a Teacher’s Guide

with activities

for Earth

and Space 

Sciences

National Aeronautics and

Space Administration

Education Product

Teachers Grades 4–12
a Teacher’s Guide

with activities

for Earth

and Space 

Sciences

National Aeronautics and Space 

Administration

Office of Human Resources and Education

Education Division

Office of Space Science

Solar System Exploration Division

This Publication is in the Public Domain and is not copyrighted.

Permission is not required for duplication.

November 1997

EG-1997-10-116-HQ
my notes

G. Jeffrey Taylor

Project Coordinator

Professor

Hawai'i Institute of Geophysics and Planetology

School of Ocean and Earth Science and Technology

University of Hawai'i at Manoa

Linda M.V. Martel

Managing Editor

Hawai'i Institute of Geophysics and Planetology

School of Ocean and Earth Science and Technology

University of Hawai'i at Manoa

Brooks G. Bays, Jr.

Designer

Publication Services

School of Ocean and Earth Science and Technology

University of Hawai'i at Manoa

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

The activities were tested by teachers in classrooms

throughout the state of Hawai'i. We thank many

individuals in the Oklahoma State University Aerospace Education Services Program and at NASA

Headquarters for their useful reviews of the materials. We especially thank Pam Bacon and Greg Vogt

for all their help and encouragement. We also thank

the Challenger Center for allowing a modification of

the Marsville activity on life support systems for

use in this book. Second edition revisions were

supported by the Hawai'i Space Grant Consortium.

 About the cover

 Our knowledge and concepts of the Moon change

 over time as depicted by the three images.

 A map of the Moon (circa 1700s) is overlaid by

 an Apollo 11 astronaut footprint (NASA photo

 AS11-40-5878) and a NASA painting of a future

 lunar habitation module by Pat Rawlings of

 Science Applications International Corporation.

Dale Olive

Waiakea High School

Kevin Polk

University of Hawai'i

Randolph Scoville

Highlands Intermediate School

Liza Shigeta Kobayashi

Waiakea High School

Cheryl Shintani

Koloa Elementary School

Nancy Tashima

Astronaut Ellison S. Onizuka Space Center

Jeff Taylor

University of Hawai'i

Arlene Yoshimura

Mililani Mauka Elementary School

The following people contributed

the activities in this book.

Kathy Chock

Hawai'i Department of Education

Pauline Higa

Mililani High School

Art Kimura

Future Flight Hawai'i

Forrest Luke

Leilehua High School

Linda Martel

University of Hawai'i

Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ i
Table of Contents

About This Book iii

About the Lunar Sample Disk iv

About the Slide Set v

Activity Matrices vi

Teacher's Guide -- The Moon: Gateway to the Solar System 1

Moon ABCs Fact Sheet 17

Rock ABCs Fact Sheet 19

Progress in Lunar Science Chart 20

Nearside of the Moon--Apollo Landing Sites 21

Unit 1 Pre-Apollo 23

Resource Section for Unit 1 24

Distance to the Moon 25

Diameter of the Moon 29

Reaping Rocks 33

Unit 2 Learning From Apollo 37

Resource Section for Unit 2 38

The Lunar Disk 39

Apollo Landing Sites 43

Regolith Formation 47

Lunar Surface 53

Differentiation 57

Impact Craters 61

Clay Lava Flows 71

Lava Layering 77

Lunar Landing Sites 83

Lunar Roving Vehicle 87

Moon Anomalies 91

Unit 3 The Future 99

Resource Section for Unit 3 100

Lunar Land Use 101

Life Support Systems 109

Lunar Biospheres 129

Glossary 141

Resources for Educators 145

ii Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ
 The length of time needed to complete an

activity will vary according to the degree of

difficulty and the development level of the

students. Thus activities may take one to

eight or more class periods.

“Activity Matrices” are provided to assist

in identifying the science process skills and

science and mathematics educational standards associated with each activity.

Classroom activities promote problemsolving, communication skills, and teamwork. Each activity consists of teacher

pages and reproducible student sheets.

Teacher pages begin with a statement of

purpose and background information with

answers specific to the activity. Relevant

pages in the “Teacher's Guide” also are

listed. These are followed by sections on

preparation, in-class suggestions, wrap-up

ideas, and extensions. Words that are bolded

appear in the Glossary.

Student sheets include a purpose statement, key words, list of materials, procedure,

questions with space provided for answers,

and charts. Key words are included in the

Glossary. Materials for each activity are

listed in order of use. They are bolded in the

text of the procedure section as a memory

aid for students.

A note on measurements: These activities

use metric units of measure with the few

exceptions when English units are used to

describe items from the material lists such

as pans or measuring cups.

These materials have been designed for use

in upper elementary through high schools

especially, but not exclusively, with the

Lunar Sample Disk. See Page iv.

This book contains:

• information on the Lunar Sample Disk,

• Activity Matrices -- Skills & Standards,

• a Teacher’s Guide,

• Moon ABCs Fact Sheet,

• Rock ABCs Fact Sheet,

• Progress in Lunar Science Chart,

• 17 activities,

• Resource Section for each unit,

• Glossary,

• NASA Educational Resources.

 The “Teacher’s Guide” titled “The Moon:

Gateway to the Solar System,” pages 1-16,

provides background information about the

Moon. It tells the story of the Moon’s geological history and how scientists try to decipher the story. This background information

may be useful reading for students as well.

Key facts about the Moon appear on the

“Moon ABCs” and “Rock ABCs” pages.

These pages were named to emphasize

the basic nature of the information. The

“Progress in Lunar Science Chart” summarizes our knowledge about the Moon from

1959 to 1997.

 The activities are divided into three units:

Pre-Apollo, Learning from Apollo, and the

Future. These correspond, at least roughly,

to exercises that can be done before the

Lunar Sample Disk arrives at your school

(Pre-Apollo), while it is there (Learning

from Apollo), and after it has been returned

to NASA (The Future).

Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ iii

About this Book
How to Schedule a Disk

Educators must first be certified to borrow lunar material by attending a training

seminar on security requirements and

proper handling procedures. This is the

same certification as for borrowing the

Meteorite Sample Disk. Then a written request must be sent to a NASA Educator

Resource Center at least one month prior to

the requested loan date. Contact the NASA

Educator Resource Center that serves your

geographic area for more information on

certification seminars and request procedures (refer to Page 146 of this book for

addresses and phone numbers.)

Legacy of Apollo

The collection of rocks and regolith from

the Moon is a tangible legacy of the U.S.

Apollo Space Program. NASA makes a

small portion of this “extraterrestrial”

material available for classroom use

through the Lunar Sample Loan Program.

Lunar Sample Loan

Program

Six samples of rocks and regolith are

embedded in a 15-cm diameter plastic disk.

Disks are sent via registered mail to educators

for one- to two-week loan periods. The

package also includes this book Exploring

the Moon, an annotated slide set of lunar

images (described more fully on Page v), and

a collection of color photographs and descriptions of the six samples.

About the

Lunar Sample Disk

Ninth grade science students from Waipahu High School, Hawai'i view the

Lunar Sample Disk as part of an activity from Exploring the Moon.

iv Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ
Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ v

About the Slide Set

The Collection

A set of thirty-six 35-mm slides has been

assembled to complement the activities in

this book Exploring the Moon. Each slide

is accompanied by detailed captions. Topics

include what we knew about the Moon from

telescopic and other astronomic observations before Apollo, Apollo missions, astronaut activities on the lunar surface, the Highlands, the Maria, how the Moon formed, and

exciting ideas for future explorations.

How to Obtain a Copy

It is easy to obtain a copy of the slides. They

are available from the Central Operation of

Resources for Educators (CORE) in Ohio or

from NASA Educator Resource Centers.

Phone calls are welcome if you are unable

to visit the Educator Resource Center that

serves your geographic area. Please refer to

Page 146 in this book for addresses and

phone numbers for CORE and Educator

Resource Centers.

Apollo 15 site

rake samples

basalt sample
Activity Matrix

Unit 1

PreApollo

Unit 2

Learning

From

Apollo

Unit 3

Future

Distance to the Moon

Diameter of the Moon

Reaping Rocks

The Lunar Disk

Apollo Landing Sites

Regolith Formation

Lunar Surface

Differentiation

Impact Craters

Clay Lava Flows

Lava Layering

Lunar Landing Sites

Lunar Roving Vehicle

Moon Anomalies

Lunar Land Use

Life Support Systems

Lunar Biosphere

Science Process Skills

vi Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ
Activity Matrix

Science Standards

Unit 1

PreApollo

Unit 2

Learning

From

Apollo

Unit 3

Future

Distance to the Moon

Diameter of the Moon

Reaping Rocks

The Lunar Disk

Apollo Landing Sites

Regolith Formation

Lunar Surface

Differentiation

Impact Craters

Clay Lava Flows

Lava Layering

Lunar Landing Sites

Lunar Roving Vehicle

Moon Anomalies

Lunar Land Use

Life Support Systems

Lunar Biosphere

Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ vii
Activity Matrix

Mathematics Standards

Unit 1

PreApollo

Unit 2

Learning

From

Apollo

Unit 3

Future

Distance to the Moon

Diameter of the Moon

Reaping Rocks

The Lunar Disk

Apollo Landing Sites

Regolith Formation

Lunar Surface

Differentiation

Impact Craters

Clay Lava Flows

Lava Layering

Lunar Landing Sites

Lunar Roving Vehicle

Moon Anomalies

Lunar Land Use

Life Support Systems

Lunar Biosphere

viii Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ
Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ 1

THE MOON

 GATEWAY TO THE SOLAR SYSTEM

 G. Jeffrey Taylor, PhD

Teacher’s Guide

WHEN ASTRONAUTS dug into the

Moon’s surface during the Apollo program,

they were doing more than digging up dry, dark

sediment. They were time travelers. The rocks

and sediment returned by Apollo contain vital

clues to how Earth and the Moon formed, the

nature and timing of early melting, the intensity

of impact bombardment and its variation with

time, and even the history of the Sun. Most of

this information, crucial parts of the story of

planet Earth, cannot be learned by studying

rocks on Earth because our planet is so geologically active that it has erased much of the

record. The clues have been lost in billions of

years of mountain building, volcanism, weathering, and erosion. Colliding tectonic plates

The Moon, front and back

The top right photograph is a telescopic image of the Earth-facing half

of the Moon obtained at Lick Observatory in California. The one below

right was taken during the Apollo 16 mission and shows mostly the farside,

except for the dark areas on the left, which can be seen, though barely,

from Earth. The two major types of terrain are clearly visible. The highlands,

which are especially well displayed in the photograph of the farside, are

light-colored and heavily cratered. The maria are darker and smoother;

they formed when lava flows filled depressions. One of the mysteries about

the Moon is why fewer maria occur on the farside than nearside. Note

how many craters stand shoulder to shoulder on the farside. These

immense holes chronicle the Moon’s early bombardment, an intense

barrage that probably affected the early Earth as well.
2 Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ

and falling rain have erased much of Earth history,

especially the early years before four billion years ago.

The Moon was geologically active in its heyday,

producing a fascinating array of products, but its

geologic engine was not vigorous and all records of

early events were not lost. Its secrets are recorded in

its craters, plains, and rocks. This guide reveals the

secrets that lunar scientists have uncovered since the

Apollo missions returned 382 kilograms (843 pounds)

of rock and sediment from the lovely body that

graces the night sky.

The emphasis here is on geology. The samples

returned by Apollo are the stars of the show. [See the

“Lunar Disk” activity on Pages 39–42 and the

“Apollo Landing Sites” activity on Pages 43–46.]

Understanding the Moon, however, requires other

geological approaches, such as geological mapping

from high-quality photographs, the study of analogous features on Earth (for instance, impact craters),

and experiments in laboratories.

THE LUNAR LANDSCAPE

The Moon is not like Earth. It does not have oceans,

lakes, rivers, or streams. It does not have wind-blown

ice fields at its poles. Roses and morning glories do not

sprout from its charcoal gray, dusty surface. Redwoods do not tower above its cratered ground. Dinosaur foot prints cannot be found. Paramecium never

conjugated, amoeba never split, and dogs never

barked. The wind never blew. People never lived

there—but they have wondered about it for centuries, and a few lucky ones have even visited it.

Highlands and lowlands

The major features of the Moon’s surface can be

seen by just looking up at it. It has lighter and darker

areas. These distinctive terrains are the bright lunar

highlands (also known as the lunar terrae, which is

Latin for “land”) and the darker plains called the

lunar maria, Latin for “seas,” which they resembled

to Thomas Hariot and Galileo Galilei, the first scientists to examine the Moon with telescopes. The

names terrae and maria were given to lunar terrains

by Hariot and Galileo’s contemporary, Johannes

Kepler. In fact, the idea that the highlands and maria

correspond to lands and seas appears to have been

popular among ancient Greeks long before telescopes were invented. Although we now know they

are not seas (the Moon never had any water), we still

use the term maria, and its singular form, mare.

The highlands and craters

Closer inspection shows that the highlands comprise countless overlapping craters, ranging in size

from the smallest visible in photographs (1 meter on

the best Apollo photographs) to more than 1000 km.

Essentially all of these craters formed when meteorites crashed into the Moon. Before either robotic or

piloted spacecraft went to the Moon, many scientists

thought that most lunar craters were volcanic in

origin. But as we found out more about the nature of

lunar craters and studied impact craters on Earth, it

became clear that the Moon has been bombarded by

cosmic projectiles. The samples returned by the

Apollo missions confirmed the pervasive role impact

processes play in shaping the lunar landscape.

The term “meteorite impact” is used to describe

the process of surface bombardment by cosmic object. The objects themselves are variously referred to

as “impactors” or “projectiles.”

The impact process is explosive. A large impactor does not simply bore its way into a planet’s

surface. When it hits, it is moving extremely fast,

more than 20 km/sec (70,000 km/hour). This meeting is not tender. High-pressure waves are sent back

into the impactor and into the target planet. The

impactor is so overwhelmed by the passage of the

shock wave that almost all of it vaporizes, never to be

seen again. The target material is compressed strongly,

then decompressed. A little is vaporized, some melted,

but most (a mass of about 10,000 times the mass of

the impactor) is tossed out of the target area, piling up

around the hole so produced. The bottom of the crater

is lower than the original ground surface, the piled up

material on the rim is higher. This is the characteristic

shape of an impact crater and is different from

volcanic calderas (no piled up materials) or cinder

cones (the central pit is above the original ground

surface). A small amount of the target is also tossed

great distances along arcuate paths called rays.

Real impacts cannot be readily simulated in a

classroom. In fact, there are very few facilities where

we can simulate high-velocity impacts. Nevertheless,

classroom experiments using marbles, ball bearings,

or other objects can still illustrate many important
Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ 3

logic mapping using high-quality telescopic images,

showed that the mare must be considerably younger

than the basins in which they reside. For example, the

impact that formed the large Imbrium basin (the

Man-in-the-Moon’s right eye) hurled material outwards and sculpted the mountains surrounding the

Serenitatis basin (the left eye); thus, Serenitatis must

be older. The Serenitatis basin is also home to Mare

Serenitatis. If the lavas in Mare Serentatis formed

when the basin did, they ought to show the effects of

the giant impact that formed Imbrium. They show no

points about the impact process. For example, objects impacting at a variety of

velocities (hence kinetic energies) produce

craters with a variety of sizes; the more

energy, the larger the crater. [See the “Impact Craters” activity on Pages 61–70.]

The maria

The maria cover 16% of the lunar surface and are composed of lava flows that

filled relatively low places, mostly inside

immense impact basins. So, although the

Moon does not have many volcanic craters, it did experience volcanic activity.

Close examination of the relationships between the highlands and the maria shows

that this activity took place after the highlands formed and after most of the cratering

took place. Thus, the maria are younger than

the highlands. [See the “Clay Lava Flows”

activity on Pages 71–76 and the “Lava Layering” activity on Pages 77–82.]

How do we know that the dark plains

are covered with lava flows? Why not some

other kind of rock? Even before the Apollo

missions brought back samples from the

maria, there were strong suspicions that the

plains were volcanic. They contain some

features that look very much like lava flows.

Other features resemble lava channels,

which form in some types of lava flows on

Earth. Still other features resemble collapses along underground volcanic features called lava tubes. These and other

features convinced most lunar scientists

before the Apollo missions that the maria

were lava plains. This insight was confirmed by samples collected from the maria: they

are a type of volcanic rock called basalt.

The maria fill many of the gigantic impact basins

that decorate the Moon’s nearside. (The Moon keeps

the same hemisphere towards Earth because Earth’s

gravity has locked in the Moon’s rotation.) Some

scientists contended during the 1960s that this demonstrated a cause and effect: impact caused not only

the formation of a large crater but led to melting of the

lunar interior as well. Thus, it was argued, the impacts triggered the volcanism. However, careful geoRivers or lava channels?

The origin of river-like valleys, called rilles, was debated before the Apollo 15 mission visited one of

them, Hadley Rille, shown here from orbit (white arrow shows the landing site) and from the lunar

surface. Some scientists argued that rilles were river valleys, implying that the Moon had flowing

water at one time. Others thought that rilles resembled the channels that form in lava flows.

Observations by the Apollo 15 crew and samples returned settled the argument: rilles are volcanic

features.
4 Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ

Maria mysteries

Some mysteries persist about the maria. For one,

why are volcanoes missing except for the cinder

cones associated with dark mantle deposits? Second, if no obvious volcanoes exist, where did the

lavas erupt from? In some cases, we can see that lava

emerged from the margins of enormous impact basins, perhaps along cracks concentric to the basin.

But in most cases, we cannot see the places where the

lava erupted. Another curious feature is that almost

all the maria occur on the Earth-facing side of the

Moon. Most scientists guess that this asymmetry is

caused by the highlands crust being thicker on the

lunar farside, making it difficult for basalts to make

it all the way through to the surface. [See the “Moon

Anomalies” activity on Pages 91–98.]

THE DUSTY LUNAR SURFACE

Some visitors to Kilauea Volcano, Hawai‘i, have

been overheard to say, upon seeing a vast landscape

covered with fresh lava, “It looks just like the Moon.”

Well, it doesn’t. The fresh lava flows of Kilauea and

other active volcanoes are usually dark grayish and

barren like the Moon, but the resemblance ends

there. The lunar surface is charcoal gray and sandy,

with a sizable supply of fine sediment. Meteorite

impacts over billions of years have ground up the

formerly fresh surfaces into powder. Because the

Moon has virtually no atmosphere, even the tiniest

meteorite strikes a defenseless surface at its full

cosmic velocity, at least 20 km/sec. Some rocks lie

strewn about the surface, resembling boulders sticking up through fresh snow on the slopes of Aspen or

Vail. Even these boulders won’t last long, maybe a

few hundred million years, before they are ground up

into powder by the relentless rain of high-speed

projectiles. Of course, an occasional larger impactor

arrives, say the size of a car, and excavates fresh rock

from beneath the blanket of powdery sediment. The

meteoritic rain then begins to grind the fresh boulders

down, slowly but inevitably.

The powdery blanket that covers the Moon is

called the lunar regolith, a term for mechanically

produced debris layers on planetary surfaces. Many

scientists also call it the “lunar soil,” but it contains

none of the organic matter that occurs in soils on

Earth. Some people use the term “sediment” for

Lava flows dribbling across Mare Imbrium

Long lava flows (lower left to upper right through center of photo) in Mare Imbrium.

The flows are up to 400 kilometers long (the entire extent is not shown in this Apollo

photograph) and have 30-meter high cliffs at their margins. The ridges running roughly

perpendicular to the flows are called wrinkle ridges. The ridges formed after the

flows because they did not impede the advance of the lava flow. The smooth plains

surrounding the prominent lava flows are also lava, but older, so the margins are

harder to see. The craters on the right along the ridge are about 5 kilometers in

diameter.

signs of it. Furthermore, the maria contain far fewer

craters than do basin deposits, hence have been

around a shorter time (the older the surface, the

greater the number of craters). The Apollo samples,

of course, confirmed these astute geological observations and showed that the maria filling some basins

formed a billion years after the basin formed.

One other type of deposit associated with the

maria, though it blankets highlands areas as well, is

known as dark mantle deposits. They cannot be seen

except with telescopes or from spacecraft near the

Moon, but are important nonetheless. Before Apollo,

most scientists believed that the dark mantle deposits

were formed by explosive volcanic eruptions known

as pyroclastic eruptions (literally, “pieces of fire”).

Some deposits seemed to be associated with low,

broad, dark cinder cones, consistent with the idea that

they were formed by pyroclastic eruptions—this is

how cinder cones form on Earth. This bit of geologic

deduction was proven by the Apollo 17 mission and

its sampling of the “orange soil,” a collection of tiny

glass droplets like those found in terrestrial pyroclastic eruptions.
Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ 5

regolith. Be forewarned that the regolith

samples in the Lunar Sample Disk are

labeled “soil.” Although it is everywhere,

the regolith is thin, ranging from about

two meters on the youngest maria to

perhaps 20 meters in the oldest surfaces

in the highlands. [See the “Regolith Formation” activity on Pages 47–52.]

Lunar regolith is a mixed blessing.

On the one hand, it has mixed local

material so that a shovelful contains most

of the rock types that occur in an area. It

even contains some rock fragments tossed

in by impacts in remote regions. Thus,

the regolith is a great rock collection. It

also contains the record of impacts during the past several hundred million to

a billion years, crucial information for

understanding the rate of impact on

Earth during that time. On the other

hand, this impact record is not written

very clearly and we have not come close

to figuring it out as yet. The blanket of

regolith also greatly obscures the details

of the bedrock geology. This made field

work during Apollo difficult and hinders

our understanding of lunar history.

The regolith consists of what you’d

expect from an impact-generated pile

of debris. It contains rock and mineral

fragments derived from the original bedrock. It also contains glassy particles

formed by the impacts. In many lunar

regoliths, half of the particles are composed of mineral fragments that are bound

together by impact glass; scientists call

these objects agglutinates. The chemical composition of the regolith reflects

the composition of the bedrock underneath. Regolith in the highlands is rich

in aluminum, as are highland rocks.

Regolith in the maria is rich in iron and

magnesium, major constituents of basalt. A little bit of mixing from beneath

basalt layers or from distant highland

locales occurs, but not enough to obscure the basic difference between the

highlands and the maria.

