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Event Details

12/07/2006

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Apollo Revisited

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Target Audience: Students

Grade Level: K-12

Event Focus : You have just been assigned as an engineer to help develop the Crew Exploration Vehicle for NASA's return to the Moon in 2018. How will this mission be different from the Apollo missions of the 1970s? Can we repeat the mission as before or will the return to the Moon require new approaches and new designs?

Description: As NASA seeks to return to the Moon in 2018, what are the lessons learned from the Apollo Program that need to be considered and what questions were left unanswered? This module looks in-depth at the information NASA gained from the triumphs and tragedies of the Apollo flights.

Instructional Objectives:

90 % of the students viewing "Apollo Revisited" will be able to explain the need for stages in the Saturn V rocket.

80 % will be able to point out the danger of a pure oxygen atmosphere and give examples related to the use of oxygen on earth in health-related environments.

80 % of the students will be able to discuss the importance of developing the Apollo program through a series of test flights culminating in a Moon landing.

70 % will be able to discuss the dangers of space flight as related to Apollo 13.

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Sequence of Events
Pre-Conference Activities:
Pretend that as part of our assignment to design a new Crew Exploration Vehicle to return to the Moon, you or your design team have been granted an interview with Gene Krantz, flight director of mission control during Apollo, Neil Armstrong, the first American to walk on the Moon, or Buzz Aldrin, the second man on the moon. What would you want to ask them about the Apollo program that may give you help in your new design? To prepare for your interview, you or your team need to find out about the Apollo missions by completing the "Apollo Missions" worksheet (click to download)?with information available at the suggested websites. http://spaceflight1.nasa.gov/history/apollo/ http://www.nasm.si.edu/collections/imagery/apollo/apollo.htm http://www.hq.nasa.gov/office/pao/History/ap11ann/comments.htm Thinking about the successes and failures of the Apollo program, write down the five questions that you would want to ask them about their experience. Focus on things that they might want to improve or things that they think were good solutions to problems of going to the Moon and back. How much do you know about the Apollo program? Take the pre-conference quiz and find out. VOCABULARY Abort: to bring to an early end. Because of an explosion on their way to the Moon, Apollo 13 had to abort their mission. Capsule: a sealed cabin, container, or vehicle in which a person or animal can ride in flight in space. Your design will need to have a capsule for your astronauts. Command Module: the part of the Apollo spacecraft that carried the astronauts and eventually returned to Earth. In the Apollo program the command module orbited the Moon with one astronaut while the other two landed on the Moon. Dock: the joining in space of two separate spacecraft. The command module had to dock with the lunar module while still in Earth orbit before heading for the Moon. Heat Shield: a structure on the bottom of the command module that was made of materials that resist the heat of reentry. When a capsule traveling at 17,500 miles per hours enters the atmosphere, the tremendous amount of heat generated does not reach the capsule and the astronauts because of the heat shield. Life Support: systems used to keep the astronauts alive in the harsh environment of space. Oxygen, water, food, waste disposal, and temperature control were all part of the Apollo life support system. Low Earth Orbit: an orbit of between generally between 200 and 500 miles above the Earth, above the atmosphere and below the inner Van Allen radiation belt. Objects in low earth orbit must travel at 17,500 miles per hour to overcome gravity. The Apollo program tested components in low Earth orbit before going to the Moon. Lunar Module: a spacecraft that descended from lunar orbit to the surface of the Moon with two astronauts. It was also called the Lunar Exploration Module, or "LEM". It was so light weight it would not be able to fly in Earth's gravity. Lunar Roving Vehicle: sometimes called the Lunar Rover or "Moon Buggy", it was a light weight, battery-powered vehicle that carried two astronauts across the lunar surface at up to 10 miles per hour. LRVs were part of Apollo 15,16, and 17. Orbit: the curved path, usually elliptical, described by spaceship around a celestial body, as the earth or moon. Apollo capsules orbited both the earth and moon. Reentry: the return from outer space into the earth's atmosphere of a spacecraft. Capsules need to be protected from the heat of reentry. Saturn: the Saturn was the largest rocket the United States has ever made. The Saturn 1B was used for low Earth orbit launches and the Saturn V was used to launch to the Moon. Service Module: The Service Module was connected to the command module and carried the life support systems, fuel cells for energy, and fuel for maneuvering. An explosion in one of the oxygen tanks in the service module of Apollo 13 caused the mission to be aborted. Trajectory: a path followed by a spacecraft. The Apollo capsules had to follow an exact trajectory to return from the Moon to the Earth.
+ On-line pre-event assessment quiz

