Future Moon: The Footsteps of Explorers


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In this activity, learners drop impactors onto layers of graham crackers! The process models how impacts throughout the Moon's history have broken rocks down into a mixture of dust, rocks, and boulders that covers the lunar surface. Learners consider how the dust will continue to hold a record of human exploration--in the form of astronaut bootprints--for countless years in the future. Learners may examine a type of Earth soil ("lunar soil simulant") that is similar to what is found on the Moon’s surface and that would have been shaped by the processes explored here. Learners create their own records of exploration by making rubbings of their shoes. This activity station is part of a sequence of stations that can be set up to help learners trace the Moon's 4.5-billion-year history from "infancy" to the imagined future. Learners tie together major events in the Moon's geologic history as a series of comic panels in their Marvel Moon comic books.

Quick Guide


Preparation Time:
10 to 30 minutes

Learning Time:
10 to 30 minutes

Estimated Materials Cost:
$5 - $10 per group of students

Age Range:
Ages 8 - 14

Resource Types:
Activity, Lesson/Lesson Plan, Simulation

Language:
English

Materials List (per group of students)


Subjects


  • Earth and Space Science
    • Astronomy
      • Origins of Universe
    • Earth Structure
      • Rocks and Minerals
    • Earth's History
      • Geologic Time
    • Solar System
      • The Moon
      • Asteroids and Comets
      • Origin of Solar System
  • The Nature of Science
    • The Scientific Process
      • Conducting Investigations
      • Gathering Data
      • Formulating Explanations
      • Communicating Results
    • Science as a Career

Informal Categories


  • Food and Cooking

Audience


To use this activity, learners need to:

  • see
  • read
  • touch

Learning styles supported:

  • Involves teamwork and communication skills
  • Involves hands-on or lab activities

Other


Components that are part of this resource:

Includes alignment to state and/or national standards:

This resource is part of:

Access Rights:

  • Free access

By:

Rights:

  • , Lunar and Planetary Institute, 2010

Funding Sources:

  • NASA Lunar Science Institute
  • Center for Lunar Origins and Evolution