Raking moon dirt

One of the most useful ways of obtaining samples of Moon rocks was to drag a rake through the

regolith. This allowed rock fragments larger than about one centimeter to remain on tines of the rake,

while smaller fragments fell through. Note the large range in the sizes of rock fragments. One large

boulder lies near the rake, a medium-sized one is visible between the astronaut’s feet, along with

countless other pebbles. Most of the regolith is smaller than fine sand. The astronaut’s footprints are

distinct because the regolith is composed of a large percentage of tiny particles (about 20% is smaller

than 0.02 millimeters).

A geologist-astronaut does field work on the Moon

Geologist Harrison H. Schmitt examines a large rock at the Apollo 17 landing site. This large boulder

contains numerous rock fragments that were smashed together by the huge impact event that made

the 750-kilometer Serentatis basin on the Moon.
6 Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ

One of the great potential bits of information

stored in the complex pile atop the lunar surface is the

history of the Sun. The nearest star puts out prodigious amounts of particles called the solar wind.

Composed mostly of hydrogen, helium, neon, carbon, and nitrogen, the solar wind particles strike the

lunar surface and are implanted into mineral grains.

The amounts build up with time. In principle, we can

determine if conditions inside the Sun have changed

over time by analyzing these solar wind products,

especially the isotopic composition of them.

The same solar wind gases may prove useful

when people establish permanent settlements on the

Moon. Life support systems require the life-giving

elements: hydrogen and oxygen (for water), carbon,

and nitrogen. Plenty of oxygen is bound in the

silicate, minerals of lunar rocks (about 50% by volume) and the solar wind provided the rest. So, when

the astronauts were digging up lunar regolith for

return to Earth, they were not merely sampling—

they were prospecting!

MOON ROCKS

Geologists learn an amazing amount about a

planet by examining photographs and using other

types of remotely sensed data, but eventually they

need to collect some samples. For example, although

geologists determined unambigously from photographs that the maria are younger than the highlands,

they did not know their absolute age, the age in years.

Rocks also provide key tests to hypotheses. For

instance, the maria were thought to be covered with

lava flows, but we did not know for sure until we

collected samples from them. Also, no method can

accurately determine the chemical and mineralogical composition of a rock except laboratory analysis.

Most important, samples provide surprises, telling

us things we never expected. The highlands provide

the best example of a geological surprise, and one

with great consequences for our understanding of

what Earth was like 4.5 billion years ago.

A fist-sized piece of the original lunar crust

This rock sample was collected during the Apollo 15 mission. It is an anorthosite, a

rock composed of little else but the mineral feldspar. Anorthosites formed from the

enormous magma system, the lunar magma ocean, that surrounded the newly

formed Moon. Because of its importance in understanding the origin of the Moon’s

crust, the rock was nicknamed the “genesis rock.”

Smash and mix, mix and melt

This rock returned by the Apollo 16 mission attests to the effects of impacts on a

planet’s crust. It is a hodgepodge of rock and mineral fragments, some of which

themselves are complicated mishmashes of rock debris. Geologists call these

complicated rocks breccias.
Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ 7

Hawai'i developed a method to determine the iron

content of the lunar surface from ratioes of the

intensity of light reflected in different wavelengths.

The magma ocean hypothesis predicts that the lunar

highlands should have low iron contents, less than

about 5 wt. % (when recorded as iron oxide, FeO).

According to Clementine measurements, the highlands average slightly under 5 wt. % FeO, consistent

with the magma ocean idea. Further refinement of

this test is underway using data from Clementine and

the forthcoming U. S. Lunar Prospector Mission,

scheduled for launch in early 1998.

The highlands also contain other types of igneous

rocks. The most abundant are called norites and

troctolites, rocks composed of equal amounts of

plagioclase and either olivine or pyroxene (both

silicate minerals containing iron and magnesium).

Age dating suggests that these rocks are slightly

younger than the anorthosites and formed after the

magma ocean had crystallized.

Highland rocks are difficult to work with because

all that cratering, so evident in photographs of the

highlands, has taken its toll on the rocks. Most

highland rocks are complex mixtures of other rocks.

The original igneous rocks have been melted, mixed,

smashed, and generally abused by impacts during the

Moon’s first half billion years. We call these complicated rocks breccias. Some are so mixed up that they

contain breccias within breccias within breccias.

Most of the anorthosites, norites, and troctolites are

actually rock fragments inside breccias. Separating

them out is painstaking work.

An interesting thing about highland breccias,

especially those we call impact melt breccias (rocks

partly melted by an impact event), is that most of

them fall into a relatively narrow span of ages, from

about 3.85 to 4.0 billion years. This has led some

scientists to propose (boldly again–lunar scientists

don’t seem to be timid!) that the Moon was

Highland rocks, the lunar magma

ocean, and maybe a cataclysm

Strange as it may seem, the first highland rocks

were collected during the first lunar landing, the

Apollo 11 mission, which landed on a mare, Mare

Tranquillitatis. Although most of the rocks collected

were, indeed, basalts, some millimeter-sized rock

fragments were quite different. They were composed

chiefly of the mineral plagioclase feldspar; some

fragments were composed of nothing but plagioclase. [See the “Rock ABCs Fact Sheet” on Page 19.]

Such rocks are called anorthosites. Some scientists

suggested that these fragments were blasted to the

Apollo 11 landing site by distant impacts on highland

terrain. Thus, they argued, the highlands are loaded

with plagioclase. This was a bold extrapolation confirmed by subsequent Apollo missions to highland

sites.

But this was not enough for some scientists. If

the highlands are enriched in plagioclase, how did

they get that way? One way is to accumulate it by

flotation in a magma (molten rock). This happens

in thick subterranean magma bodies on Earth.

So, plagioclase floated in a magma. But if ALL the

lunar highlands are enriched in

plagioclase, then the magma must

have been all over the Moon. The

early Moon must have been covered by a global ocean of magma,

now commonly referred to as the

lunar magma ocean. Although

some scientists still remain

unconvinced about the veracity

of the magma ocean hypothesis,

nothing we have learned since has contradicted the

idea that 4.5 billion years ago the Moon was covered

by a layer of magma hundreds of kilometers thick.

The idea has been extended to the young Earth as

well, and even to Mars and some asteroids. And all

this sprung forth because creative and bold scientists

saw special importance in a few dozen white fragments of anorthosite strewn about in a pile of charcoal gray lunar regolith.

The magma ocean concept was tested by the

1994 U. S. Clementine Mission to the Moon.

Clementine was in a pole-to-pole orbit for two months,

during which it took thousands of photographs in

several wavelengths. Scientists at the University of
8 Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ

potassium (chemical symbol K), rare-earth elements

(abbreviated REE), and phosphorus (P). Most Moon

specialists believe that KREEP represents the last

dregs from the crystallization of the magma ocean.

Huge impacts dug down to the lower crust of the

Moon and excavated it, mixing it with other debris

to form KREEPy breccias.

The maria:

lava flows and fountains of fire

The missions to mare areas brought back lots of

samples of basalt. Basalts differ from the highlands

rocks in having more olivine and pyroxene, and less

bombarded with exceptional intensity during that

narrow time interval. If it happened, it probably

affected Earth as well, perhaps leading to production

of the first sedimentary basins, and possibly inhibiting the formation of the first life on this planet or

harming whatever life had developed by four billion

years ago. This idea of a cataclysmic bombardment

of the Moon is not yet proven. It could be that the

apparent clustering in rock ages reflects poor sampling—we may only have obtained samples from

one or two large impact basins. The idea can be tested

by obtaining samples from many more localities on

the Moon.

Multi-ringed masterpieces

The Moon has about 35 multi-ringed, circular impact features larger than 300 km in

diameter. The one shown here, the Orientale basin, has three very prominent rings.

The diameter of the outer one is 930 km. These immense craters might all have

formed in a narrow time interval between 3.85 and 4.0 billion years ago. Scientists

do not know for sure how the rings form during the impact.

A piece of a lava flow

This typical sample of a mare basalt is composed mostly of brown pyroxene (grayish

in the photo) and white feldspar. The holes in the sample are frozen gas bubbles.

Some basalt samples have many such bubbles (called vesicles by geologists),

whereas others have none.

Many highland breccias and a few igneous rocks

are enriched compared to other lunar samples in a

set of elements not familiar to most of us. The

elements are those that tend not to enter the abundant

minerals in rocks. The result is that as a magma

crystallizes the part that is still liquid becomes

progressively richer in these special elements. The

rocks that contain them are called KREEP, for

plagioclase. Many of them also have surprisingly

large amounts of an iron-titanium oxide mineral

called ilmenite. The first batch had so much ilmenite

(and some other related minerals) that they were

called “high-titanium” mare basalts, in honor of the

exceptional titanium contents compared to terrestrial

basalts. The second mission, Apollo 12, returned

basalts with lower titanium concentrations, so they

were called “low-titanium” mare basalts. Subsequent missions, including an automated samplereturn mission sent by the Soviet Union, returned

some mare basalts with even lower titanium, so

they were dubbed “very-low-titanium” basalts. Most

scientists figure that mare basalts have a complete

range in titanium abundance. Data from the U. S.

Clementine Mission confirm this, and show that the
Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ 9

high-titanium basalts are not really very common on

the Moon.

The shapes of the mineral grains and how they

are intergrown in mare basalts indicate that these

rocks formed in lava flows, some thin (perhaps a

meter thick), others thicker (up to perhaps 30 meters).

This is not unusual for basalt flows on Earth. Many

lunar mare basalts also contain holes, called vesicles,

which were formed by gas bubbles trapped when the

lava solidified. Earth basalts also have them. On

Earth, the abundant gases escaping from the lava are

carbon dioxide and water vapor, accompanied by

some sulfur and chlorine gases. We are not as sure

what gases escaped from lunar lavas, although we

know that water vapor was not one of them because

there are no hints for the presence of water or waterbearing minerals in any Moon rock. The best bet is a

mixture of carbon dioxide and carbon monoxide,

with some sulfur gases added for good measure.

On Earth, when the amount of gas dissolved in

magma (the name for lava still underground) becomes large, it escapes violently and causes an

explosive eruption. In places such as Hawai‘i, for

example, the lava erupts in large fountains up to

several hundred meters high. The lava falls to the

ground in small pieces, producing a pyroclastic deposit. This also happened on the Moon, producing

the dark mantle deposits. One of these was sampled

directly during the Apollo 17 mission. The sample,

called the “orange soil,” consists of numerous small

orange glass beads. They are glass because they

cooled rapidly, so there was not enough time to form

and grow crystals in them.

Small samples of pyroclastic glasses were also

found at other sites. Some are green, others yellow,

still others red. The differences in color reflect the

amount of titanium they contain. The green have the

least (about 1 weight percent) and the red contain the

most (14 weight percent), more than even the highest

titanium basalt.

Experiments conducted on

mare basalts and pyroclastic

glasses show that they formed

when the interior of the Moon

partially melted. (Rocks do not

have a single melting temperature like pure substances. Instead

they melt over a range of temperatures: 1000–1200°C for

some basalts, for example.) The experiments also

show that the melting took place at depths ranging

from 100 to 500 km, and that the rocks that partially

melted contained mostly olivine and pyroxene, with

some ilmenite in the regions that formed the hightitanium basalts. An involved but sensible chain of

reasoning indicates that these deep rocks rich in

olivine and pyroxene formed from the lunar magma

ocean: while plagioclase floated to form anorthosites

in the highlands crust, the denser minerals olivine

and pyroxene sank. So, although the anorthosites and

mare basalts differ drastically in age and composition, the origins are intimately connected.

What’s next?

Scientists are still working on the bounty returned

by the Apollo missions. New analytical techniques

and improved understanding of how geological processes work keep the field exciting and vibrant.

Eventually we will need additional samples and

some extensive field work to fully understand the

Moon and how it came to be and continues to evolve.

These sampling and field expeditions will probably

be done by a combination of robotic and piloted

spacecraft.

In the meantime, Nature has provided a bonus:

samples from the Moon come to us free of charge in

the form of lunar meteorites. (See companion volume Exploring Meteorite Mysteries.) Thirteen separate meteorites have been identified so far, one found

in Australia and the rest in Antarctica. We are sure

that they come from the Moon on the basis of

appearance and chemical and isotopic composition,

but of course we do not know from where on the

Moon they come. These samples have helped support the magma ocean idea. Most important, knowing that meteorites can be delivered to Earth by

impacts on the Moon lends credence to the idea that

we have some meteorites from Mars. The Martian
10 Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ

meteorites are collectively called SNC meteorites. If

we did not know so much about the Moon we would

never have been able to identify meteorites from the

Moon, and, therefore, would not have been able to

argue as convincingly that some meteorites come

from Mars.

From the Moon, free of charge

The first lunar meteorite discovered in Antarctica hails from the lunar highlands and,

like most highlands rocks, it is an impact breccia. The lunar meteorites prove that

objects can be blasted off sizable objects without melting them, adding credence to

the idea that a group of twelve meteorites comes from Mars.

The Moon does not shake, rattle, and roll as Earth

does. Almost all moonquakes are smaller than Earth’s

constant grumblings. The largest quakes reach only

about magnitude 5 (strong enough to cause dishes to

fall out of cabinets), and these occur about once a

year. This is clear evidence that the Moon is not at

present geologically active. No internal motions

drive crustal plates as on Earth, or initiate hot spots

to give rise to volcanic provinces like Hawai‘i. This

seismic inactivity is a wonderful virtue in the eyes

of astronomers. Combined with the lack of an

atmosphere to cause stars to twinkle, the low moonquake activity makes the Moon an ideal place to

install telescopes.

We know about moonquakes from four seisMOONQUAKES, THE MOON’S

INTERIOR, AND THE MYSTERIOUS

MAGNETIC FIELD

mometers set up by the Apollo missions. Besides

telling us how many and how strong moonquakes

are, the data acquired by the Apollo seismic network

help us figure out something about the nature of the

Moon’s interior. On Earth, seismology has allowed

us to know that the planet has a thin crust (20-60 km

over continents, 8-10 km over ocean basins), a thick

silicate mantle (down to 2900 km), and a large

metallic iron core (2900 km to the center at 6370 km).

The Moon is quite different. The crust is thicker than

Earth’s continental crust, ranging from 70 km on the

Earth-facing side to perhaps 150 km on the farside.

The mare basalts represent a thin veneer on this

mostly plagioclase-rich crust, averaging only about 1

km in thickness (inferred mostly from photogeological

studies). Evidence from samples collected on the

rims of the large basins Imbrium and Serentatis and

from remote sensing instruments carried onboard

two Apollo missions, the Clementine Mission, and

the forthcoming Lunar Prospector Mission suggest

that the lower crust may not contain as much plagioclase as does the upper half of the crust. Beneath the

crust is the lunar mantle, which is the largest part of

the Moon. There might be a difference in rock types

above and below a depth of 500 km, perhaps representing the depth of the lunar magma ocean. Beneath

the mantle lies a small lunar core made of metallic

iron. The size of the core is highly uncertain, with

estimates ranging from about 100 km to 400 km.

That little core is important, though. The Moon

does not have much of a magnetic field, so the lunar

core is not generating magnetism the way Earth’s

core is. Nevertheless, it did in the past. Lunar rocks

are magnetized, and the strength of the magnetic field

has been measured by special techniques. Also, older

rocks have stronger magnetism, suggesting that the

Moon’s magnetic field was stronger in the distant

past, and then decreased to its weak present state.

Why this happened is unknown. What is known is

this: you cannot navigate around the Moon using a

compass!

There are other mysteries about the Moon’s

magnetism. Although the field was always weak and

is extremely weak now, there are small areas on the

Moon that have magnetic fields much stronger than

the surrounding regions. These magnetic anomalies

have not been figured out. Some scientists have

associated them with the effects of large, basinforming impacts. Others have suggested that the
Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ 11

Inside the Moon and Earth

Scientists have learned what Earth and the Moon are like inside by several techniques, the most important

of which is seismology, the study of earthquake (and, of course) moonquake waves. Earth has a much

larger metallic core than does the Moon.

ionized gases produced when comets impact the

Moon might give rise to strong magnetic anomalies

in the crater ejecta. The jury is still out. The Lunar

Prospector Mission will thoroughly map the distribution of magnetic anomalies, perhaps helping to

solve this mystery.

THE MOON’S ORIGIN: A BIG WHACK

ON THE GROWING EARTH

For a long time, the most elusive mystery about

the Moon was how it formed. The problem baffled

philosophers and scientists for hundreds of years. All

of the hypotheses advanced for lunar origin had fatal

flaws, even though partisans tried tenaciously to

explain away the defects. The capture hypothesis,

which depicts capture of a fully formed Moon by

Earth, suffered from improbability. Close encounter

with Earth would either result in a collision or fling

the Moon into a different orbit around the Sun,

probably never to meet up with Earth again. The

fission hypothesis, in which the primitive Earth spins

so fast that a blob flies off, could not explain how

Earth got to be spinning so fast (once every 2.5 hours)

and why Earth and the Moon no longer spin that fast.

The double-planet hypothesis pictures Earth and the

Moon forming together, a two-body

system from the start. This idea has

trouble explaining Earth’s rotation

rate and how the moon-forming

material got into orbit around Earth

and stayed there, rather than falling

to Earth. (These problems with total amount of spinning involve both

Earth’s rotation and the Moon’s

motion around Earth. The amount

of rotation and revolving is

quantified by a physical property

called angular momentum.) The

problem was so frustrating that

some scientists suggested that

maybe science had proved that the

Moon does not exist!

The annoying problems with

the classical hypotheses of lunar

origin led scientists to consider alternatives. This search led to the

seemingly outlandish idea that the

Moon formed when a projectile the

size of the planet Mars (half Earth’s radius and onetenth its mass) smashed into Earth when it had grown

to about 90% of its present size. The resulting explosion sent vast quantities of heated material into orbit

around Earth, and the Moon formed from this debris.

This new hypothesis, which blossomed in 1984 from

seeds planted in the mid-1970s, is called the giant

impact theory. It explains the way Earth spins and

why Earth has a larger metallic core than does the

Moon. Furthermore, modern theories for how the

planets are assembled from smaller bodies, which

were assembled from still smaller ones, predict that

when Earth was almost done forming, there would

have been a body nearby with a mass about one-tenth

that of Earth. Thus, the giant impact hypothesized to

have formed the Moon is not an implausible event.

The chances are so high, in fact, that it might have

been unavoidable.

One would think that an impact between an

almost Earth-sized planet and a Mars-sized planet

would be catastrophic. The energy involved is incomprehensible. Much more than a trillion trillion

tons of material vaporized and melted. In some

places in the cloud around the Earth, temperatures

exceeded 10,000°C. A fledgling planet the size of

Mars was incorporated into Earth, its metallic core
12 Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ

A BRIEF HISTORY OF THE MOON

We know the general outlines of what happened

to the Moon after it was formed by a giant impact.

The first notable event, which may have been a

consequence of the giant impact, was the formation

and crystallization of the magma ocean. Nobody

knows how deep it was, but the best guess is that it

and all, never to be seen again. Yes, this sounds

catastrophic. But out of it all, the Moon was created

and Earth grew to almost its final size. Without this

violent event early in the Solar System’s history,

there would be no Moon in Earth’s sky, and Earth

would not be rotating as fast as it is because the big

impact spun it up. Days might even last a year. But

then, maybe we would not be here to notice.

WHACK!

The Moon may have formed when an object the size of the planet Mars smashed

into Earth when our future home was about 90% constructed. This fierce event

made Earth larger and blasted off vaporized and melted material into orbit. The

Moon formed from this debris. This painting was created by William K. Hartmann,

one of the scientists who invented the giant impact hypothesis for lunar origin.

was at least 500 km deep. The first minerals to form

in this mind-boggling magmatic system were the

iron and magnesium silicates olivine and pyroxene.

They were denser than the magma, so they sank, like

rocks in a pond, though not as fast. Eventually,

plagioclase feldspar formed, and because it was less

dense than the magma, began to float to the top, like

bubbles in cola. It accumulated and produced mountains of anorthosite, producing the first lunar crust.

The magma ocean phase ended by about 4.4 billion

years ago. [See the “Differentiation” activity on

Pages 57–60.]

Sinking and floating in an ocean of magma

Soon after it formed, the Moon was surrounded by a huge shell of molten rock

called the lunar magma ocean. As crystals formed in it, the denser ones such as

olivine and pyroxene sank and the less dense ones, such as feldspar, floated

upwards, forming the original anorthosite crust on the Moon. Dropping toothpicks

and pennies into a glass of water shows the process: the toothpicks (representing

feldspar) float and the pennies (olivine and pyroxene) sink.
Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ 13

Almost as soon as the crust had formed, perhaps

while it was still forming, other types of magmas that

would form the norites and troctolites in the highlands crust began to form deep in the Moon. A great

mystery is where inside the Moon and how deep.

Many lunar specialists believe the magmas derived

from unmelted Moon stuff beneath the magma ocean.

In any case, these magmas rose and infiltrated the

anorthosite crust, forming large and small rock bodies, and perhaps even erupting onto the surface.

Some of the magmas reacted chemically with the

dregs of the magma ocean (KREEP) and others may

have dissolved some of the anorthosite. This period

of lunar history ended about 4.0 billion years ago.

All during these first epochs, left-over projectiles

continued to bombard the Moon, modifying the

rocks soon after they formed. The crust was mixed to

a depth of at least a few kilometers, perhaps as much

as 20 km, as if a gigantic tractor had plowed the lunar

crust. Though not yet proven, the rate of impact may

have declined between 4.5 and 4.0 billion years ago,

but then grew dramatically, producing most of the large

basins visible on the Moon. This cataclysmic bombardment is postulated to have lasted from 4.0 to 3.85

billion years ago. [See the “Impact Craters” activity

on Pages 61–70, and the “Regolith Formation”

activity on Pages 47–52.]

Once the bombardment rate had settled down,

the maria could form. Basalts like those making up

the dark mare surfaces formed before 3.85 billion

years ago, but not as voluminously as later, and the

enormous bombardment rate demolished whatever

lava plains formed. However, between 3.7 and about

2.5 billion years ago (the lower limit is highly uncertain), lavas flowed across the lunar surface, forming

the maria and decorating the Moon’s face. Along with

the basalts came pyroclastic eruptions, high fountains of fire that launched glowing droplets of molten

basalt on flights up to a few hundred kilometers.