Videoconference Activities:
At the beginning of the program the facilitator will point out to the students that almost all adult activities are done by teams of people. He will ask questions related to what students know about the US space program, especially the Apollo program. He will use pictures, graphics, video, and models of period spacecraft to acquaint students with the history and science of this era of the space program. In asking initial questions, the facilitator will probe the students understandings and misconceptions about the Apollo program and get them thinking about what is involved in going to the Moon and returning to Earth. He will build on their ideas, reinforcing any positive comments to build their confidence and correct misconceptions as well. During the event he may ask such questions as: When did the Apollo Program begin? (show video clip of President Kennedy's challenge to Congress to put a man on the moon) Why was this era in history called a space race? (pictures of Sputnik, Laika the dog, and Yuri Gagarin) Did our space program begin with the Apollo program? (review graphics of the Mercury and Gemini programs) What kind of rocket would you need to go to the moon (use model of Saturn V) How fast do you need to go to leave the Earth? How do you stop when you get to the Moon? How do you leave the Moon to return to Earth?(show models of the Apollo capsule, service module, and lunar lander) How dangerous is it to do something like going to the Moon and returning to Earth? (picture of the Apollo I fire and the Apollo 13 disaster) What was it like to be on the Moon? (show videos of astronauts on the Moon) Much of the time will be devoted to student questions. The facilitator will often answer a question with a question to draw out student thinking and ideas. Some time will be spent on the engineering challenges that were presented and what students might suggest to solve them. Some of the questions that have been asked in the past that illustrate how the facilitator focused on key ideas and developed further thinking are: 1. Why did Apollo 8 just go around the Moon and not land? (to insure safety you have to establish you ability to do each phase of the mission. You do not want to face all your risks at one time.) 2. Why did the capsules land in the ocean? (the ocean is big and easy to hit. Coming down on land might hit a road or structure. 3. How were we able to beat the Soviets to the Moon when they had done almost all other things in space before us?(we did enough practice missions to be able to dock in space and we had a less complicated rocket. The Soviet N1 had 30 engines in its first stage while the Saturn V had 5 engines. All four N1 test launches failed. 4. What lessons were learned from the tragic Apollo 1 fire? Capsules should contain a mixture of gases at lower pressure.

Post-Conference Activities:
Now that you have learned about Apollo, try the post-conference quiz. Revisit you list of the questions that you were to ask Gene Krantz concerning the Apollo program. What are the questions that are still unanswered? What new questions would you now like to ask? RESOURCES You might wish to further investigate the Apollo missions by examining the artifacts in the Smithsonian collection at http://www.nasm.si.edu/exhibitions/attm/rm.html . Which of these items would still be useful in lunar exploration today? You might also wish to experience some of the video taking during the Apollo period at: http://smithsonianeducation.org/students/idealabs/walking_on_the_moon.html How would these events be portrayed in the media today?
+ On-line post-event assessment quiz

Standards

NSTA Science Content Standards: 5-8

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY CONTENT STANDARD E:

UNDERSTANDINGS ABOUT SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

Discussion of the Apollo 1 tragedy shows that 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.

HISTORY AND NATURE OF SCIENCE CONTENT STANDARD G:

SCIENCE AS A HUMAN ENDEAVOR

Students discuss how a mission to the Moon requires different abilities, depending on such factors as the field of study and type of inquiry. They will also understand how a difficult objective was reached through a series of ever more complex missions and tests. It took the efforts of thousands of people to put three astronauts into space.

NSTA Science Content Standards: 9-12

CONTENT STANDARD F:

NATURAL AND HUMAN-INDUCED HAZARDS

The risks presented by the Apollo program point out that natural and human-induced hazards present the need for humans to assess potential danger and risk. Many changes in the environment designed by humans bring benefits to society, as well as cause risks. Students should understand the costs and trade-offs of various hazards--ranging from those with minor risk to a few people to major catastrophes with major risk to many people. The scale of events and the accuracy with which scientists and engineers can (and cannot) predict events are important considerations.

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