anywhere from $5,000 – $20,000 / kg to send something into Low Earth Orbit (160-2000km around Earth) (Click here to find out more). This means that everything on the space station is still considered a luxury item. Which made many people wonder why Elon Musk shot a Tesla car into space…
So, about that price… can we do any better?
Thankfully for Mr Danic, this question was answered the morning of him making this new page. And the answer is… YES, we can currently do it with our technology and it’s insanely cool. It uses an invention that my very own dad planned one day when I complained that it was too heavy to hold something. It’s called a sky hook! Simply hook it into the sky above you and then attach the heavy object and like magic it will stay there…
The things he did not consider are mentioned in the following video… perhaps I’ll have to just hit the gym more often instead…
Wait, so does this mean that… We can take a holiday in space to the Moon, Mars or beyond!?!?
It sure does! The next question that we need to answer though is, what do we do when we get there? If only I had a room full of dedicated, hard working people to plan a holiday guide of things to see or do when I got there… It’s ok, I’ve got the next best thing, a room full of students!
The task
In groups of 2-3 students, I need you to make me a travel guide to visiting the following places in our Solar system:
| – Mercury – Venus – Earth – Moon | – Mars – Asteroid belt – Jupiter – Moons of Jupiter | – Saturn – Uranus – Neptune – Pluto |
I want to know all about it:
- What do I need to pack? i.e. Hot/Cold, Sunny/Vitamin D Supplements
- How long will it take to get there? Rocket or Tether speed
- Things to see when I get there. What are some of the major land marks that I have to visit?
- What’s the gravity like? Am I going to be slam dunking a basket ball?
- How long is a day/night cycle there?
- How long would it take to do a road trip around the equator? Assuming that I’ll be able to average 100km/hr, OR
- If there is no ‘surface’ to drive on how long would it take in my space ship, hurtling around it at 1000km/hr?
- Lastly, give me 3 fun facts (or warnings) while visiting these planets.
Task requirements
You must make a shared PowerPoint in Teams or Google Slides with your group to present in class. Have pictures, video, models etc. to help explain.
We will be using class time to complete most of it (within 2 weeks), however you can do some work from home and bring it in.
This task is not directly marked, however comments might still make it into your final report so treat it seriously, but also have fun with it!
If you have any questions, ask away in the comments for all to see, or talk to your teacher directly. Happy planning and I can’t wait to see what you and your team come up with.
Mr Danic 