Since mare volcanism ceased, impact has been

the only geological force at work on the Moon. Some

impressive craters have been made, such as

Copernicus (90 km across) and Tycho (85 km).

These flung bright rays of material across the dark

lunar landscape, adding more decoration. In fact,

some of the material blasted from Tycho caused a

debris slide at what would become the Apollo 17

landing site. Samples from this site indicate that the

landslide and some associated craters formed about

110 million years ago. This, therefore, is the age of

the crater Tycho. It is a triumph of geological savvy

that we were able to date an impact crater that lies

over 2000 km from the place we landed!

Anatomy of an impact crater

The crater Tycho in the southern highlands on the lunar nearside is 85 kilometers

across. Its terraced walls rise 3 to 4 kilometers above its floor. Its rim rises above the

surrounding terrain, and its floor sits below it. Smooth material on the floor of the

crater consists of impact-melted rock that flowed like lava across the growing floor

in the later stages of excavation. In response to the huge increase then decrease in

pressure, mountains two kilometers high rose from its floor, bringing up material

from as much as ten kilometers in the crust. The blanket of material surrounding the

crater is called the ejecta blanket; this pile of debris becomes progressively thinner

away from the crater (especially evident on the left of the photo).

Although not visible on this photograph, large craters like Tycho also have rays

emanating from them. Rays form when materials thrown out of the crater land and

excavate more of the lunar landscape along arcuate paths. The Tycho event caused

a landslide and several secondary impacts at the Apollo 17 landing site, over 2000

kilometers away. Analysis of samples collected during the Apollo 17 mission indicates

that these events took place 110 million years ago. Thus, Tycho formed 110 million

years ago.

The impacts during the past billions of years also

have mixed the upper several meters of crust to make

the powdery lunar regolith. The Sun has continued to

implant a tiny amount of itself into the regolith,

giving us its cryptic record and providing resources

for future explorers. And recently, only seconds ago

in geologic time, a few interplanetary travelers left

their footprints here and there on the dusty ground.
14 Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ

THE MOON AND EARTH:

INEXORABLY INTERTWINED

The Moon ought to be especially alluring to

people curious about Earth. The two bodies formed

near each other, formed mantles and crusts early,

shared the same post-formational bombardment, and

have been bathed in the same flux of sunlight and

solar particles for the past 4.5 billion years. Here are

a few examples of the surprising ways in which lunar

science can contribute to understanding how Earth

works and to unraveling its geological history.

Origin of the Earth-Moon System. No matter how

the Moon formed, its creation must have had dramatic effects on Earth. Although most scientists have

concluded that the Moon formed as a result of an

enormous impact onto the growing Earth, we do not

know much about the details of that stupendous

event. We do not know if the Moon was made mostly

from Earth materials or mostly projectile, the kinds

of chemical reactions that would have taken place in

the melt-vapor cloud, and precisely how the Moon

was assembled from this cloud.

Magma oceans. The concept that the Moon had a

magma ocean has been a central tenet of lunar science since it sprung from fertile minds after the

return of the first lunar samples in 1969. It is now

being applied to Earth, Mars, and asteroids. This

view of the early stages of planet development is

vastly different from the view in the 1950s and

1960s. Back then, most (not all) scientists believed

the planets assembled cold, and then heated up. The

realization that the Moon had a magma ocean changed

all that and has led to a whole new way of looking at

Earth’s earliest history.

Early bombardment history of Earth and Moon.

The thousands of craters on the Moon’s surface

chronicle the impact record of Earth. Most of the

craters formed before 3.9 billion years ago. Some

scientists argue that the Moon suffered a cataclysmic

bombardment (a drastic increase in the number of

impacting projectiles) between 3.85 and 4.0 billion

years ago. If this happened and Earth was subjected

to the blitzkrieg as well, then development of Earth’s

earliest crust would have been affected. The intense

bombardment could also have influenced the development of life, perhaps delaying its appearance.

Impacts, extinctions, and the evolution of life on

Earth. The mechanisms of evolution and mass

extinctions are not understood. One possibility is that

some mass-extinction events were caused by periodic increases in the rate of impact on Earth. For

example, the mass extinctions, which included the

demise of the dinosaurs, at the end of the Cretaceous

period (65 million years ago), may have been caused

by a large impact event. Attempts to test the idea by

dating impact craters on Earth are doomed because

there are too few of them. But the Moon has plenty

of craters formed during the past 600 million years

(the period for which we have a rich fossil record).

These could be dated and the reality of spikes in the

impact record could be tested.

How geologic processes operate. The Moon is a

natural laboratory for the study of some of the geologic processes that have shaped Earth. It is a great

place to study the details of how impact craters form

because there are so many well-preserved craters in

an enormous range of sizes. It is also one of the places

where volcanism has operated, but at lower gravity

than on either Earth or Mars.

LIFE AND WORK AT

A MOON BASE

People will someday return to the Moon. When

they do, it will be to stay. They will build a base on

the Moon, the first settlement in the beginning of an

interplanetary migration that will eventually take

them throughout the Solar System.

There will be lots to do at a lunar base. Geologists

will study the Moon with the intensity and vigor

they do on Earth, with emphasis on field studies.

Astronomers will make magnificent observations of

the universe. Solar scientists will study the solar

wind directly and investigate past activity trapped in

layers of regolith. Writers and artists will be inspired

by a landscape so different from Earth’s. Life scientists will study how people adapt to a gravity field

one-sixth as strong as Earth’s, and figure out how to

grow plants in lunar greenhouses. Engineers will

investigate how to keep a complex facility operating

continuously in a hostile environment. Mining and

chemical engineers will determine how to extract

resources from Moon rocks and regolith. The seemingly dry lunar surface contains plenty of the ingredients to support life at a Moon base (oxygen and

hydrogen for water, nitrogen and carbon for the

growth of plants), including the construction
Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ 15

Geology at a Moon Base

The best geology is done in the field. To understand rocks we must examine them up close, map their distributions, see the

structures in them, and chip off samples when necessary. The field geology done during the Apollo missions was hampered

by the lack of time the astronauts could devote to it. But that will change when people live permanently on the Moon.

Geologists will be able to spend as much time as they need to decipher the story recorded by lunar rock formations. This

painting shows three astronauts (one in the distance) examining the outside of a lava tube, an underground conduit that

carried red-hot lava to an eruption site perhaps hundreds of kilometers away.

materials to build and maintain the base (regolith

can be molded into bricks; iron, titanium, and aluminum can be smelted and forged into tools and building materials). It will be an exciting, high-tech,

faraway place inhabited by adventurous souls. [See

the Unit 3 activities beginning on Page 99.]

WHERE MOON ROCKS

HANG OUT

Since arrival on Earth, lunar samples have been

treated with the respect they deserve. Most of the

treasure of Apollo is stored at the Lunar Curatorial

Facility at the Johnson Space Center, Houston, Texas.

A small percentage is stored in an auxiliary facility at

Brooks Air Force Base near San Antonio, Texas,

placed there in case a disaster, such as a hurricane,

befalls Houston and the samples are destroyed. Many

small samples are also in the laboratories of investigators around the world, where enthusiastic scientists keep trying to wring out the Moon’s secrets.

The Curatorial Facility is one of the cleanest

places you’ll ever see. To

go inside, you must wear

white suits, boots, hats, and

gloves, outfits affectionately known as “bunny

suits.” Wipe a gloved hand

on a stainless steel cabinet

and you will not find a

trace of dust because the

air is filtered to remove

potential contaminating

particles.

The samples are stored

in a large vault, and only

one at a time is moved to a

glove box. You can pick

up the rocks by jamming

your hands into a pair of

the black rubber gloves,

allowing you to turn a rock

over, to sense its mass and

density, to connect with it.

A stereomicroscope allows you to look at it

closely. If you decide you

need a sample, and of course you have been approved

to obtain one, then expert lunar sample processors

take over. The sample is photographed before and

after the new sample is chipped off. This is time

consuming, but valuable to be sure we know the

relationships of all samples to each other. In many

cases, we can determine the orientation a specific

part of a rock was in on the surface of the Moon

before collection.

A select small number of pieces of the Moon are

on display in public museums, and only three pieces

can actually be touched. These so-called lunar

"touchstones" were all cut from the same Apollo 17

basaltic rock. One touchstone is housed at the

Smithsonian Air and Space Museum in Washington,

D.C. Another touchstone is at the Space Center

Houston facility adjacent to the Johnson Space Center. A third touchstone is on long-term loan to the

Museo de Las Ciencias at the Universidad Nacional

Autonoma de Mexico. Visitors to these exhibits

marvel at the unique experience of touching a piece

of the Moon with their bare hands.
16 Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ

Safe haven for precious rocks

NASA stores the lunar sample collection in a specially constructed facility called the Lunar Curatorial

Facility at the Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas. The priceless materials remain in a nitrogen

atmosphere, which is far less reactive chemically than normal oxygen-rich air. Scientists working in the

facility wear lint-free outfits affectionately known as “bunny suits,” and handle the samples in glove

boxes. In this photograph, Roberta Score is examining a piece of an Apollo 16 rock, while Andrea Mosie

(left) looks on.

SCIENTISTS AS POETS

Scientists do not view the world in purely objective ways.

Each has biases and a unique way of looking at the world. Science

is not done solely with piles of data, hundreds of graphs, or pages

of equations. It is done with the heart and soul, too. Sometimes

a scientist is moved to write about it in elegant prose like that

written by Loren Eisley or in poetry, like the poem written by

Professor Carlé Pieters of Brown University. Dr. Pieters holds

her doctorate from MIT and is an expert in remote sensing of

planetary surfaces. She is especially well known for her telescopic observations of the Moon. The poem first appeared in the

frontispiece of Origin of the Moon, published by the Lunar and

Planetary Institute.

The Original Moon

Four and a half æons ago

a dark, dusty cloud deformed.

Sun became star; Earth became large,

and Moon, a new world, was born.

This Earth/Moon pair, once linked so close,

would later be forced apart.

Images of young intimate ties

we only perceive in part.

Both Earth and Moon were strongly stripped

of their mantle siderophiles.

But Moon alone was doomed to thirst

from depletion of volatiles.

Moon holds secrets of ages past

when planets dueled for space.

As primordial crust evolved

raw violence reworked Moon’s face.

After the first half billion years

huge permanent scars appeared;

ancient feldspathic crust survived

with a mafic mantle mirror.

But then there grew from half-lived depths

a new warmth set free inside.

Rivers and floods of partial melt

resurfaced the low ‘frontside’.

Thus evolved the Original Moon

in those turbulent times.

Now we paint from fragments of clues

the reasons and the rhymes:

Sister planet;

Modified clone;

Captured migrant;

Big splash disowned?

The Truth in some or all of these

will tickle, delight,

temper, and tease.

— Carlé Pieters
Moon ABCs Fact Sheet

Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ 17

 Property Earth Moon Brain Busters

Equatorial 12,756 km 3,476 km

diameter

Surface area 510 million 37.8 million

square km square km

Mass 5.98 x 1024 kg 7.35 x 1022 kg

Volume --- ---

Density 5.52 grams per 3.34 grams per

cubic cm cubic cm

Surface 9.8 m/sec/sec 1.63 m/sec/sec

gravity

Crust Silicate rocks. Silicate rocks.

Continents Highlands

dominated by dominated by

granites. Ocean feldspar-rich

crust dominated rocks and maria

by basalt. by basalt.

Mantle Silicate rocks Similar to Earth.

dominated by

minerals

containing iron

and magnesium.

How long would it take to drive

around the Moon's equator at

80 km per hour?

The Moon's surface area is

similar to that of one of Earth's

continents. Which one?

What percentage of Earth's mass

is the Moon's mass?

Can you calculate the volumes of

Earth and the Moon?

Check this by calculating the

density from the mass and

volume.

What fraction of Earth's gravity is

the Moon's gravity?

What portion of each body is

crust?

Collect some silicate rocks and

determine the density. Is the

density greater or lesser than the

Earth/Moon's density? Why?
Moon ABCs Fact Sheet

18 Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ

 Property Earth Moon Brain Busters

Iron, nickel metal

Silicon and

oxygen bound in

minerals that

contain water,

plus organic

materials.

78 % nitrogen,

21 % oxygen

23.93 hours

Air temperature

ranges from

-88oC (winter in

polar regions) to

58oC (summer in

tropical regions).

25 % land

(seven continents)

with varied terrain

of mountains,

plains, river valleys. Ocean floor

characterized by

mountains, plains.

Same, but core is

much smaller

Silicon and oxygen

bound in minerals,

glass produced by

meteorite impacts,

small amounts of

gases (e.g., hydrogen)

implanted by the solar

wind. No water or

organic materials.

Basically none. Some

carbon gases (CO2 ,

CO, and methane),

but very little of them.

Pressure is about onetrillionth of Earth's

atmospheric pressure.

27.3 Earth days

Surface temperature

ranges from -193oC

(night in polar

 regions) to 111oC

(day in equatorial

regions).

84 % heavily-cratered

highlands.

16 % basalt-covered

maria.

Impact craters--

some with bright rays,

crater chains, and

rilles.

Core

Sediment or

Regolith

Atmosphere

(main

constituents)

Length of day

 (sidereal

 rotation

 period)

Surface

temperature

Surface

features

What portion of each body is

core?

Do you think life ever existed

on the Moon?

Why or why not?

Could you breathe the lunar

atmosphere?

How long does daylight last

on the Moon?

Why are the temperatures of

Earth and the Moon so

different?

Compare maps of Earth and

the Moon. Is there any

evidence that plate tectonics

operated on the Moon?
Rock ABCs Fact Sheet

Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ 19

What are minerals?

Minerals are naturally occurring solids that have definite chemical compositions and

are crystalline. Crystals are individual pieces of minerals. The most important characteristic of crystals is the orderly internal arrangement of atoms. This internal order causes the

beautiful crystal shapes.

MINERAL ELEMENTS APPEARANCE IN MOON ROCKS

Plagioclase feldspar calcium (Ca), aluminum, Whitish to translucent grayish; usually occurs as

silicon (Si), Oxygen (O) grains longer than they are wide.

Pyroxene iron (Fe), magnesium, Brown to black; grains usually longer than wide

(Mg), calcium (Ca), in mare basalts, somewhat squarish in highland

silicon (Si), oxygen (O) rocks.

Olivine iron (Fe), magnesium Greenish; usually occurs as roundish crystals.

(Mg), silicon (Si),

oxygen (O)

Ilmenite iron (Fe), titanium (Ti), Black, elongated to squarish crystals.

oxygen (O)

What are rocks?

Rocks are naturally occurring solids composed of one or more minerals. At least

two abundant minerals usually occur in a rock, along with several others. The minerals are

intergrown in intricate ways that depend on how the rock formed. Rocks are classified on

the basis of the abundance of the minerals they contain, sizes of individual crystals, and

the process that formed the rocks.

Approximate mineral abundances (percents) in Moon rocks

Plagioclase Pyroxene Olivine Ilmenite

Highland rocks

Anorthosite 90% 5% 5% 0%

Norite 60% 35% 5% 0%

Troctolite 60% 5% 35% 0%

Mare basalts

High-titanium 30% 54% 3% 18%

Low-titanium 30% 60% 5% 5%

Very-low titanium 35% 55% 8% 2%
Progress in Lunar Science

20 Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ

 Rock Ages Unknown Uncertain, but probably Highlands: older than Highlands: most

ancient (more than a 3.9 billion years. igneous rocks older

few billion years). Maria: 3.2 - 3.7 billion than 4.1 billion years,

years. with anorthosites 4.4

billion years.

Maria: some as young

as about 2 billion

years others as old as

4.3 billion years.

 Magma Ocean Not even conceived. No progress. Highlands formed from Anorthosites formed

huge magma system from magma ocean;

more than 300km deep. other highland rocks

formed after that.

 Topic 1959 View Early 1969 View Post-Apollo View 1997 View

 1975

 Surface Volcanic ash, impact Probably impact debris, Impact debris derived Regolith formation now

 Material debris, fluffy dust. but other ideas not from underlying rock modeled by computer.

ruled out. layer or bare rock?

 Craters Impact or volcanic? Majority impact; Almost all impact; More is known about

unknown percentage many rocks affected how material is thrown

of volcanic origin. by impacts. out of a growing crater.

 Maria Impact or volcanic? Probably volcanic. Definitely volcanic. Better understanding

of eruption conditions.

 Composition of Unknown Probably basalt. Definitely basalt. Wide variety of basalt

 Maria types.

 Composition of Unknown Probably rocks with Rocks high in Wide variety of rock

 Highlands more aluminum and aluminum with large types, but all containless iron than mare percentages of ing more aluminum

basalt. feldspar. than mare basalt.

 Composition of Unknown Mare areas less Highlands similar to Highlands containing

 Farside abundant than on the nearside highlands. rocks rich in

nearside. aluminum.

 Composition of Unknown No progress. High content of olivine Amounts and compo-

 Mantle and pyroxene. sition of olivine and

pyroxene vary.

 Volatiles Unknown, though No progress. Moon contains no There might be water

 (such as water) some scientists thought water or organic com- brought in by comets

 and Organic water had flowed on pounds, and other and trapped in very

 Compounds Moon's surface. volatiles much lower cold places at the

than on Earth. South Pole.

 Origin Captured, derived from No progress. Moon and Earth Giant impact on Earth,

Earth, or dual planet? probably related, so followed by formation

capture idea less likely. of Moon in Earth orbit.

 Nature of Core Smaller than Earth's. No progress. Smaller than 500 km. Smaller than 250 km.
my notes Nearside of the Moon

Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ 21

*

*

** *

*

17

11

15

12 16

14

Apollo LandingSites
22 Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ
Unit 1

Pre-Apollo Activities

Distance to the Moon

Diameter of the Moon

Reaping Rocks

Before Apollo 11 astronauts Neil A. Armstrong and Edwin E. “Buzz” Aldrin Jr.

stepped on the Moon on July 20, 1969, people had studied the Moon by eye,

telescope, and images from spacecraft. The theme of Unit 1 is a basic introduction

to the Moon -- how it looks from Earth, how far away it is, and how big it is. The

activities allow students to make comparisons between the Moon and Earth as well

as to make predictions about the Moon rocks.

Encourage students to sketch and describe nightly observations of the Moon and

keep a written record of date and time. Nightly charting of the Moon helps students

recognize Moon phases as well as the bright and dark terrains.

Scale models and proportional relationships are featured in the first two activities.

The “Distance to the Moon” and “Diameter of the Moon” activities introduce

students to techniques of measuring distances in space indirectly.

This unit also includes an activity to collect and study rocks called “Reaping

Rocks.” This activity should follow a more comprehensive lesson on basic rock

and mineral identification. The activity also extends learning to the Moon and asks

students to predict how their rock collections will compare with lunar samples.

A Resource Section for Unit 1 is on Page 24.

Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ 23
Unit 1

24

Resource Section

Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ

Lunar Phase Calendars

Celestial Products

P.O. Box 801

Middleburg, VA 22117

1-800-235-3783 or FAX 1-703-338-4042

Earth Rock Sample Sets

Ward's Natural Science Establishment, Inc.

P.O. Box 92912

Rochester, NY 14692-9012

1-800-962-2660

Slides

Glorious Eclipses slide set

Astronomical Society of the Pacific

390 Ashton Ave.

San Francisco, CA 94112

1-415-337-2624

Other Teacher's Guides

Exploring Meteorite Mysteries: Teacher's Guide

with Activities, NASA EG-1997-08-104-HQ.

M. Lindstrom et. al., 1997

Companion volume available from NASA Educator

Resource Centers or CORE (refer to Page 146 of

this book.)

Return to the Moon: Moon Activities Teacher's

Guide, 1990

Challenger Center for Space Science Education

1101 King Street, Suite 190

Alexandria, VA 22314

1-703-683-9740

Maps

The Earth's Moon by National Geographic Society.

Wall map showing nearside and farside. Also includes graphics with captions explaining eclipses,

lunar phases, tides, and other phenomena. U.S. and

Soviet landing/impact sites are shown. The reverse

side has an index of lunar named features and

selected photographs from the Apollo missions.

National Geographic Society

Educational Services, Department 91

Washington, D.C. 20036

1-800-368-2728 or FAX 1-301-921-1575

Giant Moon Map by Rand McNally. Wall map

showing the nearside. Contact Rand McNally directly, or order it through:

Astronomical Society of the Pacific

390 Ashton Ave.

San Francisco, CA 94112

1-415-337-2624

Maps of Earth, Moon, Mars, etc.

U.S. Geological Survey Map Sales

Box 25286

Denver Federal Center

Denver, CO 80225

303-236-7477

(Ask for Customer Service)

Globes

Edmund Scientific Co.

101 E. Gloucester Pike

Barrington, NJ 08007-1380

1-609-573-6270 or FAX 1-609-573-6295

This list presents possible independent and commercial sources of items to complement the activities in Unit

1. The sources are offered without recommendation or endorsement by NASA. Inquiries should be made

directly to the appropriate source to determine availability, cost, and ordering information before sending

money. Contact your NASA Educator Resource Center (see Page 146) for more lists of resources available

directly from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration.
Distance to the Moon

25

Teacher Page

Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ

Purpose

To calculate the distance between scale models of

Earth and the Moon.

Background

As long as people have looked at the Moon, they have wondered how far away it is

from Earth. The average distance to the Moon is 382,500 km. The distance varies

because the Moon travels around Earth in an elliptical orbit. At perigee, the point at

which the Moon is closest to Earth, the distance is approximately 360,000 km. At

apogee, the point at which the Moon is farthest from Earth, the distance is approximately 405,000 km.

Distance from Earth to the Moon for a given date can be obtained by asking a local

planetarium staff. Students interested in astronomy may enjoy looking at The

Astronomical Almanac printed yearly by the U.S. Government printing office.

When the Apollo 11 crew landed on the Moon on July 20, 1969, they were

393,309 km away from home.

In this activity students will use simple sports balls as scale models of Earth and the

Moon. Given the astronomical distance between Earth and the Moon, students will

determine the scale of the model system and the distance that must separate the two

models.

The “Moon ABCs Fact Sheet” lists the Earth's diameter as 12,756 km and the Moon's

diameter as 3,476 km. Therefore, the Moon's diameter is 27.25% of Earth's diameter.

