Make a Mission

Ages 10-12
View Student Webpage

Print this Facilitator Page
Print Student Activity Sheet

This activity introduces kids to the MESSENGER Mission to the planet Mercury. The engineers who designed the spacecraft and the instrument payload had to consider function, space (or volume), and cost. In this online interactive, your kids will have the chance to try to fit all the critical equipment into the cargo bay of a spacecraft by taking into account space and cost constraints.

What You Need

• A Make a Mission activity sheet for each student [download PDF]
• A computer with Internet access
• Writing utensils
• A poster or a model of the solar system (another option is to use a picture of the Solar System on KidsAstronomy.com)

Background

Mercury is the least explored of the terrestrial planets—the last spacecraft data on Mercury came from Mariner 10, over 30 years ago. The MESSENGER (MEcury Surface, Space ENvironment, GEochemistry and Ranging) Mission to the planet launched in 2004. The spacecraft will enter Mercury’s orbit in 2011 and collect data for one full Earth year. Of the four terrestrial planets in our solar system—Mercury, Venus, Earth, and Mars—Mercury is the smallest and densest. MESSENGER aims to find out six things about Mercury: why it is so dense; the planet’s geologic history; more about the magnetic field; what its core is made of; what materials can be found at the poles; and the composition of its exosphere. Understanding more about Mercury can lead to a better understanding of the planets in our solar system and how they formed and evolved.

Activity Instructions

Set-Up

To give kids perspective, ask: “Can you name a few, or all of the planets?” (At this age, kids certainly could know all of them and the order in which they come from the sun [Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune].)

Regardless of how much they know, go to Solar System on KidsAstronomy. It will pull up a Solar System in action.

Depending on your group, you can allow your kids to lead the discussion or jump right in by pointing out Mercury. It is the first planet from the sun.

You may want to also point out Venus, the next one, Earth, third from the sun, then Mars, fourth from the sun. These are all terrestrial planets. Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune are all gas planets.

Now ask kids: “How do you think we learn about planets that are so far from Earth? For instance, it takes more than six months to travel to Mars!” (There is no right or wrong answer to this question. Some kids may know about Mars and the Mars Rovers that were sent to the Red Planet. When talking about exploring Mercury, be sure to point out the challenge of the planet being so close to the sun and its long distance from Earth.)

Activity

Now kids are ready to do the interactive on their own. Give each kid a Make a Mission activity sheet and a pen or pencil and point them toward the student webpage. The activity sheet will provide kids with the URL to access the interactive.

Afterward, you may want to revisit with your group what they learned. Ask: “What was the hardest thing about the activity? Were you surprised by anything? Now what do you think of the planet Mercury?”

Related Activities

See a history of how humans have explored space. Have kids watch a seven-minute video called 50 Years in Space.

Learning Goals

Benchmarks for Science Literacy

Technology is essential to science for such purposes as access to outer space and other remote locations, sample collection and treatment, measurement, data collection and storage, computation, and communication of information.— 3A The Nature of Technology: Technology and Science (6-8) #2

Engineers, architects, and others who engage in design and technology use scientific knowledge to solve practical problems.— 3A The Nature of Technology: Technology and Science (6-8) #3

National Science Education Standards

Perfectly designed solutions do not exist. All technological solutions have trade-offs, such as safety, cost, efficiency, and appearance. Engineers often build in back-up systems to provide safety. Risk is part of living in a highly technological world. Reducing risk often results in new technology.— Science and Technology: Understanding about Science and Technology (5-8) #4

Technological designs have constraints. Some constraints are unavoidable, for example, properties of materials, or effects of weather and friction; other constraints limit choices in the design, for example, environmental protection, human safety, and aesthetics.— Science and Technology: Understanding about Science and Technology (5-8) #5

Return to Afterschool Resources Index