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November 2, 2010

MESSENGER: Staying Cool – My Angle on Cooling Effects of

Distance and Inclination

Presented by: Rudo Kashiri

MESSENGER Mission to Mercury

Presented by Rudo KashiriNASA Explorer Schools

NASA Explorer Schools

Presentation Outline

MESSENGER education overviewNASA Connection:

- MESSEGER Mission overview- Basic facts about Mercury

Lesson: Staying Cool:SeasonsAdditional Activities

QUESTION: What is wrong with this picture?

QUESTION: Which has a greater effect on earth’s seasons?

A) Earth’s variation in distance to the sunB) The angle of incoming sunlight on the

earthC) The effect of the above are equal

About the ModuleGrade Level: Middle SchoolHands on CurriculumCorrelates to National Science and Mathematics Standards

Earth Science - Earth in the solar system Physical Science- Transfer of energy

Time: 1-2 45 min periodsEssential question: How do distance and inclination affect the amount of heat received from a heat source?

Education Materials

Modules provide:Broad, content-rich overviewLessons are - Concept Based- Inquiry driven - Standards based

Diverse activitiesMultimedia Resources

http://btc.montana.edu/messenger/main/epo.php

Let’s Pause for Questions.

NASA ConnectionScience Questions

• Why is Mercury so dense?• What is the geologic history of Mercury?• What is the structure of Mercury’s core?• What are the nature and origin of Mercury's

magnetic field?• What are the unusual materials at Mercury’s

poles?• What is the nature of Mercury’s atmosphere?

Fact Sheets

What do your students know about Mercury?

QUESTION: Which statement is true for Mercury?

Name the Terrestrial Planets

MESSENGER Mission

MercurySurfaceSpaceEnvironmentGeochemistryand Ranging

Audience Question?

1. What can we learn about earthby exploring Mercury?

2. What do we already know about Mercury?

Let’s Pause for Questions.

What are some of the challenges for a mission to Mercury?[Type your responses in the chat]

Audience Question?

Lesson overview

Staying Cool: My angle on cooling• How temperature changes as a function of

distance and inclination• Discuss cause of the seasons on Earth• Discuss how MESSENGER uses these

tactics

Poll Audience

Have you ever done similar activities thatare related to heat and temperature?

A) yes B) no C)unsure

Lesson C

omponents

TeamTeam MaterialsMaterials

• Time Keeper• Temperature

Monitor• Recorder

2 thermometersDesk lamp or flood lamp 2 meter sticksMasking tapeStopwatch

Effect of distance

Effect of distance

Let’s Pause for Questions.

Materials Materials Materials per TeamMaterials per Team

Scissors or knife Masking TapeStopwatchColored pencils

Thermometerblack construction paperpiece of cardboardBricks or blocks toGraphing paperMeter stick

Effect of inclination

Effect of inclination

Putting it together

1. Which of these effects (distance or inclination) do you think is more important? Why? Is it always more important?

2. If you wanted to heat something up very quickly, how would you do it? Based on this experiment, think of two different ways.

Let’s Pause for Questions.

More daylight hours, more direct sunlight

Northern Hemisphere Summer

http://www.lpi.usra.edu/education/skytellers/seasons/about.shtml

QUESTION: What causes seasons on earth?

Poll Audience

Are there seasons on mercury?A.YesB.NoC.No one knows the answer

Seasons on Other Planets

In some cases, the changing distances from the Sun will affect the seasons.In others, the axial tilt will make a huge difference!

Seasons on Planets

Planet Axial Tilt Eccentric Orbit Perihelion AphelionMercury 0° 0.21 88 days 28 mill. Miles 43 mill. milesVenus 177° 0.01 224 daysEarth 23° 0.02 365 days 91 mill. miles 94 mill. milesMars 25° 0.09 686 days 129 mill. miles 155 mill. milesJupiter 3° 0.05 12 yearsSaturn 27° 0.06 30 yearsUranus 98° 0.05 84 yearsNeptune 30° 0.01 165 years

Discussion questions

1. The MESSENGER spacecraft will study the planet Mercury. The distance from Mercury to the Sun is only one third of the distance from the Earth to the Sun. Why do you think the mission designers are concerned about keeping the spacecraft cool?

2. Think of some ways to keep the MESSENGER spacecraft cool near Mercury, based on what you learned from this experiment.

Let’s Pause for Questions.

http://www.knowitall.org/nasa/asx/timeless_knowledge.asxhttp://www.knowitall.org/nasa/connect/index.html

How can we study Mercury?

Sensing the Invisible: The Herschel Experiment

Students examine why infrared radiation is important

Are there any problems we might face?

Snow Goggles and Limiting Sunlight

Students measure their field-of-view with and without snow gogglesStudents discuss how MESSENGER uses similar approaches to limit its exposure to sunlight

Are there ways to solve these problems?

Design ChallengesTemperature

How to Keep Gelatin from Melting?

Extensions

Activities and lesson plans that are related to MESSENGER mission.Interactive games: "Build a Spacecraft” and "Geohunter.”Make a scale model of the MESSENGER spacecraftTake a "virtual" journey into outer space with Messenger. Learn about the instruments on board

http://www.messenger-education.org/teachers/teacher_index.php

Mercury orbit insertion

Let’s Pause for Questions.

NASA Explorer Schools Forums

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NASA Explorer Schools

Thank you to the sponsor of tonight's Web Seminar:

http://learningcenter.nsta.org

http://www.elluminate.com

National Science Teachers AssociationDr. Francis Q. Eberle, Executive Director

Zipporah Miller, Associate Executive Director Conferences and Programs

Al Byers, Assistant Executive Director e-Learning

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NSTA Web SeminarsPaul Tingler, Director

Jeff Layman, Technical Coordinator