An official basketball has a diameter of 24 cm. This can serve as a model for Earth. A

tennis ball has a diameter of 6.9 cm which is close to 27.25% of the basketball. (The

tennis ball is actually 28.8% the size of the basketball.) These values are very close to

the size relationship between Earth and the Moon. The tennis ball, therefore, can be

used as a model of the Moon.

The scale of the model system is determined by setting the diameter of the basketball

equal to the diameter of Earth. This is written as a simple relationship shown below:

24 cm = 12,756 km

Expressed more simply, 1 cm in the model system equals 531.5 km in space:

1 cm = 531.5 km
Distance to the Moon

26

Teacher Page

Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ

Using this scale, the basketball-tennis ball separation in centimeters (x) is derived:

x = 382,500 km = 719.7 cm

 531.5 km

The value x may be rounded to 720 cm and converted to meters so that the students

need to place the basketball and tennis ball 7.2 m apart.

Preparation

Review and prepare materials listed on the student sheet.

If it is not possible to obtain an official-size basketball and tennis ball, then you can use

other spherical objects or circles drawn on paper. Clay balls may be used as models.

For example, for two clay balls, 10 cm diameter and 2.7 cm diameter, the scale is

1 cm = 1,275.6 km. At this scale, students need to separate the clay balls by 3 m.

In Class

Divide the students into cooperative groups. Students must keep track of units of

measure.

Wrap Up

Did the students have an accurate idea of the size relationship between Earth and the

Moon before doing this activity?

Did the effect of separating the scale models help them visualize the distance to the

Moon?

Extensions

1. How long did it take Apollo astronauts to travel to the Moon?

2. Have students measure the circumferences of various spheres so that each group uses

a different pair of models.

3. Instead of using the average distance to the Moon, use the distance from

July 20, 1969, to recall the Apollo 11 landing or use the distance for today.
Distance to the Moon

Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ 27

1. If Earth were the size of an official basketball, then

the Moon would be the size of: another basketball? soccer ball? baseball? tennis ball? golf

ball? marble?

2. The diameter of Earth in kilometers is:

3. The diameter of the Moon in kilometers is:

4. What percentage of Earth's diameter is the Moon's

diameter?

5. Use the list below to change or confirm your

answer to Question 1.

diameter in cm

official basketball 24

size 5 soccer ball 22

official baseball 7.3

tennis ball 6.9

golf ball 4.3

marble 0.6

If Earth is a basketball, then the Moon is a:

Key Word Procedure

scale

Materials

Purpose

To calculate the distance between scale models of

Earth and the Moon.

“Moon ABCs Fact Sheet”

sports balls

calculator

meter tape
Distance to the Moon

28 Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ

6. Use an official basketball as a model of Earth. Use a second

ball, the one you determined from Question 5, as a model of the

Moon.

7. Determine the scale of your model system by setting the

diameter of the basketball equal to the diameter of Earth.

 cm = km therefore,

 1 cm = km

8. If the distance to the Moon from Earth is 382,500 km, then how

far apart must you separate the two scale models to accurately

depict the Earth/Moon system?

Using the scale value in the box from Step 7, the model separation in centimeters (x) is derived:

x = actual distance to the Moon in kilometers

 scale value in kilometers

 x =

 x = centimeters

The two scale models must be separated by meters.

9. Set up your scale model of the Earth/Moon system. Does it fit

in your classroom?
Diameter of the Moon

29

Teacher Page

Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ

Purpose

To calculate the diameter of the Moon using

proportions.

Background

The diameter of the Moon is proportional to the diameter of a cardboard disk, given that

you know the distance to the Moon and the distance to the cardboard disk.

The relationship is:

d D

 l L

so that:

 D = L(d/l)

where D = diameter of Moon

 d = diameter of cardboard disk

 L = distance to Moon

 l = distance to cardboard disk

In this activity, students will measure d and l. They will be given L.

They will calculate D.

The diameter of the Moon (D) is 3,476 km.

Preparation

Review and prepare materials listed on the student sheet.

Choose a day and location for this activity which is best for viewing a full Moon.

A cardboard disk of 2 cm diameter works well. Better accuracy may be achieved by

using a larger disk, thus a greater distance l. However, if obtaining or cutting cardboard

is difficult, then this activity can also be done with dimes. A dime held out at arm's

length will cover the Moon.

The distance from Earth to the Moon for a given date can be obtained by asking a local

planetarium staff, Or for this activity, students may use an average value of

382,500 km.
Diameter of the Moon

30

Teacher Page

Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ

In Class

If students work in pairs, then one student can use the string to measure distance from

their partner's eye to the disk.

The same units do not have to be used on both sides of the equation, but d and l have to

be the same units. The D will be the same unit as L.

Wrap-Up

To compute the density of the Moon use the diameter to compute volume and use the

mass value of 7.35 x 1022 kg.

Density of the Moon is 3.34 grams/cubic cm.
Diameter of the Moon

Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ 31

1. On a day when you can see the Moon: place a

cardboard disk on top of a stake or on a

window sill so that it exactly covers the Moon

from your point of view behind the cardboard

disk.

2. Have a friend measure the distance from

your eye to the cardboard disk.

Call this distance l and write the value here:

l =

3. The distance from Earth to the Moon varies

between 360,000 km and 405,000 km. Find the

distance for today’s date or use an average value

for your calculations of 382,500 km.

Write the value that you are going to use here:

L =

4. What is the diameter of the cardboard disk?

d =

5. The diameter of the Moon is proportional to the

diameter of your cardboard disk by this equation:

d D

l L so that, D = L(d/l)

where: D = diameter of Moon

 d = diameter of cardboard disk

 L = distance to Moon

 l = distance to cardboard disk

Key Words Procedure

proportional

Materials

Purpose

To calculate the diameter of the Moon using

proportions.

2-cm wide cardboard disk

wooden stake (optional)

meter stick

calculator

string
Diameter of the Moon

32 Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ

Results

1. By your calculations, the diameter of the Moon is:

 D =

2. Compare your result with the accepted diameter of the Moon.

 How close did you get?

3. How many times smaller is the diameter of the Moon than the

 diameter of Earth?

4. When you calculated the diameter of the Moon, did you have to

 use the same units on both sides of the equation?

5. How and where could you find the value for the distance to the

 Moon for today's date?

6. What else would you need to know to compute the density of the

 Moon? Try it.
Reaping Rocks

Teacher Page

Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ 33

Purpose

Background[also see “Teacher's Guide” Pages 6, 7, photo on15,16]

Geologists are scientists who study the formation, structure, history, and processes

(internal and on the surface) that change Earth and other planetary bodies.

Rocks and the minerals in them give geologists key information about the events in a

planet’s history. By collecting, describing and classifying rocks, we can learn how the

rocks were formed and what processes have changed them.

Geologists classify rocks into three types:

Igneous - rock formed when magma cools and hardens either below the surface (for

example, granite) or on the surface during volcanic events (for example, basalt).

Sedimentary - rock formed by the collection, compaction, and cementation of mineral

grains, rock fragments, and sand that are moved by wind, water, or ice to the site of deposition.

Metamorphic - rock formed when heat and/or pressure deep within the planet changes

the mineral composition and grain size of existing rocks. For example, metamorphism

changes limestone into marble.

We find all three rock types on Earth’s surface and the rocks are constantly changing

(recycling), very slowly because of heat, pressure, and exposure to weather and erosion.

The Moon's surface is dominated by igneous rocks. The lunar highlands are formed of

anorthosite, an igneous rock predominantly of calcium-rich plagioclase feldspar.

The lunar maria are made of layers of basaltic lava, not unlike the basaltic flows of the

Columbia River Plateau or of Iceland. The orange glass found on the Moon’s surface is

another product of volcanic activity. Moon rocks are not exposed to weather nor are they

eroded by wind, water, or ice. The Apollo astronaut’s footprints are as fresh as the day

they were made.

Preparation

Review and prepare materials listed on the student sheet. Spend time familiarizing the

students with rock and mineral identification.

To make predictions about the origin of lunar rocks by

first collecting, describing, and classifying neighborhood rocks.
Reaping Rocks

Teacher Page

34 Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ

Students may need more than one copy of “My Own Rock Chart” because it has spaces

for only three samples. You may want to collect empty egg cartons, small boxes, or

trays that the students could decorate themselves to display their rocks. Use of magnifying lenses or a stereo microscope would greatly enhance observations.

“Moon ABCs Fact Sheet” may come in handy during the wrap-up when students try to

make predictions about the Moon rocks.

In Class

Talk about the qualities of rocks that we can describe: shape, size, color, texture, and the place

where it was found. Then discuss the three rock classifications emphasizing that geologists

classify rocks and interpret the origins of rocks based on their observations.

Encourage students to collect a variety of rocks with different colors and textures from

your own locality, if possible. Remind them to choose naturally occurring materials

not cement or brick fragments! If it is not possible to collect rocks from the neighborhood, then try to obtain a commerically available set of common rocks. More than one

student may choose the same rock. Students could also cut out pictures of rocks from

magazines or study pictures of rocks in text books.

After each rock has been labeled with owner’s name and location where it was found,

have the students look carefully at the rock. To help them train their eyes, ask questions

like: What colors do you see? Do you see grains? Are the grains large or small? Does

the rock look glassy? Or does the rock show a banding pattern? Does the rock look

frothy with a lot of holes? Do you see pebbles cemented together? Does the rock contain fossils?

Ask students to describe their rocks with as many adjectives or descriptive phrases as

possible. Have the students classify the rocks as igneous, sedimentary, or metamorphic,

and then try to interpret the rock origins. “My Own Rock Chart” is designed to help

organize their observations and interpretations.

Wrap-up

Conclude the activity by challenging the students to predict what the lunar rocks look

like and the possible origins based on what they have just learned about Earth rocks and

based on the material in the “Moon ABCs Fact Sheet.”

Display these rock collections and keep them until the students have a chance to compare with the lunar samples in “The Lunar Disk” activity on Page 39.
Reaping Rocks

Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ 35

Key Words Procedure

geologist

mineral

rock

igneous

sedimentary

metamorphic

Materials

Purpose

1. Display your rocks on a tray or egg carton,

and label each one with the location of where

you found it.

2. Look carefully at each rock with and without a

magnifying lens or stereo microscope.

What details can you see under magnification?

3. Describe what you see by filling out “My Own

Rock Chart.” Use as many adjectives or

descriptive phrases as you can.

4. Classify your rocks as igneous, sedimentary or

metamorphic. Try to interpret how your rocks

were formed; that is, the origins. Add this

information to your chart.

5. Now, based on your chart and the “Moon

ABCs Fact Sheet,” predict what the Moon

 rocks will look like.

6. How do you think the different Moon rocks might

 have formed?

To make predictions about the origin of lunar rocks

by first collecting, describing, and classifying neighborhood rocks.

rocks

empty egg carton, box, or

other collection tray

labels

magnifying lens or stereo

microscope

“My Own Rock Chart”

“Moon ABCs Fact Sheet”
Interpretations Observations

Classification

Texture

Colors

Size

Shape

My Own Rock Chart

Collection Site

 Rock Sketch

Origin
Unit 2

The U.S. Space Program called Apollo achieved monumental goals including the

collection and return of rock and sediment samples from the Moon. Analyses of the

samples by scientists worldwide continue to give us new insight to the forces that

shaped the early solar system, the Moon, and maybe most importantly, Earth. This

excitement of discovery, a legacy of the Apollo program, is the theme of Unit 2.

The highlight of this unit is the Lunar Sample Disk. Classroom activities focus on the

Moon's rocks, surface features, and the geologic processes that formed them. Students

are then given the opportunity to plan their own lunar missions in the “Lunar Landing

Sites” and “Lunar Roving Vehicle” activities. The last activity of the unit presents four

anomalies of the Moon for investigation and interpretation.

A Resource Section for Unit 2 is on Page 38.

Learning from Apollo

The Lunar Disk

Apollo Landing Sites

Regolith Formation

Lunar Surface

Differentiation

Impact Craters

Clay Lava Flows

Lava Layering

Lunar Landing Sites

Lunar Roving Vehicle

Moon Anomalies

Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ 37
Unit 2

Resource Section

This list presents possible independent and commercial sources of items to complement the activities in Unit

2. The sources are offered without recommendation or endorsement by NASA. Materials from the U.S.

Government Printing Office also are included. Inquiries should be made directly to the appropriate source

to determine availability, cost, and ordering information before sending money. Contact your NASA

Educator Resource Center (see Page 146) for more resources available directly from NASA.

38 Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ

Apollo and the Moon Landing, by Gregory Vogt,

1991, Millbrook Press, 112 p. An illustrated text

in the Missions in Space Series for grades 4-6.

Slides

The Apollo Landing Sites, set of 40 slides

Lunar and Planetary Institute

3600 Bay Area Boulevard

Houston, TX 77058-1113

phone 1-281-486-2172 or fax 1-281-486-2186

Videos

Out of This World: The Apollo Moon Landings,

Finley-Holiday Film Corp./Steve Skootsky, 1993,

60 minutes. Historically accurate video using newly

restored NASA footage. Finley-Holiday Film Corp.

P.O. Box 619

Whittier, CA 90608

phone 1-800-345-6707

Rockets and Models

Estes Industries

P.O. Box 227

Penrose, CO 81240

Other Teacher's Guides

Exploring Meteorite Mysteries: Teacher's Guide

with Activities, NASA EG-1997-08-104-HQ.

Marilyn Lindstrom et. al., 1997.

Rockets: Physical Science Teacher's Guide with

Activities, NASA EP-291.

Gregory L. Vogt, 1993.

Books

Apollo Over the Moon: A View From Orbit,

NASA SP-362, 1978, 255 p. Annotated picture

book of lunar geologic features. U.S. Government

Printing Office, Superintendent of Documents

P.O. Box 371954

Pittsburgh, PA 15250-7054

phone 1-202-783-3238

Apollo Expeditions to the Moon, NASA SP-250,

1975, 313 p. Illustrated chronicle of the Apollo

missions with a focus on the engineering and teamwork that made the missions possible.

U.S. Government Printing Office, same as above.

The Moon, by Patrick Moore, 1981, Rand McNally

and Co., 96 p. Illustrated with maps, drawings, and

Apollo mission photographs. Also gives descriptions

of unmanned missions including Russian Luna probes.

To Rise From Earth: An Easy to Understand

Guide to Space Flight, by Wayne Lee, 1993, Texas

Space Grant Consortium (ISBN 0-9637400-3-2),

279 p. Detailed, non-mathematical discussions of

orbital mechanics, Apollo missions, and the Shuttle.

To A Rocky Moon: A Geologist's History of

Lunar Exploration, by Don E. Wilhelms, 1993,

Univ. of Arizona Press, 477 p.

Carrying the Fire: An Astronaut's Journeys, by

Michael Collins, 1974, Ballantine Books, 488p. p.
The Lunar Disk

Teacher Page

Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ 39

Purpose

Background [also see "Teacher's Guide" Pages 1, 4-9, photo on

15, 16 and "About the Lunar Sample Disk" on Page iv]

The six Apollo missions that landed astronauts on the Moon returned a collection of

rocks and sediment samples weighing 382 kilograms and consisting of more than

2,000 separate samples.

Each lunar disk contains six small samples of lunar material. Descriptions of the samples

accompany every disk; included are annotated color photographs, discussion of origins,

and Apollo missions and collection sites.

Preparation

First, do the “Reaping Rocks” activity on Page 33 or spend time on a basic unit on rock

and mineral identification.

Read the rock descriptions provided with the Lunar Sample Disk.

Review and prepare materials listed on the student sheet.

Each student will need two copies of the “Lunar Disk Sample Chart,” there is room for

three samples per page. Use of magnifying lenses or a stereo microscope would greatly

enhance observations.

Have on hand the students' “My Own Rock Charts” for comparisons to the lunar samples.

You may also want to collect some sediment from the school yard to display on a glass

slide. Students could then compare this sediment to the lunar samples. Most likely,

evidence of life will be seen in the school yard sediment under magnification, including

plant matter, bits of plastic, fibers, etc.

In Class

The Lunar Sample Disk is a national treasure and students need to be reminded about the

proper way to handle it. The disk must be in your sight during use.

Encourage students to describe the samples with as many adjectives or descriptive

phrases as possible. The “Lunar Disk Sample Chart” will help students organize their

observations and interpretations.

To carefully look at, describe, and learn about the

origins of the six lunar samples contained in the disk.
The Lunar Disk

Teacher Page

40 Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ

Note: The name of each sample is labeled on the disk and may be entered on the chart

under classification. The sediment samples, instead of being labeled regolith, are labeled "soil." Remined the students this is a misnomer because there are no organic

materials in lunar regolith.

Ask the students if their predictions of the Moon rocks were accurate.

Wrap-Up

By comparing the lunar samples with their own rock collections, students can discuss

the similarities and differences between Earth and Moon rocks. Discuss the various

ways that rocks are formed on Earth and the Moon.
The Lunar Disk

Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ 41

Lunar Disk

magnifying lens or stereo

microscope

“Lunar Disk Sample Chart”

“My Own Rock Chart”

“Moon ABCs Fact Sheet”

Key Words Procedure

anorthosite

mare basalt

orange “soil”

breccia

mare “soil”

highland “soil”

Materials

Purpose

1. Look at each lunar sample with and without a

magnifying lens or stereo microscope.

What details can you see under magnification?

2. Describe what you see by filling out “Lunar

Disk Sample Chart.” Use as many adjectives

or descriptive phrases as you can.

3. Do the Moon rocks look like what you expected?

4. Which lunar samples closely resemble rocks from

 your collection?

5. Based on your comparisons of Earth and Moon

 rocks, what can you now say about the origins of

 the lunar samples contained in the disk? Add this

 information to your chart.

6. Which rock types on Earth are not found in the

 lunar samples? Why?

To carefully look at, describe, and learn about the

origins of the six lunar samples contained in the disk.

 Caution

The only way to handle

the Lunar Sample Disk is

with care.

Always place it on the

soft cloth to prevent

scratchs to the surface.

The disk must always be

in the teacher's sight.

Care for and enjoy this

national treasure.
Lunar Disk Sample Chart

Interpretations Observations

Origin

Classification

Collection Site

Apollo Mission/

Texture

Colors

Size

Shape

 Sketch of Sample
Apollo Landing Sites

Teacher Page

Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ 43

Purpose

Background

Latitude and longitude coordinates for the Moon start at a point near the crater

Bruce. From this starting point (0o latitude, 0o longitude) locations towards the east side

of the Moon (the direction in which the sun rises) are indicated with east longitude

values. Locations towards the west side (the direction in which the sun sets) have west

longitude values. North latitude is measured towards the Moon's north pole. South

latitude is measured towards the Moon's south pole.

Twelve astronauts in six Apollo missions landed on and explored the nearside

(Earth-facing side) of the Moon between 1969 and 1972. The six landing sites were

chosen to explore different geologic terrains.

Refer to the rock descriptions included with the Lunar Sample Disk for details on where

the samples came from and who collected them. An answer chart is provided.

Preparation

Review and prepare materials listed on the student sheet.

See the Resource Section on Page 24 for sources of maps and globes.

In Class

Refer back to the Lunar Sample Disk to review the collection sites of each sample.

Ask students to consider the geologic differences of the six sites.

Wrap-up

Were the Apollo landing sites in similar terrains? Which crew was the first to work in

hilly terrain?

Extensions

1. Form cooperative teams to research each Apollo landing site (the who, what,

when, where, and why) and to report to the class.

2. Why were all six Apollo landing sites on the nearside of the Moon?

3. Why were there no further Apollo Moon landings?

4. Was Apollo the only program to land on the Moon? Discuss the unpiloted

American and Soviet missions and landings.

To learn about the locations and geology of the six

Apollo landing sites.
Apollo Landing Sites Chart

 23 Nov. 19, 1969 12 So W 3 

o

Mare (Ocean of Storms), rocks are basaltic lava;

ray from Copernicus Crater crosses the site.

 17 Jan. 31, 1971 14 So W 3 o

 23 July 20, 1969 11 N Mare (Sea of Tranquillity), basaltic lava.

o E 1 o

Highlands (Fra Mauro formation) - thought to be ejecta

from the Imbrium Basin.

 4 July 30, 1971 15 No E 26 o

Mare (Hadley Rille in a mare area near the margin of

Mare Imbrium) and highlands (Apennine Mountains, a

basalt. breccia and ring of the Imbrium basin); rocks are 

Highlands (Descartes formation and Cayley Plains);

highlands soil. anorthosite and rocks are 16 April 21, 1972 16 So E 9 o

 31 Dec. 11, 1972 17 No E 20 

o

 Mare (Sea of Serenity) and Highlands; rocks are

orange soil, basaltic lava, anorthosite. mare soil, 

 Apollo Mission Landing Date Longitude Latitude Major Geologic Features and Rock Types

 (rock types underlined are found in the Lunar Sample Disk) 44

Teacher Page

Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ
Apollo Landing Sites

Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ 45

Key Words Procedure

latitude

longitude

mare

highlands

Sea of Tranquillity

Ocean of Storms

Fra Mauro

Hadley-Appenine

Descartes

Sea of Serenity

Taurus-Littrow

Materials

Purpose

1. Look at a map of the Moon showing the Apollo

landing sites. Fill in the “Apollo Landing

Sites Chart.”

2. Find the landing sites on a globe of the Moon.

3. How do latitude and longitude compare on

 Earth and on the Moon?

4. Compare and contrast the six Apollo landing sites.

(Think about who, when, where, and geology for

your answer.)

5. Which site would you most like to visit? Why?

To learn about the locations and geology of the six

Apollo landing sites.

lunar maps with latitude

and longitude grid

“Apollo Landing Sites

Chart”

Moon globe
 Apollo Mission Landing Date Longitude Latitude Major Geologic Features a

Apollo Landing Sites Chart

50
Regolith Formation

47

Teacher Page

Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ

Purpose

To compare the process of regolith formation on Earth

and on the Moon.

Background [also see “Teacher's Guide” Pages 4, 5]

The loose, fragmental material on the Moon’s surface is called regolith. This regolith, a

product of meteoritic bombardment, is the debris thrown out of the impact craters.

The composition and texture of the lunar regolith varies from place to place depending on

the rock types impacted.

Generally, the older the surface, the thicker the regolith. The regolith on young maria

may be only 2 meters thick; whereas, it is perhaps 20 meters thick in the older lunar

highlands.

By contrast, regolith on Earth is a product of weathering. Weathering encompasses all

the processes that cause rocks to fragment, crack, crumble, or decay. These processes can

be physical (such as freezing water causing rocks to crack), chemical (such as decaying

of minerals in water or acids), and biological (such as plant roots widening cracks in

rocks).

The rock debris caused by weathering can then be loosened and carried away by erosional agents -- running water (fast-flowing rivers, rain, ocean waves), high-speed wind

(by itself or sandblasting), and ice (glaciers).

In this activity, procedures A and B challenge the students to determine the effects of

wind, sandblasting, and water on regolith formation and deposition on Earth. This is

followed by prodedure C in which the students simulate regolith formation on the Moon

by meteoritic bombardment.

Preparation

Review and prepare materials listed on the student sheet.

Toast, crackers, or brittle cookies can be used in this activity. Toast is the least expensive

but most time consuming choice. In any case, students will need two different colors of

materials for procedure C; for example, vanilla and chocolate graham crackers. Invariably, students get hungry at the sight of food, so you may want to reserve some clean

materials for consumption or use something other than a rock for the projectile.

To prepare bread: use a conventional oven, toaster, or sun-dry method to produce the

most crisp and brittle toast. Toast one loaf of white bread and one loaf of golden wheat or

rye bread. Note that whole wheat bread does not get brittle enough.
Regolith Formation

48

Teacher Page

Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ

For procedure B, fill margarine containers (one for each group) with water and sand,

then freeze. The more sand, the better the illusion to a real rock.

For procedure C, do not use glass pans. Large plastic tubs are preferred for this procedure, but recyclable aluminum roasting pans or shallow cardboard boxes work as well.

In Class

Divide the students into cooperative groups and distribute materials.

Discuss the definition of regolith. Have students guess how regolith is formed on Earth

and on the Moon. Ask students for justification.

If sand paper or nail files are not available, then students can use the edge of a ruler to

illustrate the effects of sandblasting in procedure A. Caution students to use a collection

tray in the sink in procedure B to avoid sand-clogged drains. An alternative to using a

faucet is to have the students pour a steady stream of water from beakers onto their icecube rocks to illustrate the effects of falling water.

Have students guess individually, then discuss in groups, what the surface of the Moon

is like (hard rocks, fine dust, large boulders). Ask students for justification of their

answers.

Refer to a photograph of an astronaut’s bootprint on the surface of the Moon. Give

students the opportunity to change or confirm their guesses.

Procedure C is best done outside. Drop the rock from waist high. Sometimes the impacting rock causes the pan to bounce so you may want to secure the pan to the ground

with tape. Students should stand back as a safety precaution.

Wrap-up

After participating in the activity, have the whole class compare and contrast regolith

formation and ask each small group to verify their original guesses.
Regolith Formation

Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ 49

Purpose

To compare and contrast the process of regolith

formation on Earth and on the Moon.

Key Words

regolith

meteoritic bombardment

weathering

erosion

Materials

toasted white bread

toasted golden wheat

bread

small pan

sand paper, nail file, or

edge of ruler

ice cube with sand inside

tray

fist-size rock

RegolithformationonEarth

Procedure A

What effect does wind have on

regolith formation?

1. Imagine that the piece of toasted bread is a rock on

 Earth. Your hand is the wind. The sand paper is

 wind carrying particles of sand.

2. Predict the effects of rubbing just your hand and

 then the sand paper across the toasted bread.

3. Now try it. Rub your hand across the toasted

 bread and observe the bread and the pieces which

 fall from it onto the pan. Observations:

4. This time rub the sand paper across the toasted

 bread and observe the bread and the pieces which

 fall from it onto the pan. Observations:
RegolithFormation

50 Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ

Procedure B

What effect does falling or fast flowing

water have on regolith formation?

5. How was the effect different?

6. How is this activity related to processes on Earth?

1. Imagine that the ice cube with sand is a rock.

2. Place this ice cube on a collection tray beneath the water faucet.

3. Adjust the water flow from the faucet so a medium stream hits the

 ice cube.

4. Observe what happens to the ice cube and the remaining particles.

5. What happened to the rock (ice cube)?

6. Describe the particles which remain.
Regolith Formation

Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ 51

RegolithformationontheMoon

Procedure C

1. Do you think regolith on the Moon is formed in the same manner

 as on Earth? Why or why not?

 Now we will investigate the effects of meteoritic bombardment

 on regolith formation.

2. In a small pan, place 2 slices of toasted white bread onto 3

 slices of toasted golden wheat bread. This represents the

 Moon’s crust.

3. Drop a rock onto the layers of toasted bread twice. Describe

 the bread slices and the crumbs.

7. How does water contribute to regolith formation on Earth?
RegolithFormation

52 Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ

4. Drop the rock 20 times onto the layers of toasted bread.

 Describe the bread slices and the crumbs.

5. Which crumbs can be seen at the surface? Why?

6. How does the thickness of the crumb layers compare after 2 hits

 and after 20 more hits?

7. How does meteoritic bombardment make regolith on the Moon?
Lunar Surface

Teacher Page

Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ 53

Purpose

Background[also see “Teacher's Guide” Pages 2, 3, 4, 12, 13]

A variety of features are evident on the lunar surface. These features include craters

with and without rays (also see the “Impact Craters” activity on Page 61), crater

chains, maria, rilles, and mountains.

crater chains - in curved paths are probably incompletely formed rilles,

- in straight paths are probably from rocks thrown out during an impact

 event and landing in a row.

rilles - are long valleys crossing maria that formed as underground lava

 channels which collapsed after the hot lava flowed away.

mountains - almost all in the highlands are the rims of large craters,

- also occur in the centers of craters that are larger than 40 km diameter;

 these mountains are called central uplifts,

- also occur as low, circular, rounded hills called domes.

In this activity students will use clay, plaster of Paris, or playdough to construct model

surfaces to match what they see on maps and photographs of the Moon. They “flag”

Apollo landing sites and consider the collection site of each Lunar Disk sample.

Preparation

Review and prepare materials listed on the student sheet.

Obtain one or more lunar maps. Students can either be assigned to or given a choice of

specific areas to model. Using maps of both the nearside (Earth-facing side) and farside

of the Moon will give more variety of surface features.

Collect trays or shallow cardboard boxes and modeling material (recipes for playdough

appear on Page 78). Assemble sculpturing tools such as wooden sticks, plastic knives,

rolling pins, etc.

To make a model of the Moon's surface and to consider the geologic processes and rocks of each area.
Lunar Surface

Teacher Page

54 Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ

It is beneficial to do “The Lunar Disk” activity (on Page 39) first so students can relate

the samples to their model surfaces.

In Class

Consider having cooperative teams build one model surface. Each team is responsible for

describing the surface features, explaining the geology, and listing the typical rock types of

the area. Either draw an outline around each area on a Moon map or if you have an extra

map, cut the map into sections. The whole map is finally recreated by putting the model

surfaces back together.

Have the students use toothpick flags to label Apollo landing sites.

Wrap-up

Review the variety of surface features found on the Moon. Are some features more common than others?

What are the most common terrains on the Moon? Do these terrains exist on the nearside,

farside, or globally?

Review the processes that made the various surface features. Also see the “Impact Craters” activity on Page 61 and the “Clay Lava Flows” activity on page 71.

What kinds of rocks are found in the areas modeled by the students? Also see the

“Apollo Landing Sites” activity on page 43 and the literature which accompanies the

Lunar Sample Disk.

If the student teams made models of different sections of a large map, then did the

modeled surface features match from tray to adjacent tray? Have the students discuss

why or why not.
Lunar Surface

Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ 55

Key Words Procedure

crater

mountain

rille

mare

crater chain

ray

terrain

Materials

binoculars or telescope

lunar map

photographs of the Moon

clay, plaster of Paris, or

playdough

tray

sculpturing tools

toothpick flags

Lunar Sample Disk

1. Observe the Moon using binoculars or a

 telescope. What surface features can you see?

2. Look at a map and photographs of the Moon.

 List the many different features you see.

3. Prepare a model lunar surface by placing a thin,

 even layer of modeling material on a tray.

4. Use sculpturing tools to form the features that

 you see on the Moon's surface.

Purpose

To make a model of the Moon's surface and to consider the geologic processes and rocks of each area.
Lunar Surface

56 Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ

5. How do you think these surface features were created on the

 Moon? List at least one idea for each kind of feature.

6. If your model surface has an Apollo landing site, then label it

 with a toothpick flag.

7. What kinds of rocks occur in your area? If your area has an

 Apollo landing site, then include the names of samples from the

 Lunar Sample Disk in your answer.

8. Compare your model surface with your classmates' surfaces. Can

 you match features from one area to another? Why or why not?

11
57

Teacher Page

Differentiation

Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ

Purpose

To see how minerals separate from each other in a

magma ocean.

Background [also see “Teacher’s Guide” Page 12]

When planets begin to melt, the materials in them begin to separate from one another.

The heaviest materials, such as metallic iron, sink to form cores. Low density magmas rise forming crusts. This process is called differentiation.

Soon after formation, the Moon melted substantially forming a large body of magma

that completely surrounded it. This is called the lunar magma ocean. The main

evidence that this actually happened on the Moon is the presence of large amounts of

the mineral plagioclase feldspar in the ancient, lunar highlands crust. Scientists

surmise feldspar floated in the magma ocean and accumulated at the top, while denser

minerals such as olivine and pyroxene sank and accumulated at the base of the magma

ocean.

This same process happens in lava lakes and in magma chambers beneath volcanoes

on Earth. Minerals denser than the melt sink; those less dense float. It is an important

geological process that leads to the production of a wide variety of igneous rocks.

Preparation

Review and prepare materials listed on the student sheet. Students will simulate the

process of differentiation using readily-available materials: water, a transparent container (1000-milliliter beakers are good because they look scientific, but any widemouthed glass will work), pennies or metal shot, sand, and toothpicks.

In Class

Take a handful of pennies, sand, and toothpicks and dump them into the water. The

pennies (or metal shot) sink faster than the sand. The toothpicks float. The floating

toothpicks lie at a variety of angles and are analogous to the feldspar that formed the

initial lunar crust. There ought to be more pennies than sand on the very bottom, with

sand on top of that pile. (The pennies are much denser, 8.9 grams per cubic centimeter,

than the sand, about 2.6 grams per cubic centimeter, so the pennies sink faster.) The

clear water in between represents still-molten magma.
58

Differentiation

Teacher Page

Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ

This activity can be done as a demonstration if you prefer.

Wrap-up

Relate the sinking and floating objects to the differentiation of the Moon's

magma ocean.
Differentiation

Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ 59

Purpose

Key Words

differentiation

density

magma ocean

Materials

Procedure

1. Mix the pennies, sand, and toothpicks in

 the bowl.

2. Fill the container with water to about 2 cm

 from the top.

3. Predict what will happen when you drop a hand-

 ful of the pennies-sand-toothpicks mixture into the

 water. Will they all sink to the bottom? Will some

 sink faster than others?

4. Now drop the mixture into the water. Wait until

 the objects stop moving and look at the deposits.

 What do you see?

pennies

sand

toothpicks

bowl

transparent container

water

To see how minerals separate from each other in a

magma ocean.
Differentiation

60 Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ

5. Can you explain what causes the differences in the way the

 objects sink or float?

6. Suppose the mineral feldspar in the lunar magma ocean

responded like the toothpicks in the water. What does this tell

you about the formation of the original crust on the Moon?

7. What makes up the highlands of the Moon? Based on this

 experiment, does this make sense?
61

Impact Craters

Teacher Page

Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ

To determine the factors affecting the appearance of

impact craters and ejecta.

Background [also see “Teacher's Guide” Pages 1, 2, photo on 8,

 12, and photo on 13]

The circular features so obvious on the Moon’s surface are impact craters formed

when impactors smashed into the surface. The explosion and excavation of materials at

the impacted site created piles of rock (called ejecta) around the circular hole as well as

bright streaks of target material (called rays) thrown for great distances.

Two basic methods forming craters in nature are:

1) impact of a projectile on the surface and 2) collapse of the top of a volcano creating

a crater termed caldera. By studying all types of craters on Earth and by creating impact

craters in experimental laboratories geologists concluded that the Moon's craters are

impact in origin.

The factors affecting the appearance of impact craters and ejecta are the size and velocity

of the impactor, and the geology of the target surface.

By recording the number, size, and extent of erosion of craters, lunar geologists can

determine the ages of different surface units on the Moon and can piece together the

geologic history. This technique works because older surfaces are exposed to impacting

meteorites for a longer period of time than are younger surfaces.

Impact craters are not unique to the Moon. They are found on all the terrestrial planets

and on many moons of the outer planets.

On Earth, impact craters are not as easily recognized because of weathering and erosion.

Famous impact craters on Earth are Meteor Crater in Arizona, U.S.A.; Manicouagan in

Quebec, Canada; Sudbury in Ontario, Canada; Ries Crater in Germany, and Chicxulub on

the Yucatan coast in Mexico. Chicxulub is considered by most scientists as the source

crater of the catastrophe that led to the extinction of the dinosaurs at the end of the Cretaceous period. An interesting fact about the Chicxulub crater is that you cannot see it. Its

circular structure is nearly a kilometer below the surface and was originally identified

from magnetic and gravity data.

Purpose
Impact Craters

62

Teacher Page

Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ

 floor

raised

 rim

Aristarchus

Typical characteristics of a lunar impact crater are labeled on this photograph of

Aristarchus, 42 km in diameter, located West of Mare Imbrium.

raised rim - rock thrown out of the crater and deposited as a ring-shaped pile of debris at the crater’s

edge during the explosion and excavcation of an impact event.

floor - bowl shaped or flat, characteristically below surrounding ground level unless filled in with lava.

central - mountains formed because of the huge increase and rapid decrease in pressure during the

uplifts impact event. They occur only in the center of craters that are larger than 40 km diameter.

See Tycho crater for another example.

walls - characteristically steep and may have giant stairs called terraces.

ejecta - blanket of material surrounding the crater that was excavated during the impact event. Ejecta

becomes thinner away from the crater.

rays - bright streaks starting from a crater and extending away for great distances. See Copernicus

crater for another example.

ejecta central

uplifts

rays

wall
63

Impact Craters

Teacher Page

Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ

Preparation

Review and prepare materials listed on the student sheet.

In this activity, marbles or other spheres such as steel shot, ball bearings, golf, or wooden

balls are used as impactors dropped from a series of heights onto a prepared “lunar surface.” Using impactors of different mass dropped from the same height will allow students to study the relationship of mass of the impactor to crater size. Dropping impactors

from different heights will allow students to study the realtionship of velocity of the

impactor to crater size.

The following materials work well as a base for the “lunar surface” topped with a dusting of dry tempera paint or other material in a contrasting color:

all purpose flour - Reusable in this activity and keeps well in a covered container.

baking soda - It can be recycled for use in the lava layer activity or for many

other science activities. Reusable in this activity, even if colored, by adding a clean layer of new white baking soda on

top. Keeps indefinitely in a covered container. Baking soda

mixed (1:1) with table salt also works.

corn meal - Reusable in this activity but probably not recyclable. Keeps

only in freezer in airtight container.

sand and - Mixed (1:1), sand must be very dry. Keeps only in freezer in

corn starch airtight container.

dry tempera paint - Sift on top; use a sieve, screen, or flour sifter. A contrasting

or powdered drink color to the base materials gives striking results.

mixes or glitter

Pans should be plastic, aluminum, or cardboard. Do not use glass. They should be at

least 7.5 cm deep. Basic 10"x12" aluminum pans or plastic tubs work fine, but the

larger the better to avoid misses. Also, a larger pan may allow students to drop more

marbles before having to resurface the target materials.

A reproducible student “Data Chart” is included; students will need a separate chart for

each impactor used in the activity.
Impact Craters

64

Teacher Page

Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ

In Class

1. Begin by looking at craters in photographs of the Moon and asking students their

ideas of how craters formed.

2. During this activity, the flour, baking soda, or dry paint may fall onto the floor and

the baking soda may even be disbursed into the air. Spread newspapers under the

pan(s) to catch spills or consider doing the activity outside. Under supervision,

students have successfully dropped marbles from second-story balconies. Resurface

the pan before a high drop.

3. Have the students agree beforehand on the method they will use to “smooth” and

resurface the material in the pan between impacts. The material need not be packed

down. Shaking or tilting the pan back and forth produces a smooth surface. Then

be sure to reapply a fresh dusting of dry tempera paint or other material. Remind

students that better experimental control is achieved with consistent handling of the

materials. For instance, cratering results may vary if the material is packed down for

some trials and not for others.

4. Allow some practice time for dropping marbles and resurfacing the materials in the

pan before actually recording data.

5. Because of the low velocity of the marbles compared with the velocity of real

impactors, the experimental impact craters may not have raised rims. Central uplifts

and terraced walls will be absent.

6. The higher the drop height, the greater the velocity of the marble, so a larger crater

will be made and the ejecta will spread out farther.

7. If the impactor were dropped from 6 meters, then the crater would be larger. The

 students need to extrapolate the graph out far enough to read the predicted crater

 diameter.

Wrap-Up

Have the class compare and contrast their hypotheses on what things affect the appearance of craters and ejecta.
65

Impact Craters

Teacher Page

Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ

Extensions

1. As a grand finale for your students, demonstrate a more forceful impact using a

slingshot.

2. What would happen if you change the angle of impact? How could this be tested?

Try it! Do the results support your hypothesis?

If the angle of impact is changed, then the rays will be concentrated and longer in

the direction of impact. A more horizontal impact angle produces a more skewed

crater shape.

3. To focus attention on the rays produced during an impact, place a paper bulls-eye

target with a central hole on top of a large, flour-filled pan. Students drop a marble

through the hole to measure ray lengths and orientations.

4. Use plaster of Paris or wet sand instead of dry materials.

5. Videotape the activity.

6. Some people think the extinction of the dinosaurs was caused by massive global

climate changes because of a meteorite impact on Earth. Summarize the exciting

work that has been done at Chicxulub on the Yucatan coast of Mexico.

7. Some people think Earth was hit by an object the size of Mars that caused a large

part of Earth to “splash” into space, forming the Moon. Do you agree or disagree?

Explain your answer.

8. Physics students could calculate the velocities of the impactors from various heights.

(Answers from heights of 30 cm, 60 cm, 90 cm, and 2 m should, of course, agree with

the velocity values shown on the “Impact Craters - Data Chart”.
Name:

Date:

 trial 1 trial 2 trial 3 total average

impactor #

 gm Impact Craters - Data Chart

 crater

diameter

crater

depth

average

length of

all rays

 crater

diameter

crater

depth

average

length of

all rays

average

length of

all rays

crater

depth

 crater

diameter

 crater

diameter

crater

depth

average

length of

all rays

66 Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ
Impact Craters

Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ 67

Key Words Procedure

impact

impactor

ejecta

Materials

Purpose

Making an hypothesis

1. After looking at photographs of the Moon, how do

 you think the craters were formed?

2. What do you think are factors that affect the

 appearance and size of craters and ejecta?

Preparing a “lunar” test surface

1. Fill a pan with surface material to a depth of

 about 2.5 cm. Smooth the surface, then tap the

 pan to make the materials settle evenly.

2. Sprinkle a fine layer of dry tempera paint

 evenly and completely over the surface. Use a

 sieve or sifter for more uniform layering.

To determine the factors affecting the appearance of

impact craters and ejecta.

1 pan

“lunar” surface material

tempera paint, dry

sieve or sifter

balance

3 impactors (marbles or

other spheres)

meter stick

ruler, plastic with middle

depression

protractor

“Data Chart” for each

impactor

graph paper
Impact Craters

68 Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ

3. What does this “lunar” surface look like before testing?

Cratering Process

1. Use the balance to measure the mass of each impactor. Record

the mass on the “Data Chart” for this impactor.

2. Drop impactor #1 from a height of 30 cm onto the prepared surface.

3. Measure the diameter and depth of the resulting crater.

4. Note the presence of ejecta (rays). Count the rays, measure, and

determine the average length of all the rays.

5. Record measurements and any other observations you have about

the appearance of the crater on the Data Chart.

 Make three trials and compute the average values.

6. Repeat steps 2 through 5 for impactor #1, increasing the drop

heights to 60 cm, 90 cm, and 2 meters. Complete the Data Chart

for this impactor. Note that the higher the drop height, the faster

the impactor hits the surface.

7. Now repeat steps 1 through 6 for two more impactors. Use a

separate Data Chart for each impactor.

8. Graph your results.

 Graph #1: Average crater diameter vs. impactor height or velocity.

 Graph #2: Average ejecta (ray) length vs. impactor height or

velocity.

 Note: on the graphs, use different symbols (e.g., dot, triangle,

plus, etc.) for different impactors.
Impact Craters

Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ 69

Results

1. Is your hypothesis about what affects the appearance and size of

 craters supported by test data? Explain why or why not.

2. What do the data reveal about the relationship between crater

 size and velocity of impactor?

3. What do the data reveal about the relationship between ejecta

 (ray) length and velocity of impactor?

4. If the impactor were dropped from 6 meters, would the crater be

 larger or smaller? How much larger or smaller?

 (Note: the velocity of the impactor would be 1,084 cm/s.)

 Explain your answer.

5. Based on the experimental data, describe the appearance of an

 impact crater.
Impact Craters

70 Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ

6. The size of a crater made during an impact depends not only on

the mass and velocity of the impactor, but also on the amount

of kinetic energy possessed by the impacting object. Kinetic

energy, energy in motion, is described as:

KE = 1/2(mv2)

where, m = mass and v = velocity.

During impact, the kinetic energy of an asteroid is transferred

to the target surface, breaking up rock and moving the particles

around.

7. How does the kinetic energy of an impacting object relate to

crater diameter?

8. Looking at the results in your Data Tables, which is the most

imporant factor controlling the kinetic energy of a projectile, its

diameter, its mass, or its velocity?

9. Does this make sense? How do your results compare to the

kinetic energy equation?

10. Try plotting crater diameter vs. kinetic energy as Graph #3.

The product of mass (in gm) and velocity (in cm/s) squared is a

new unit called “erg.”
Clay Lava Flows

Teacher Page

Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ 71

To understand some of the geological processes and

the structures that form as lava flows across planetary

landscapes by using mud as an analog for lava.

Purpose

Background [also see “Teacher's Guide” Pages 3, 4, 12, 13]

In this activity students will use mud to simulate surface lava flows. The experiment

demonstrates many of the key features of a’a flows, though not of whole pahoehoe

flow fields, which are fed by lava tubes.

Real a’a lava flows are complicated. They are characterized by a prominent lava channel confined between levees. Shear zones, places where one portion of the flow is

moving faster than an adjacent portion, usually occur. Small flows of pahoehoe lava

also become channelized, but on a much smaller scale than a’a flows.

As mud is poured onto an inclined surface, the first and foremost thing to do is to observe the formation of distinct features in the flow. Levees form on the outer part of the

flow. These are not quite the same as levees on lava flows because the latter build up

levees by overflowing the banks, but nevertheless, mud flows do form levees. Inside

the levees the mud moves downhill. Ridges might develop in the flowing portions,

analogous to large ridges in lava flows. The thickness of the flow varies with slope,

time, position in the flow, and amount of mud poured. These variables can be tested by

measuring width and thickness as functions of time, as described in the procedure.

Preparation

Review and prepare materials listed on the student sheet.

Mix clay and water in a bucket: 5 pounds of wet clay with 4 cups of water. To mix easily,

break clay into half-inch pieces and allow to dry. The mixing process should be started

at least 2 days before you intend to use the clay. Cover the bucket to keep the clay

mixture from hardening.

The final clay-water mixture should be fairly uniform, with only a few lumps. Smooth the

mixture with a wire whisk to the consistency of thick cream. If the mixture is too

runny, then it will pour like water. If it is too thick, then it will mound up (though that

is interesting and somewhat resembles some very viscous lava flows).

Plexiglas is an excellent surface to use for the experiment, though any nonporous surface will do fine, such as a wooden drawing board covered with plastic wrap. If the

surface is too porous, then the mud loses moisture to it, changing flow characteristics.
Clay Lava Flows

Teacher Page

72 Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ

Draw a grid with 10 cm spacing onto the Plexiglas using a permanent marker pen. Or

draw a grid onto paper taped to the wooden board, then cover with plastic wrap.

In Class

Using a protractor and plumb line, the Plexiglas is propped up to an angle of 15o for

the procedure, then to an angle of 25o for a repeat of the procedure.

Students should pour the clay slowly and at a constant rate down the inclined Plexiglas.

The bucket should be held about 10 cm from the high end of the Plexiglas.

At each 10 cm mark, the students will:

1. record the time the flow front passes the mark,

2. measure the length of the flow,

3. measure the width of the flow,

4. measure the center depth of the flow.

“Data Tables” are provided for recording these values. Space is provided for sketches

of the flow outline.

When the clay is flowing down the Plexiglas, look for areas near the edges where the flow

rate is low or zero; these are the levees of the channel. The part in the middle that is

moving faster is called the channel interior.

Wrap-up

How do the two flows compare?

Is the ratio of channel width to flow width the same?

Presumably the clay volumes were the same for both slopes, but the flow areas could be

determined and multiplied by the average depths as an exercise just to check.

Extensions

1. Use a ruler with a grid to slice into the flow at each 10 cm mark to get cross sections.

2. Can you see the levee margins in the cross sections?

3. How do the cross sections change down the length of the flow?

4. Videotape the activity.

5. Use this clay in the “Impact Craters” activity on Page 61.
Clay Lava Flows

Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ 73

Procedure

1. Stir your mixture of clay and water in the

 bucket. A few lumps are acceptable.

2. Prop up one end of the Plexiglas at an angle of

about 15° (use the protractor and plumb line

to determine the angle). A board under the Plexiglas

helps prevent sagging.

3. Hold the bucket of clay mixture about 10 cm

downslope from the high end of the Plexiglas.

Keep the bucket about 10 cm above the Plexiglas

surface. Pour the clay slowly. It is important to

keep the pour rate as constant as possible. Start

the stopwatch when the flow front passes the

zero line.

4. Watch the flow as it goes downhill and spreads

out, and record the time it reaches each 10 cm

mark. How far behind the flow front does the

distinct channel become apparent?

5. Record the time when you stopped pouring (the

flow will continue to move). Fill in the “Data

Tables.”

6. Note the channel and levees as well as shear zones

within the levees. Does the channel extend the

entire length of the flow?

Key Words

lava flows

channels and levees

pressure ridges

Materials

clay mixture

bucket, preferably with

pouring spout

wire whisk

large spatula

Plexiglas or other nonporous surface (~1/2 by 1

meter, and preferably with

a grid)

protractor with plumb line

stopwatch

“DataTables”

tape measure or ruler

Purpose

To understand some of the geological processes and

the structures that form as lava flows across planetary

landscapes by using mud as an analog for lava.
Clay Lava Flows Clay Lava Flows

74 Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ

7. Using the tape measure, measure the length, width, and

center depth of the flow and the channel width at each 10 cm

mark. Fill in the “Data Tables.”

8. Draw the outline of the flow using the grid as a guide.

9. Now prop the Plexiglas up higher to an angle of about 25° and

repeat the procedure. The clay may flow off the end of the ramp

onto the flat underlying surface. How do the structures in this

flat part compare to those on the slope?

10. Repeat all the measurements and fill in the “Data Tables.”

11. How do the two experimental flows compare? Is the ratio of

 channel width to flow width the same?
Clay Lava Flows

Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ 75

 Angle Time 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 Time

 at 0 stopped

 pouring

 15o

 25o

Angle Width 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 Total

 at 0 length

 15o

 25o

 Angle Center- 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90

 line depth

 at 0

 25o

 15o

 Angle Channel 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90

 width

 at 0

 15o

 25o

Data Tables
Clay Lava Flows Clay Lava Flows

76 Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ

Sketch of

flow at 15°

Sketch of

flow at 25°
Lava Layering

77

Teacher Page

Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ

Purpose

To learn about the stratigraphy of lava flows produced

by multiple eruptions.

Background [also see “Teacher's Guide” Pages 3, 4, 12, 13]

Dark, flat maria (layers of basaltic lava flows) cover about 16 percent of the Moon’s

total surface. They are easily seen on a full Moon with the naked eye on clear nights from

most backyards. The maria, quite similar to Earth’s basalts, generally flowed long distances utlimately flooding low-lying areas such as impact basins. Yet, the eruption

sources for most of the lunar lava flows are difficult to identify. The difficulty in

finding source areas results from burial by younger flows and/or erosion from meteoritic bombardment.

Generally, the overall slope of the surface, local topographic relief (small cliffs and

depressions), and eruption direction influence the path of lava flows. Detailed maps of

the geology of the Moon from photographs reveal areas of complicated lava layering.

The study of rock layering is called stratigraphy.

On the Moon, older flows become covered by younger flows and/or become more

pocked with impact craters.

On Earth, older lava flows tend to be more weathered (broken) and may have more

vegetation than younger flows. Field geologists use differences in roughness, color, and

chemistry to further differentiate between lava flows. They also follow the flow margins, channels, and levees to try to trace lava flows back to the source area.

The focus of this activity is on the patterns of lava flows produced by multiple eruptions. We use a short cup to hold the baking soda because we are looking at the flows

and not at constructing a volcano model. Volcanoes, like those so familiar to us on

Earth and Mars, are not present on the Moon. Three well-known areas on the Moon

interpreted as important volcanic complexes are: Aristarchus plateau, and the Marius

Hills and Rumker Hills (both located in Oceanus Procellarum). These areas are characterized by sinuous rilles (interpreted as former lava channels and/or collapsed lava tubes)

and numerous domes.
Lava Layering

78

Teacher Page

Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ

Preparation

Baking soda-vinegar solutions and playdough are used to model the basaltic lavas.

Different colors identify different eruption events; this activity calls for 4 colors.

Students will be asked to observe where the flows traveled and to interpret the stratigraphy. Cover the work area and be prepared for spills.

Play Dough (stove-top recipe)

-best texture and lasts for months when refrigerated in an air tight container.

2 cups flour 1/3 cup oil, scant

1 cup salt 2 cups cold water

4 teaspoons cream of tarter food colorings (20 drops more or less)

Make this large batch one color or divide ingredients in half to make 2 colors. You will need 4 colors

total. Combine ingredients and cook mixture in a large sauce pan, stirring constantly, until the dough

forms a ball. Turn dough out onto a floured surface to cool. Then kneed until smooth and elastic. Cool

completely; refrigerate in air tight containers.

Play Dough (no-cooking recipe)

2 cups flour 2 Tablespoons oil

1 cup salt 1 cup cold water

6 teaspoons alum or cream of tartar food colorings (as above)

Make this large batch one color or divide ingredients in half to make 2 colors. You will need 4 colors

total. Mix ingredients and kneed until smooth and elastic. Store in air tight containers.

In Class

This activity can be done individually or in cooperative teams.

Making a vertical cut through the flows reveals, quite dramatically, the stratigraphy of the

section.

Wrap-up

Have students compare their layered lava patterns with their classmates' patterns. Did

they recognize individual flows by color and outline? Point out how the oldest flow is

on the bottom of the stack and the youngest flow is on top.

Extensions

Groups can trade landscapes before answering the questions. Clear, plastic drinking

straws can be pushed down into the landscapes to extract “drill” samples of the layers.
Lava Layering

Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ 79

Procedure

1. Take one paper cup that has been cut to a height

of 2.5 cm and secure it onto the tray. (You may

use a small loop of tape on the outside bottom of

the cup.) This short cup is your eruption source

and the tray is the original land surface.

2. Place one Tablespoon of baking soda in this

 cup.

3. Fill 4 tall paper cups each with 1/8 cup of

 vinegar.

4. To each paper cup of vinegar add 3 drops of food

 coloring; make each cup a different color.

 Set them aside.

5. Set aside small balls of playdough, one of each

 color.

6. You are now ready to create an eruption.

Pour red-colored vinegar into your source cup and

watch the eruption of “lava.”

7. As best you can, use red playdough to cover the

areas where red “lava” flowed.

8. Repeat steps 6 and 7 for each color of vinegar and

 playdough. You may add fresh baking soda to the

 source cup or spoon out excess vinegar from the

 source cup as needed.

Key Words

eruption

source

stratigraphy

Materials

paper cups, 4 oz. size,

some cut down to a

height of 2.5 cm

cafeteria tray or cookie

sheet, 1 for each eruption

source

tape

tablespoon

baking soda

measuring cup

vinegar

food coloring, 4 colors;

for example, red, yellow,

blue, green

playdough or clay in the

same 4 colors as the

food coloring

plastic knife, string, or

dental floss: to slice

through the layers of

playdough

Purpose

To learn about the stratigraphy of lava flows produced

by multiple eruptions.
Lava Layering

80 Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ

Results

1. After your four eruptions, can you still see the original land

 surface (tray)? Where?

2. Describe what you see and include observations of flows covering or overlapping other flows. Use the left page margin to

make a sketch.

3. Where is the oldest flow?

4. Where is the youngest flow?

5. Did the flows always follow the same path? (be specific)

6. What do you think influences the path direction of lava flows?

7. If you had not watched the eruptions, how would you know that

 there are many different layers of lava? Give at least 2 reasons:
Lava Layering

Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ 81

Vertical

section

through

the flows

8. Which of the reasons listed in answer 7 could be used to identify

 real lava layers on Earth?

9. What are other ways to distinguish between older and younger

 layered lava flows on Earth?

10. Which of the reasons listed in answer 9 could be used to

 identify lava layers on the Moon?

11. What are other ways to distinguish between older and younger

 layered lava flows on the Moon?

12. Make a vertical cut through an area of overlapping playdough

 “lava” layers. Draw what you see in the vertical section. Color

 your sketch and add these labels:

 oldest flow, youngest flow.
Lava Layering

82 Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ
Lunar Landing Sites

Teacher Page

Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ 83

Purpose

To design a spacecraft for travel to and from the Moon

and choose an interesting lunar landing site.

Background [also see “Teacher's Guide” Pages 2-5]

The previous Unit 2 activities introduce the Moon's rocks, surface features, and the

geologic processes that formed them. With this background, students are given the

challenge to plan a mission to the Moon. In this activity, teams of students design a

spacecraft, choose a suitable lunar landing site, and present their ideas before the entire

class. Final presentations should include speeches and visual aides such as maps, diagrams, and 3-dimensional models.

Preparation

Review and prepare materials listed on the student sheet. Schedule library time as

needed.

In Class

Lead a discussion on what the students need to know about the Moon in general and

about potential landing sites before landing. A review of the Apollo sites may help

initiate a discussion.

After presenting the scenario and tasks to the class, form cooperative teams of 3-4

students. Each student will have assigned duties, as described on the reproducible

“Team Duty Sheet.”

For the presentations, either 3-D models or poster-size diagrams can be made,

depending on resources and time. Any one or all team members may participate in

the presentations.

Scenario: NASA has given you the assignment to develop a spacecraft that can

fly people safely to the Moon, land, and return to Earth. You must select a

safe yet interesting lunar landing site for the spacecraft.

Size, mass, propulsion, number of crew, life support systems, and methods of takeoff and landing should be considered for the spacecraft.

Geology, terrain, safety, and length of stay should be considered for the

lunar landing site.
Lunar Landing Sites

Teacher Page

84 Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ

Wrap-up

1. How do the sites chosen by the class compare in location and geologic diversity with

 the Apollo sites?

2. What made some spacecraft designs and landing sites, in this activity, more risky than

 others?

3. Are these lunar landing sites good for short-term visits only, or could the sites be

 appropriate for lunar base development?

 See the “Lunar Land Use” activity on Page 101.

Extensions

Spacecraft design could be conducted as a spin-off of the "egg drop" contest. Each

spacecraft is constructed to hold and protect one raw egg. The egg must remain

unbroken after landing from a high drop (perhaps a second-story balcony).

Some students may enjoy learning more details of Apollo site selections.

A detailed discussion of how the sites were chosen is given in To A Rocky Moon by

Don E. Wilhelms, Univ. of Arizona Press, 1993.

Use these lunar landing sites in the “Lunar Roving Vehicle” activity on Page 87,

stipulating that the vehicle must be able to work on the terrains.

Use these lunar sites in the “Lunar Land Use” activity on Page 101.
Lunar Landing Sites

Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ 85

Purpose

To design a spacecraft for travel to and from the

Moon and chose an interesting lunar landing site.

Materials Scenario

Moon maps

Apollo landing sites map

“Moon ABCs Fact Sheet”

Moon slides

background literature,

such as the “Teacher’s

Guide”

“Team Duty Sheet”

art and construction

supplies

NASA has given you the assignment to develop a

spacecraft that can fly people safely to the Moon,

land, and return to Earth. You must also select a safe

yet interesting lunar landing site for the spacecraft.

Size, weight, propulsion, number of crew, life support systems, and methods of takeoff and landing

should be considered for the spacecraft. Geology,

terrain, safety, and length of stay should be considered for the lunar landing site.

Procedure

1. Read the “Team Duty Sheet” given to your team.

2. Design a spacecraft with all necessary sytems that

can go to the Moon, land, and return to Earth.

Build a model or draw a detailed diagram of the

design.

3. Study maps of the lunar sufrace and use your

knowledge of the Moon to determine a safe

yet interesting lunar landing site.

4. Make a presentation to the class:

(a) about your spacecraft and its special features

 using diagrams and/or a model,

(b) describing, locating, and justifing the landing

 site.
Date:

Names:

T E A M D U T Y S H E E T

Your team must design a spacecraft and determine a safe yet interesting

place to land on the Moon.

Everyone on your team should be assigned one or more of the following duties:

Lunar Landing Sites

 Chief Engineer : oversees the entire project, helps to design spacecraft, makes

critical decisions for the team.

 Scientist : designs spacecraft, oversees the construction of the model or

diagrams of the spacecraft.

 Lunar Geologist : studies maps of the Moon and oversees the selection of a

safe yet interesting place to land the spacecraft.

Public Relations helps scientist and geologist, oversees the presentation of the

Manager : spacecraft and landing site before the class.

86 Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ
Teacher Page

87

Lunar Roving Vehicle

Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ

Purpose

To construct a model of a lunar roving vehicle.

Background

The Apollo lunar roving vehicle was a battery-powered space buggy. The astronauts on Apollo 15, 16, and 17 used it to explore their landing sites and to travel greater

distances than astronauts on earlier missions. The lunar rover neatly folded up inside the

lunar lander during trips to the Moon. Once on the Moon's surface, it unfolded with the

help of springs. The lunar rover carried two astronauts and was manually driven. It was

designed to climb steep slopes, to go over rocks, and to move easily over the Moon's

regolith. It was able to carry more than twice its own weight in passengers, scientific

instruments, rocks, and regolith samples. The wheels on the rover were made of wire

mesh (piano wire) with titanium cleats for treads. Engineers did not use solid or air-filled

rubber tires because they would have been much heavier than were the wire mesh wheels.

The Apollo spacecraft had a fixed amount of mass (payload) it could deliver to the

surface, including the rover, rover batteries, scientific instruments, sample collection devices, etc. Hence, the wire-mesh wheels were important to the overall payload mass. This

rover was not designed for prolonged use, and it is uncertain if future lunar explorers

would use similar designs and materials for their vehicles, use new, more durable components, or turn to robotic rovers.

If students are interested in constructing models that actually move, then refer to Page 38

for more information on rocket and model building.

Preparation

Review and prepare materials listed on the student sheet. While commercial building sets

are very popular, models can be built with more simple and recyclable materials such as

cardboard boxes, tubes, cans, straws, construction paper, string, tape, pins, styrofoam

trays, thread spools, balloons, rubber bands, and mouse traps (for propulsion).

In Class / Wrap Up

After construction, students should name their vehicles and write a description of the

capabilities and special features.
Teacher Page

88

Lunar Roving Vehicle

Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ

Diagram of the vehicle used by Apollo astronauts.

Extensions

Hold competitions between student vehicles with these criteria for judging:

1. Can the vehicle actually move -- by gravity; by some kind of propulsion system?

2. Can the vehicle go over different surfaces -- smooth, flat, bumpy, or inclined?

3. Is the vehicle sturdy?

4. Can the vehicle carry a heavy load? Have the students decide the weight of the load.

5. Could the vehicle withstand meteoritic bombardment?

6. Would the vehicle work on the Moon?

Discuss the pros and cons of manually driven vehicles versus remote-controlled robotic

rovers on the Moon.
89

Lunar Roving Vehicle

Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ

Procedure

1. Describe the similarities and differences between

the Apollo lunar roving vehicle and a typical

family vehicle.

2. What was special about the rover's wheels? Why

 weren't they made of rubber and filled with air?

3. Review the “Moon ABCs Fact Sheet.” Design

a new lunar roving vehicle. Important design

issues include size, weight, power supply, number

of passengers, controls, scientific instruments,

tools, and storage compartments. Use the space

provided on the next page to draw a picture of

your design. Label the parts.

4. Construct a model of the lunar rover based on

your design.

5. Give a name to the vehicle.

6. Write a descriptive essay about the special features

and capabilitites of the vehicle and how you

solved the design issues raised in Question 3.

Key Words

antenna

console

tool carrier and storage

robot

Materials

diagram of Apollo lunar

roving vehicle

“Moon ABCs Fact Sheet”

construction materials

such as cardboard

boxes, tubes, cans,

straws, construction

paper, string, tape, pins,

styrofoam trays, thread

spools, balloons, rubber

bands, mouse traps, etc.

tape measures

stop watches

Purpose

To construct a model of a lunar roving vehicle.
90

Lunar Roving Vehicle

Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ

Sketch of

my model
Moon Anomalies

Teacher Page

Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ 91

Purpose

To investigate and try to explain various lunar

anomalies.

Background [also see “Teacher’s Guide” Pages 4, 10]

In this activity teams of students present hypotheses that attempt to resolve four anomalies of the Moon. They will be expected to prepare written and oral presentations for

the entire class. Using a forum format, students will debate the merits of each

hypothesis, with no right or wrong answers.

The four anomalies are:

“Quakes or No Quakes, that is the Question”

“Where Have All the Volcanoes Gone?”

“Maria, Maria, Where For Art Thou?”

“Magnetic Field Forever?”

Some of these anomalies are more complicated than others. The class need not discuss

all the anomalies; the most straightforward are Quakes and Missing Volcanoes.

Preparation

Review and prepare materials listed on the student sheets.

Schedule library time, if needed.

Somepossiblesolutionstotheanomalies

Quakes or No Quakes, that is the Question

The number and strength (magnitude) of moonquakes is much less than the number

and magnitude of earthquakes. The probable cause of this difference is the Moon's

smaller size and cooler interior. Earth is hot and active, manifested most dramatically in

plate tectonics. Tectonic plate motions in Earth are driven by convection in the

mantle—the solid mantle actually moves at rates of a few centimeters a year. The

Moon’s mantle, too cool to move easily, has no convection and no active tectonic plate

motions. Fewer movements inside the Moon mean fewer quakes. The few moonquakes that do occur are driven primarily by gravitational tugs by Earth and Sun (tides

in the solid Moon).
Moon Anomalies

Teacher Page

92 Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ

Where Have All the Volcanoes Gone?

The Moon has lots of lava flows, but no (or at least few) volcanoes. The clue to

solving this dilemma lies in understanding why volcanoes form on Earth, Mars, and

Venus. In fact, those bodies also have large expanses of lava flows that are not associated with volcanoes. For example, vast deposits of lavas occur in Oregon, Washington,

and Idaho. These are called the Columbia River Basalts. They erupted from long

cracks called fissures and flowed across the surface. The path the magma took was

far different from that in other places. The magma never concentrated to narrow conduits that were fed periodically over a long time to form a high mountain over the site.

The transport of magma for the Columbia River basalts was controlled by the stress

environment of the region. Long fissures developed which provided the magma with

pathways to the surface. On the Moon, plenty of fractures occur around the rings of the

multi-ringed basins. These fractures undoubtedly extend far into the Moon, and may

have provided easy access to the surface for magma, and at the same time did not allow

the magma paths to concentrate in one small area. Result: no large volcanoes formed.

The idea that some did form but were destroyed by impacts is always a possibility on the

Moon, but lots of volcano-sized mountains on basin rings survived, so one would expect

volcanoes to do so, too.

Maria, Maria, Where For Art Thou?

Almost all of the lunar maria decorate the Earth-facing side of the Moon. Only a few

add contrast to the farside. See the first two photographs in the “Teacher’s Guide” on

Page 1. The most likely cause of this asymmetry is the variation in thickness of the

Moon’s crust. The crust is lower in density than the mare-basalt magmas that must

pass through it to erupt onto the surface. This, in turn, requires that the magmas have a

sufficient driving pressure to migrate through the crust. Scientists think that magmas on

the Moon tend to stall and collect at the base of the crust. They stay there until the

pressure is enough to begin to form fissures for the magmas to travel through. On the

nearside, the crust is about 70 kilometers thick. Many of the mare-basalt magmas were

able to reach the surface once the pressure was large enough to form cracks. However,

on the farside, the crust is twice as thick, so very few magmas could reach the surface.

Most stalled on their way through it.

Magnetic Field Forever?

The lunar magnetic field is one of the least understood properties about the Moon. It

is about 10,000 times weaker than Earth’s magnetic field. The Moon had a weak field in

the past, but none is being generated at the present time.
Moon Anomalies

Teacher Page

Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ 93

The most likely reason for the decline in field strength is that the Moon’s tiny metallic

core (no larger than 400 kilometers in radius) did generate a field the way Earth’s core

does, but the field-generating engine kept losing power. Earth’s field is generated by

convective motions inside the liquid portion of the core: hotter iron rises, cooler iron

sinks, and the differential motions create a magnetic field. On the Moon, the whole

body cooled much faster than Earth (because the Moon is smaller), so the core also

cooled, and probably solidified. Motions fast enough to generate a magnetic field do

not occur today inside the Moon's core.

In Class

Divide the class into cooperative teams of 4-5 students. Encourage each team to generate

a team name and logo. Give each team a “Task Sheet” describing their duties. Each

team then develops a hypothesis that reconciles the dilemma given them. They must

work together to produce a written report describing their anomaly, hypothesis, and

supporting evidence. You may want to copy and distribute all the final reports so each

team has a complete set.

When the teams make their oral presentations to the class they must use visual aid materials, such as maps, posters, charts, slides, laserdiscs, etc. After each presentation, other

teams may challenge the presenters with questions or arguments.

Wrap-up

After all teams have presented, lead a discussion to summarize what has been learned.

Extension

You may wish to discuss another mysterious aspect of the Moon’s magnetic field: the

presence of several small areas (30-60 kilometers across) that have exceptionally large

surface magnetism, about 10 times the normal Moon magnetic field. These are associated

with bright swirly deposits. Possible origins include impact of a comet that is highly

magnetized or magnetization of a comet during impact. In either case, the magnetism is

transferred to the ejecta deposits at the site of impact. Another suggestion is that the

field results from giant, basin-forming impacts. It turns out that most, but not all, magnetic swirl deposits are on the exact opposite side of the Moon from a large basin (i.e.,

antipodal to the site of impact). The idea is that seismic waves generated by the large

impact interact vigorously when they meet half way around the Moon. Somehow these

interactions reinforce existing magnetic fields to create the anomaly. The whitish swirls,

by the way, may form because the solar wind (mostly hydrogen nuclei) is deflected by

the strong magnetic field. Thus, no hydrogen gets implanted into the regolith, and

subsequent micrometeorite bombardment does not cause formation of dark agglutinates. Instead of being dark glass, the agglutinates are colorless or nearly so.
Date:

Names:

94 Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ

Task Sheet

Everyone on your team should be assigned one or more of the following tasks:

 Moon Anomalies

Chief Stratigist : oversees the entire project, works closely with all members,

makes critical decisions.

Material Person : collects, cares for, and returns all materials needed for

the activity.

Media oversees development of all the visual aid materials that

Consultant : your team will use during the presentation, such as maps,

posters, models, etc. Also coordinates the use of slides,

photographs, laserdisc, computer, etc.

Administrator : keeps notes, assists media consultant, and prepares final

written report.

The oral presentation may be made by any one or all team members.
Quakes or No Quakes,

that is the Question

Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ 95

Key Words

earthquake

moonquake

Materials

Purpose

Background

To investigate and try to explain why the Moon has

fewer moonquakes than Earth has earthquakes.

maps of the Moon

background information on

the Moon

“Moon ABCs Fact Sheet”

“Task Sheet”

art supplies

The Moon is safer than San Francisco—at least from

earthquake damage. Each year Earth has more than

10,000 earthquakes of magnitude 4 or greater. In

contrast, the Moon has less than 500, and most of

these are smaller than magnitude 2.5. The largest

moonquake recorded during the eight years that the

Apollo seismic instrument operated on the Moon was

slightly less than magnitude 5. On Earth, the largest

quakes reach magnitude 8, or even 9. Finally, the total

amount of energy released by moonquakes is the same

as released by three 100-watt light bulbs. Earthquakes

release the equivalent of 300,000,000 100-watt light

bulbs.

Dilemma

Why does the Moon have fewer quakes than Earth?

Is it because people live on Earth? Because the

Moon is smaller? Because Earth has moving tectonic

plates? Because the Moon has craters?

Task

Develop an hypothesis that explains why the Moon

has fewer quakes than Earth.
Where Have All the Volcanoes Gone?

96 Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ

Purpose

To investigate and try to explain the absence of

volcanoes on the Moon.

Key Words

volcano

lava flows

maria

Materials

maps of the Moon

background information

on the Moon

“Moon ABCs Fact Sheet”

“Task Sheet”

art supplies

Background

The dark areas of the Moon’s surface, called the lunar

maria, are composed of solidified lava flows. Scientists know this from photographs that show the

margins of individual lava flows and from examination of rocks returned from the maria. The lava

plains cover 16% of the lunar surface and are up to

about 2 kilometers thick. This is a substantial

amount of lava. Scientists estimate that a total of 10

million cubic kilometers of lava erupted during a

period of about a billion years to fill the mare basins.

This is a lot of lava! -- enough to fill 10 billion football stadiums! Most of the maria occur inside the

huge circular impact craters called multi-ringed basins. The formation of these immense craters did not

cause the formation of the lava that made the maria,

but the basins did provide low areas into which the

liquid lava flowed.

Dilemma

Ten million cubic kilometers of lava flowed across

the Moon’s surface, yet there are no obvious source

volcanoes. There are no mountains that rise dramatically as they do in Hawai'i or the Cascades of the

Pacific Northwest. If there are no volcanoes on the

Moon, then what is the source of the lava? Were the

volcanoes destroyed? Did the lava erupt in some

other way? What other ways could lava erupt?

Task

Develop an hypothesis that resolves the missing

volcanoes dilemma, without rejecting the idea that

the maria are composed of solidified lava flows.
Maria, Maria, Where For Art Thou?

Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ 97

Key Words

maria

crust

lava flows

Materials

Purpose

Background

To investigate and try to explain why the farside has

fewer maria than the nearside of the Moon.

maps of the Moon

background information on

the Moon

“Moon ABCs Fact Sheet”

“Task Sheet”

art supplies

About 16% of the Earth-facing side of the Moon is

covered with dark maria. But less than 1% of the

farside is covered with maria. Scientists think that

the magmas were formed inside the Moon by melting of the Moon’s mantle, and that these magmas

then moved to the surface. They probably moved in

long cracks. Good evidence suggests that the crust

on the farside is about two times thicker than on the

nearside.

Dilemma

Assuming magma was generated throughout the

Moon’s mantle, why are almost all the maria on the

nearside of the Moon? Did they get covered up by

other rocks on the farside? Did Earth’s gravity help

them get out onto the nearside? Was it too hard to

travel through the thick, farside crust?

Task

Develop an hypothesis that resolves the maria-aremore-abundant-on-the-nearside dilemma.
Magnetic Field Forever?

98 Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ

Purpose

To investigate and try to explain why the Moon has a

weaker magnetic field than does Earth.

Key Words

magnetic field

core

Materials

background information

on the Moon

“Moon ABCs Fact Sheet”

“Task Sheet”

art supplies

Background

The Moon has a much weaker magnetic field than

does Earth. However, the field was stronger in the

past, as shown by study of the magnetic properties

of lunar rocks. Earth's magnetic field is formed by

motions inside its iron core. The Moon also has a

core, but it is much smaller than Earth’s core. The

Moon’s core is no larger than 400 kilometers in

radius, and may be as small as 100 kilometers. In

contrast, Earth’s core is 2900 kilometers in radius.

Dilemma

The Moon had a stronger magnetic field in the past

(billions of years ago), but it is weak now, much

weaker than Earth’s magnetic field. Why is it so

much weaker than Earth’s? Why was it stronger in

the past?

Task

Develop an hypothesis that explains why the Moon

has a weaker magnetic field than does Earth, and

why the Moon’s field was stronger in the past.
Unit 3

The Future

Lunar Land Use

Life Support Systems

Lunar Biosphere

Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ 99

The activities in this unit spark interest in responsible land use and sustainable human

settlements on the Moon. Each activity uses and reinforces all the knowledge the students have been gaining about the Moon and Earth from Units 1 and 2. These activities

require teamwork, research, and development of model systems.

The maps produced by Clementine and Lunar Prospector will be useful for planning

other types of missions, such as automated sample returns, robotic rovers, or human

exploration. The chemical data allow sensible choices of landing sites to be made to

optimize the scientific or industrial return from future missions.

A Resource Section for Unit 3 is on Page 100.
Unit 3

Resource Section

100 Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ

Bottle Biology, by the Bottle Biology Project,

1993, Kendall/Hunt Pub. Co.,127 p. An idea book

for exploring the world through plastic bottles and

other recyclable materials.

Dept. of Plant Pathology, College of Agricultural and

Life Sciences, University of Wisconsin-Madison

1630 Linden Dr.

Madison, WI 53706

608-263-5645

This list presents possible independent and commercial sources of items to complement the activities in Unit

3. The sources are offered without recommendation or endorsement by NASA. Inquiries should be made

directly to the appropriate source to determine availability, cost, and ordering information before sending

money. Contact your NASA Educator Resource Center (see Page 146) for more resources available directly

from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration.
Lunar Land Use

Teacher Page

Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ 101

Purpose

To design a development on the Moon that is suitable,

feasible, and beneficial.

Background [also see “Teacher's Guide” Pages 14, 15]

In this activity teams of students will present proposals for developments on the Moon in

a competition for approval from a student-staffed Lunar Council. This activity commonly runs 8 class days.

Preparation

Review and prepare materials listed on the student sheet.

In Class

Present the scenario and divide the class into cooperative teams of 4-5 students. Each

team will represent a development corporation that will make a proposal before the

Lunar Council.

You will also need 3 other students to comprise this Lunar Council.

Each student will have assigned duties, as described on the reproducible “Information

Sheets.”

Scenario: Travel to and from the Moon has become economical. As a result, the

Moon’s development has become inevitable and several corporations have

already approached the United Nations about the prospects of developing

lunar projects. In response, the U.N. has set up a Lunar Council to

consider the feasibility and suitability of each proposal.

You may want to brainstorm ideas with the class for projects on the Moon; they may

include mining communities, scientific bases, telescopic outposts, government headquarters, recreational bases, tourist sites, etc. You could assign a different idea to each team.

Distribute an “Information Sheet” to each development team. Give them 3-5 days to

decide what their developments will be and to design their maps, models, diagrams, etc.

Not only must they present their plan before the Lunar Council, but they must convince

the council of the plan's worthiness. Lobbying efforts and advertising are all part of the

game as long as they are fair.
Lunar Land Use

Teacher Page

102 Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ

Distribute “Information Sheets” to the Lunar Council. Their task is to organize and run

a hearing regarding development on the Moon. The ultimate approval for development

is in their hands.

When most of the teams have finished, let the Lunar Council set the hearing date and let

the proceedings begin.

Wrap-up

Once a decision is rendered, distribute the “Wrap-up Questions” or discuss them as a

class.

Extensions

1. Have the students bid for project sites or use the landing sites chosen in the “Lunar

 Landing Sites” activity on Page 83.

2. Hold a classroom debate on “Who owns the Moon?”

3. Have the students compare Antarctica to the Moon.
Lunar Land Use

Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ 103

Purpose

To design a development on the Moon that is suitable,

feasible, and beneficial.

Scenario

Travel to and from the Moon has become economical; as a result, the Moon’s development has become

inevitable. Several corporations have already

approached the United Nations with lunar proposals.

In response, the U.N. has set up a Lunar Council to

look at the suitability and feasibility of each

proposal.

If your team is one of the development corporations,

then your job is to decide what you want to build on

the Moon and where to put it, to make the maps,

diagrams, and/or 3-dimensional models of your

project, and to convince the Lunar Council that your

project is worthy of approval.

If you are a Lunar Council member, then the

development of the Moon rests on your decisions.

Key Words

development

feasible

beneficial

Materials

maps of the Moon

“Moon ABCs Fact Sheet”

backgound information on

the Moon

“Information Sheets”

art and construction supplies
Lunar Land Use

104 Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ

Procedure

1. Read the “Information Sheet” given to your group, either a

 development team or the Lunar Council, and divide the duties.

2. Each development team must execute a development plan and

 design all necessary maps, diagrams, and/or 3-dimensional

 models.

3. Each development team must follow the guidelines set forth by

 the Lunar Council.

4. Each development team must present a plan for approval.

5. The Lunar Council reviews all the plans and decides which, if

 any, will be accepted.
Date:

Names:

Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ 105

Team Member Information Sheet

Tasks

 Your team must decide what you want to build and where you want to build it.

 Everyone on your team should be assigned one or more of the following tasks:

Lunar Land Use

 Chief Engineer : oversees the entire project, makes critical decisions, assists in the

design of the project.

 Lunar Geologist : studies the Lunar Sample Disk and researches the minerals that

may exist on the Moon for mining and/or for use as building

materials. Chooses a suitable site for the project.

 Media oversees development of all the visual aid materials your

Consultant : team uses to present your proposal, such as maps, posters,

and models. Also coordinates the use of slides, photographs,

laser disc, etc. used to enhance your presentation.

 Administrator : keeps notes, assists media consultant, works closely with the

reporter to develop the speech to be given to the Lunar Council

and types this final written proposal.

 Reporter : works closely with all members to write the speech that will be

given before the Lunar Council. The actual presentation may be

made by any one or all team members.

 Remember, you will have to “sell” your ideas before the Lunar Council. You need

 a well-planned project. Focus on how your project will be used, how it will benefit

 people, how it is environmentally friendly, etc.

 Anything goes as long as it is actually possible. For example, if you are asked where

 the money is coming from to back your project you could say you have investors who

 will recover their money plus interest when the project makes money. You cannot

 have stories like “a limousine drove by and out popped a suitcase full of money.”

 Have fun!
Date:

Names:

106 Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ

Lunar Land Use

Tasks

Lunar Council Information Sheetl Engineer

 You are representatives of the United Nations and have been chosen to decide how the

 Moon will be developed. Your job is to organize and run a hearing where various

 teams will make proposals to you concerning the development of the Moon. Your

 ultimate task will be to choose one or more of the proposals brought before you. If

 you wish, you can choose none of the proposals or allow certain ones with restrictions

 or improvements.

 Everyone on the Council should hold one of the following positions:

 Chairperson : runs the hearing by calling on the teams for their presentations,

calls on Council members and the public to ask questions, makes

critical decisions for the Council, announces the final decisions.

 Timekeeper : decides how long the presentations and the question/answer period

will last, keeps track of time during the hearing, and stops teams

that go overtime.

 Administrator : develops rating sheet with other members, keeps notes, writes, and

sends out any bulletins to the development teams.
Date:

Names:

Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ 107

Lunar Land Use

Lunar Council Information Sheetl E

Bulletins and Ratings

Your Council should issue bulletins periodically to give guidelines and announcements

to all the development teams. An example is given below:

Lunar Council Bulletin 1-1

To: All development teams

From: Lunar Council

Regarding: Hearing timeline and financial background

We have decided to allow each team 5 minutes to make their presentations

following which the Council will have 10 minutes for questions and answers.

Finally, the public will have another 10 minutes for questions and answers.

Any variation to this policy will require permission from the Council before

the hearing.

Council members also will be asking you for your sources of money.

We want to be sure that if your proposal is chosen, you will be able to build it.

You also will need to develop a rating sheet to judge each team fairly. An example is

given below:

 Group Feasibility Pollution Income Planning TOTAL

 # 1-10 1-10 1-10 1-10

 1

 2

After all the teams have made their presentations, the Council retires and renders a

decision on which team, if any, will be allowed to develop.
Date:

Names:

108 Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ

Wrap-up Questions

Lunar Land Use

 1. Did your team work together well? Why or why not?

 2. Do you think it is important to have hearings like this one before the Moon is

developed? Why or why not?

 3. Do you think the Lunar Council’s decision was fair? Why or why not?

 4. Should we allow developments on the Moon? Why or why not?

 5. Do you think the Moon should belong to everyone or to whomever can get there

and use it first? Why?

 6. How is the Moon and its development similar to the development of Antarctica?

 7. What kind of environmental problems do you think we need to be aware of on

the Moon?
Life Support Systems

109

Teacher Page

Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ

Purpose

To design and build models of life support systems for

a settlement on the Moon.

Background [also see “Teacher's Guide” Pages 14, 15]

A future lunar base will have to be a self-contained habitat with all the life support

systems necessary for the survival of people, animals, and plants. In this series of activities, the students will be designing and building models of nine life support systems

which are crucial to our successful settlement of the Moon.

The nine life support systems are:

“Air Supply,”

“Communications,”

“Electricity,”

“Food production and delivery,”

“Recreation,”

“Temperature control,”

“Transportation,”

“Waste management,” and

“Water supply.”

This activity is based on the Marsville activity on life support systems developed by the

Challenger Center and is used with permission.

Preparation

Review and prepare materials listed on the student sheets. Separate student activity

sheets are included for each of the nine life support systems. Spaces for answers are not

provided on all sheets, so students will need extra paper.

In Class

After dividing students into teams, you may want to have each person assume a role on

the team, e.g., organizer, recorder, researcher, builder, artist, writer, etc. Distribute a

student activity sheet to each team.
Life Support Systems

110

Teacher Page

Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ

Each team must define the requirements of their system, exploring how these requirements are currently being met on Earth. Team members will research the limitations

and/or opportunities posed by the Moon’s environment. The “Moon ABCs Fact Sheet”

and maps of the Moon should be used as resource materials.

Each team will decide how the system will operate and what it will contain. A key part

of the problem-solving process is the students’ ability to evaluate the system solution in

terms of whether it provides the greatest good and least harm to the persons and things

affected.

Each model of a life support system must incorporate at least four facts from the “Moon

ABCs Fact Sheet.”

Models do not have to function physically, but each team member must be able to explain

how the models should function.

Wrap-up

Have each team share what they have learned with the entire class.

1. Did the students find that the Moon's environment placed limits on their designs of

 life support systems?

2. Did the students find opportunities for development on the Moon that could not

 happen on Earth?

3. Summarize the aspects and conditions of the Moon which make life support such a

 challenge.
Air Supply

Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ 111

Procedure

1. The atmosphere of Earth is a combination of

several gases; review them from the “Moon

ABCs Fact Sheet.” What gas do humans and

animals need to breathe in?

2. What primary gas do humans and animals breathe

out?

3. What is photosynthesis?

4. During the process of photosynthesis, what gas

must green plants take in ?

5. What gas do the green plants produce?

6. A process called electrolysis can separate water

into hydrogen gas and oxygen gas. Another

process is being developed which can extract

oxygen from rocks and soil that contain it. Do

you think these processes could be useful on the

Moon? How?

Key Words

atmosphere

photosynthesis

Materials

“Moon ABCs Fact Sheet”

construction materials

such as cardboard boxes

and tubes, blocks, hoses,

straws, string, pins, rubber

bands, tape, etc.

Purpose

To design and build a model air supply system for a

human settlement on the Moon.
Air Supply

112 Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ

7. Review the “Moon ABCs Fact Sheet.” Will the Moonbase settlers automatically be able to breathe the atmosphere or will

special provisions need to be made?

8. Design an air supply system to be used by the Moonbase inhab-

 itants which will rely on oxygen and carbon dioxide available

 only from the Moon’s resources. You may assume that ample

 electricity will be available.

9. Construct a model of this system based on your design. It must

 include the application of at least four facts from the “Moon

 ABCs Fact Sheet.” For example, how will the Moon’s gravity

affect the design of your system? Maybe your system will be

very heavy but still portable by only a few Moonbase workers

because the Moon’s gravity is only 1/6th of Earth’s gravity.

Sketch of

my model
Communications

Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ 113

Procedure

1. What different ways do we have of communicating with each other here on Earth? Do some

methods work better short distance than long

distance? What are the strong points of each of

these methods? What limitations does each have?

2. Why do you think communication would be impor-

 tant in each of the following situations:

 • Between Moonbase settlers within their

constructed settlement,

 • Between settlers in the settlement and those

conducting missions elsewhere on the surface

of the Moon,

 • Between Moonbase and Earth (How long does

it take for a radio signal to travel the distance

between Earth and the Moon?)

3. Review the facts you have learned about the

Moon. Do you think any of the communications

methods on Earth (from Question 1) would be

impractical on the Moon? Why or why not?

Which communications methods on Earth do you

think would be particularly useful on the Moon?

What features of these methods might you have to

modify?

4. Design a communications system to be used by

the Moonbase inhabitants which will have components to satisfy the different situations listed in

Question 2. You may assume that ample

electricity will be available.

Key Words

communications

Materials

“Moon ABCs Fact Sheet”

construction materials

such as cardboard boxes

and tubes, blocks,

hoses, straws, string,

pins, rubber bands, tape,

etc.

To design and construct a model of a communications

system to be used by people living and working on the

Moon.

Purpose
Communications

114 Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ

5. Construct a model of this system based on your design. It must

 include the application of at least four facts from the “Moon

 ABCs Fact Sheet.” For example, how will the Moon’s gravity affect the design of your system? Maybe your system will be

very heavy but still portable by only a few Moonbase workers

because the Moon’s gravity is only 1/6th of Earth’s gravity.

Sketch of

my model
Electricity

Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ 115

Procedure

1. Think of all the things you do during a regular

 school day, from the minute you wake up until the

 time you go to sleep. List each activity which

 requires electricity.

2. What other activities in your town, city, or state use

 electricity?

3. What is the source of the electric power for your

 town or city? Is it a steam generating plant that

 burns natural gas, oil, or coal? Is it a nuclear-fission

 plant?

4. List other ways to produce electricity.

5. How is electricity transmitted from the generating

 plant to other places?

6. Review the facts you have learned about the

Moon. Do you think the lack of atmosphere,

natural gas, oil, and coal on the Moon would

affect the production of electricity? How? Would

materials have to be shipped from Earth? Should

the lunar settlement rely on materials shipped from

Earth? Your team's job is to supply the electricity

needed by the life support systems at the

Moonbase.

7. Review the “Moon ABCs Fact Sheet.” Design

an electrical power generating plant and transmission system for the Moonbase inhabitants.

Important issues to consider include pollution,

radioactive waste storage, length of daylight on

the Moon, and power storage.

Key Words

electricity

solar power

nuclear energy

Materials

“Moon ABCs Fact Sheet”

construction materials

such as cardboard boxes

and tubes, blocks,

hoses, straws, string,

pins, rubber bands, tape,

etc.

Purpose

To design and build a model electrical power supply

system for a human settlement on the Moon.
Electricity

116 Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ

8. Construct a model of this system based on your design.

It must include the application of at least four facts from the

“Moon ABCs Fact Sheet.”

Sketch of

my model
Food Production

Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ 117

Procedure

1. Review the basic food groups. What are examples

of food in each group. What basic jobs for the

body does each group perform? Make a chart on

a separate paper with your answers.

2. With your class, make a list of the foods and

liquids everyone consumed in the past 24 hours.

Organize your list in the following way: Put each

food group in a different column; then cross out

all the items you consider “junk food” and cross

out each item made from an animal which must

eat another animal to live.

3. We know that, with the exception of carnivores,

animals eat plants. But what do green plants “eat”

in addition to carbon dioxide, sunlight, and

water? Include in your answer a discussion of

the nitrogen cycle.

4. It is likely that space in the Moonbase will be limited. Protein sources like cattle and vegetable

sources like corn require substantial space for

production. Reviewing your list from Question 2,

what are other sources of protein which take less

space? What fruits and vegetables could be produced in limited space?

Key Words

food groups

nutrition

consumption

self-sustaining

Materials

food groups chart

“Moon ABCs Fact Sheet”

construction materials

such as cardboard boxes

and tubes, blocks,

hoses, straws, string,

pins, rubber bands, tape,

etc.

Purpose

To design and build a model of a food production and

delivery system for a human settlement on the Moon.
Food Production

118 Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ

5. Review the “Moon ABCs Fact Sheet” to determine what

conditions of sunlight exist. Remember that other teams are

responsible for providing you with a water supply (which will

probably have to be used cautiously or rationed,) with electricity,

with a temperature control system in the constructed Moonbase,

and with an air supply of carbon dioxide and oxygen for plants

and animals you wish to grow. Remember also that all original

stocks of plants and animals must be transported from Earth.

With these reminders, your task is to design a food production

and delivery system in the Moonbase which will:

a) supply the inhabitants with all of their nutritional needs,

b) be self-sustaining without additional stock from Earth, and

c) provide products appealing enough that the inhabitants will

 enjoy eating their meals.

6. Construct a model of this system based on your design. It must

include the application of at least four facts from the “Moon

ABCs Fact Sheet.” For example, how will the Moon’s gravity

affect the design of your system? Maybe your system will be

very heavy but still portable by only a few Moonbase workers

because the Moon’s gravity is only 1/6th of Earth’s gravity.
Recreation

Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ 119

Procedure

1. What value does entertainment have?

2. What do you do for entertainment? Brainstorm

 other forms of entertainment which people enjoy

 doing.

3. Reviewing your list from Question 2, what activi-

 ties require you to consider the physical environ-

 ment? What features of the environment does each

 activity depend upon?

Key Words

entertainment

sedentary lifestyle

active lifestyle

Materials

“Moon ABCs Fact Sheet”

construction materials

such as cardboard boxes

and tubes, blocks,

hoses, straws, string,

pins, rubber bands, tape,

etc.

Purpose

To design and build a model of recreational facilities

for a human settlement on the Moon.
Recreation

120 Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ

4. What value do you think entertainment would have on the

Moon? (Would the Moonbase settlers need entertainment?)

5. Review the “Moon ABCs Fact Sheet.” Which of the recreational activities on your list do you think would be possible on

the Moon? Include in your answer which activities would be

the most practical and popular.

6. Remembering that the Moon has features different from those of

Earth, what might be applied to developing new forms of

recreation?

7. Design recreational facilities for the Moonbase inhabitants which

satisfy any special recreational needs you think they will have

and include some new forms of recreation based on the “Moon

ABCs Fact Sheet.” You may assume that ample electricity will

be available.

8. Construct a model or models of the facilities based on your

design. It must include the application of at least four facts from

the “Moon ABCs Fact Sheet.” For example, how will the

Moon's gravity affect your designs?
Temperature Control

Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ 121

Procedure

1. Review the clothes you and your classmates wear

during each season of the year, both indoors and

outdoors. You may want to write this information

on a chalk board or paper.

2. How many degrees does the temperature have to

change for you to switch from shorts to jeans,

from bare hands to gloves, or to add a shirt over a

swimming suit?

3. What effect do Sun, clouds, wind, and your own

activity level have on the temperature choices you

just made?

4. What are the coldest and hottest temperatures you

ever experienced?

5. What is the number of degrees between these two

extremes you felt?

6. Besides your selection of clothing, what other precautions did you take to protect your body?

7. Think back to a severe hot spell or cold snap your

town experienced or that you heard about. List

the effects of these temperature extremes on soil,

plants, animals, buildings, water use, and electrical

use.

 8. What different environments on Earth (both indoor and outdoor) could be uncomfortable or

actually dangerous to us if we did not control the

temperature to which our bodies were exposed?

Key Words

Farenheit

Celcius

Materials

“Moon ABCs Fact Sheet”

construction materials

such as cardboard boxes

and tubes, blocks,

hoses, straws, string,

pins, rubber bands, tape,

etc.

Purpose

To design and build a model temperature control

system for a human settlement on the Moon.
Temperature Control

122 Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ

9. What different ways do we have of controlling the temperature

on Earth?

10. Review the “Moon ABCs Fact Sheet.” How do tempera

tures on the Moon compare with temperatures on Earth? Will

the Moonbase inhabitants be able to exist without special temperature controls on the surface of the Moon? How about in

their constructed Moonbase settlement?

11. Design a temperature control system to protect the Moonbase

 inhabitants and their possessions/equipment both on the surface

 of the Moon and in their settlement. You may assume that

ample electricity will be available.

12. Construct a model of this system based on your design. It

must include the application of at least four facts from the

“Moon ABCs Fact Sheet.” For example, how will the Moon’s

gravity affect the design of your system? Maybe your system

will be very heavy but still portable by only a few Moonbase

workers because the Moon’s gravity is only 1/6th of Earth’s

gravity.
Transportation

Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ 123

Procedure

1. What are some different ways we transport people

 and goods on Earth?

2. What physical features of Earth do these methods

 require in order to function?

3. Write down the strong points and limitations of each

 transportation system you listed in Question 1.

4. What do you think would need to be transported on

 the Moon in each of the following situations:

a) within the Moonbase settlement,

b) between the settlement and other points on

 the Moon.

5. Review the “Moon ABCs Fact Sheet.” Do you

think any of the transportation methods on Earth

(from Question 1) would be impractical on the

Moon? Why or why not?

6. Which transportation methods on Earth do you

 think would be particularly useful on the Moon?

 What features might you have to modify?

7. Design a transportation system to be used by the

Moonbase inhabitants which will have components to satisfy the different situations they could

encounter (Question 4). For this activity you may

assume that some of the basic construction materials you need will be transported from Earth to the

settlement. You may also assume that ample electricity will be available.

Key Words

transportation

Materials

“Moon ABCs Fact Sheet”

construction materials

such as cardboard boxes

and tubes, blocks,

hoses, straws, string,

pins, rubber bands, tape,

etc.

Purpose

To design and build a model transportation system for

a human settlement on the Moon.
Transportation

124 Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ

8. Construct a model of this system based on your design. It must

include the application of at least four facts from the “Moon

ABCs Fact Sheet.” For example, how will the Moon’s gravity

affect the design of your system? Maybe your system will be

very heavy but still portable by only a few Moonbase workers

because the Moon’s gravity is only 1/6th of Earth’s gravity.

Sketch of

my model
Waste Management

Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ 125

Procedure

1. Your school, in many ways, is like a miniature

town. It has a system for governance, health care,

traffic control, a work schedule for its inhabitants,

recreation, AND waste disposal. To get a better

idea of how much waste your school generates

every week, find out how many students plus

teachers, administrators, other staff (and animals, if

any) are regularly in the buildings.

2. Next, interview the cafeteria staff and the custodial

 staff for the answers to these questions:

(a) What gets thrown away?

(b) How many pounds get thrown away every

 week? Calculate how many pounds of trash

 this is for every person in the school.

(c) Are there any items which can be recycled

 before disposal? If yes, what are the recycled

 items?

(d) What items are biodegradable?

(e) What is the garbage/trash packed in for

 removal?

(f) Where is it taken?

(g) According to building codes, how many toilets

 must there be to accommodate all the people?

3. Waste is a “hot” topic in our society. Why? Dis-

 cuss what you know about the following phrases:

 Excessive packaging, landfills, toxic waste, disposable plastic goods, nondegradable material,

water pollution, and air pollution.

Key Words

recycling

biodegradable materials

nondegradable

self-sustaining

Materials

“Moon ABCs Fact Sheet”

construction materials

such as cardboard boxes

and tubes, blocks,

hoses, straws, string,

pins, rubber bands, tape,

etc.

Purpose

To design and build a model waste management

system for a human settlement on the Moon.
Waste Management

126 Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ

4. In movies like those starring “Indiana Jones,” well preserved,

ancient artifacts are often found in the desert. Scientists also

find preserved artifacts in polar ice; for example, mastodons or

ancient people. Why aren’t they decayed?

5. Review the “Moon ABCs Fact Sheet.” The Moonbase must

be an enclosed, self-sustaining settlement. Just like your school,

it must perform the basic functions of a town. Other teams are

responsible for designing and constructing several other types

of systems (air supply, communications, electricity, food production and delivery, recreation, temperature control, transportation,

and water supply). Your team’s job is to dispose of the waste

which could be generated by these systems. Design a waste

disposal system for the Moonbase. Be sure to decide what

importance, if any, will be given to biodegradable materials,

recycling, and the Moon outside of the constructed settlement.

6. Construct a model of this system based on your design. It must

include the application of at least four facts from the “Moon

ABCs Fact Sheet.” For example, how will the Moon’s gravity

affect the design of your system? Maybe your system will be

very heavy but still portable by only a few Moonbase workers

because the Moon’s gravity is only 1/6th Earth’s gravity.
Water Supply

Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ 127

Procedure

1 Think of all the things you do during a regular

school day, from the minute you wake up until the

time you go to sleep. List each activity which

involves water.

2. Are there any water activities you could eliminate

for a day? a week? longer?

3. What other activities in your town use water?

Could any of those activities be eliminated?

4. During a dry summer, have you ever heard a

public announcement that “water conservation

measures are in effect”? What activities are affected by this announcement?

5. Imagine if summer drought continued for years,

then how could water be conserved for people?

for animals? for crops? for businesses?

6. Review the “Moon ABCs Fact Sheet.” Where

is the water on the Moon and in what form or

forms does it exist?

7. Design a water supply system to be used by the

Moonbase inhabitants which will rely only on

water available from the Moon’s resources.

You may assume that ample electricity will be

available.

Key Words

water conservation

drought

Materials

“Moon ABCs Fact Sheet”

construction materials

such as cardboard boxes

and tubes, blocks,

hoses, straws, string,

pins, rubber bands, tape,

etc.

Purpose

To design and build a model water supply system for

a human settlement on the Moon.
Water Supply

128 Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ

8. Construct a model of this sytem based on your design. It must

include the application of at least four facts from the “Moon

ABCs Fact Sheet.” For example, how will the Moon's gravity

affect the design of your system? Maybe your system will be

very heavy but still portable by only a few Moonbase workers

because the Moon's gravity is only 1/6th of Earth's gravity.

Sketch of

my model
Lunar Biosphere

Teacher Page

Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ 129

Purpose

To build a biosphere that is a balanced, self-enclosed

living system able to run efficiently over a long period

of time.

Background [also see “Teacher's Guide” Pages 14, 15]

Earth is the ultimate biosphere, literally a “life ball.” It holds and sustains all life

known to humanity. As men and women look to traveling and living beyond our blue

planet, we see conditions that are too harsh to sustain life as we know it.

Conditions on the Moon are not favorable for sustaining life because of the absence of

water, organic topsoil, and atmosphere. Also lunar days (equal to 14 Earth days)

and nights are very long. Water must be brought from Earth or made using oxygen

from lunar regolith and hydrogen from Earth. Nutrients need to be added to lunar

regolith and plants have to be grown in a self-enclosed system. What's more, artificial

light must be used during the long, dark periods.

This activity challenges students to create a working model of a lunar biosphere that is a

balanced, self-enclosed living system able to run efficiently over a long period of time.

Preparation

Review and prepare materials listed on the student sheet. Here are some suggestions.

Seedlings: About two weeks prior to this activity, sprout the seedlings for use in the

biospheres. Successful biospheres have been made using mung, radish, and peanut.

Tomato seedlings can also be used, as well as ferns, vines, and simple garden weeds.

Soil materials: Collect bins or bags to hold the variety of soil materials: vermiculite,

permiculite, cinder, gravel, sand, silt, clay, and fertilizer.

Animals: Students should collect live critters to live in the biospheres. These can

include -- insects (ants, cockroaches, beetles, etc.), mollusks (snails, slugs, etc.), arachnids (spiders, etc.), and crustaceans (sow bugs).

Plastic bottles for biospheres: Use 2-liter soda bottles with the black base. Remove the

black base by submerging it in a large pot of hot (but not boiling) water. This softens the

glue holding the base onto the bottle without melting the plastic. Take off the label. With

an exacto knife or razor, cut off the top spout of the bottle. For safety, it is best not to

allow students to do the cutting. You may place the spout with your other plastic

recyclables as it will not be used in this activity. Prepare one container per student.
Lunar Biosphere

Teacher Page

130 Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ

The students will plug the holes in the black base with wax, tape, or clay. The base

must be watertight. They will then fill the base with a predetermined soil mixture.

They will add water, seedlings, and animals as decided by the team. Finally, they will

invert the plastic container into the base, seal it with clear, plastic tape, and label it. The

label should include the student's name, names of team members, date, and time the

biosphere was sealed.

In Class

After discussing the background information and purpose of this activity, divide the

class into cooperative teams of 4 students each.

Biosphere mobiles

Have each team create a hanging mobile with the theme “Biosphere.” Each hanging

component represents one part of the living Earth system, e.g., water, plants, animals,

people, air, Sun, soil, etc.

After mobiles have been balanced and hung from the ceiling, have the students predict

what would happen if one part were removed or just shifted. Ask the students to shift

or remove one part. Does the biosphere remain balanced? Ask the students to try to

rebalance and hang their mobiles. Have them relate what they see to what might happen if a part of any biosphere is changed or removed.

Materials

cardboard or heavy-weight paper

markers or crayons

string

something to use as the frame -- wooden chopsticks, other kinds of sticks,

plastic drinking straws, hangers, etc.
Lunar Biosphere

Teacher Page

Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ 131

 Making Biospheres

After discussing the importance of a balanced biosphere, you may choose to have the

students number themselves from 1 to 4 for a role assignment within each team:

1 = Botanist - person who studies plants,

2 = Agronomist - person who studies soils and crops,

3 = Science Specialist - person who relates conditions of soil and water

 to optimal plant growth,

4 = Zoologist - person who studies animals.

Distribute the “Team Member Information Sheets.” Students are responsible for reading

and sharing the data contained on their own sheets. Have them log their shared information on their worksheet -- as outlined in Question 3 on page 133.

Before the actual construction, each team must decide the following for

their lunar biospheres:

1. best lunar soil mixture

for example, vermiculite, permiculite, cinder, sand, gravel, fertilizer, etc.

2. amounts of each type of soil material

for example: 10 Tablespoons of sand

10 Tablespoons of silt

10 teaspoons of vermiculite

1/2 teaspoon of fertilizer

3. optimal lighting

for example: direct sunlight, shade, artificial lamp, etc.

4. optimal amount of water to add to the biosphere before sealing it

for example: 5 Tablespoons of water

5. kinds and amounts of seedlings and animals to include inside

for example: mung, radish, peanut seedlings -- use just one type or a combination. If these are not available, then other seedlings can easily be used. Other examples include ferns, vines, and garden weeds. Have students explain why they

made their choices. Students can also do preliminary research on their organisms.

Note: Each lunar biosphere must include plants and animals.
Lunar Biosphere

Teacher Page

132 Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ

After teams have discussed and decided these five points, then each student will make

his/her own biosphere.

The biospheres must be completely sealed with clear, plastic tape.

No air or other materials can go in or out.

Once the biosphere is sealed, it cannot be opened again.

Each lunar biosphere should be labeled with the student's name, names of team members, date, and time it was sealed. Put this label on the black base.

After the biospheres are built, they should be set under the lighting conditions chosen by

the teams.

A “Data Sheet” and an “Observation Sheet” are provided for student use.

Wrap-up

Are some lunar biospheres doing better than others?

What are some of the factors leading to the success or failure of the biospheres?

Based on this experience of making a model lunar biosphere, what is your opinion on

the potential success of actual self-contained habitats on the Moon?
Lunar Biosphere

Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ 133

Purpose

To build a biosphere that is a balanced, self-enclosed

living system able to run efficiently over a long period

of time.

Procedure for Teams

1. Discuss and list the questions you may want to ask

before you start to build a lunar biosphere.

2. How and where could you find possible solutions

 to these questions?

3. List all important information you obtained from

the botanist, agronomist, science specialist, and zoologist that will assist you in planning the most efficient and effective lunar biosphere possible.

Key Words

biosphere

soil

atmosphere

organism

photosynthesis

agronomist

botanist

zoologist

Materials

“Data and Observation

Sheets”

“Team Member Information

Sheets”

measuring cups & spoons

plastic 2-liter bottle, cut

vermiculite

permiculite

cinder, gravel, sand

silt, clay

fertilizer

seedlings and animals

water

clear, plastic tape

lamp
Lunar Biosphere

134 Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ

Procedure for Each Person

4. Fill out the “Biosphere Data Sheet” with your team's

choices of best soil mixture, types and numbers of seedlings and other organisms, optimal lighting conditions, and the optimal amount of water to add to the

biosphere before sealing it. Remember that you are striving to

create a living system that will remain balanced over a long

period of time.

5. Obtain a pre-cut plastic bottle from your teacher and build

your personal biosphere following the team’s recommendations.

6. Seal your biosphere with clear, plastic tape. We are simulating a lunar biosphere, therefore no air or other materials can go

in or out. After your biosphere is sealed, it cannot be reopened.

7. Label the biosphere with your name, names of your team members, date, and time it was sealed. Put the label on the black

base.

8. Set your biosphere under the lighting conditions chosen by the

team.

9. Fill in the “Biosphere Observation Sheet” as directed by

your teacher.
Date:

Team Members: Name:

Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ 135

Lunar Biosphere - Data Sheet on Materials Used

 Lighting Conditions:

 Amount of water added to Biosphere before it was sealed:

 Date and Time it was sealed:

 Soil Material Amount Used

 Seedlings / Animal organisms Amount Used
Date:

Team Members: Name:

136 Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ

Lunar Biosphere - Observation Sheet

Date Lighting Height of Seedlings (cm) Observations Color

 Conditions Mung Radish Peanut Sketches
Date:

Team Members: Name:

Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ 137

Team Member Information Sheet

for Botanist

Mung bean, Phaseolus aureus

origin: India, central Asia

The mung bean, a bushy annual which grows 76 - 90 meters tall, has many branches

with hairy bean-like leaves. Flowers are yellowish-green with purple streaks and produce long, thin, hairy pods containing 9 - 15 small yellow seeds. Seeds are used to

produce bean sprouts.

Radish, Raphanus sativus

origin: temperate Asia

The radish produces white, red, or black roots and stems under a rosette of lobed

leaves. It is an annual or biennial plant, which grows several inches high. Radishes

should be planted 1 cm deep, and will sprout in 3 - 7 days. When planted together with

other root crops, radishes can be used to decoy pests, and the spaces left in the soil

when they are pulled out provide growing room for the other root crops, which grow

more slowly.

Peanut, Arachis hypogaea

origin: South America

The peanut, an annual vegetable which belongs to the pea family, grows from

15 - 76 cm tall. Flowers are small yellow clusters that grow on stems called pegs.

Pegs grow downward and push into the soil. Nuts develop from these pegs

2.54 - 7.6 cm underground.

Lunar Biosphere
Date:

Team Members: Name:

138 Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ

Lunar Biosphere

for Agronomist

Soil has four functions:

1) supply water to plants,

2) supply nutrients (lunar regolith, however, needs to have nutrients added to it),

3) supply gases (oxygen and carbon dioxide), and

4) support plants.

The ideal soil holds moisture and nutrients while letting excess water drain to make

room for air.

Types of soil:

clay - small particles, less than 1/256 mm, which pack closely. Poor drainage.

sand - irregular particles between 1/16 mm and 2 mm. Holds very little water.

silt - between clay and sand-size particles. Not very fertile, packs hard.

loam - a mixture of clay, silt, and sand. The best kind of soil.

Team Member Information Sheetl Engineer
Date:

Team Members: Name:

Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ 139

Lunar Biosphere

Team Member Information Sheetl E

for Science Specialist

Growing Conditions

Mung bean - grows best in full sun, in a rich, well-drained soil. It shouldn’t be

allowed to dry out completely.

Radish - is a cool season crop, and can take temperatures below freezing. It can

tolerate partial shade. Soil should be well-drained. If water supply

gets low, then radishes become woody.

Peanut - needs lots of Sun and warmth. It is relatively tolerant of dry soil.

These seeds are very sensitive to fertilizer.

Soil - can be improved by the addition of fertilizers, which provide nutrients

to the plant. This makes the plant healthier, and better able to resist

disease and pest attacks.

Vermiculite and perlite are “puffed up” minerals that are used to lighten

heavy clay soils with air spaces, or to help sandy soils hold more water. They do not directly provide nutrition to the plants.
Date:

Team Members: Name:

140 Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ

Lunar Biosphere

Team Member Information Sheetl

for Zoologist

 Mung bean - has no serious pest or disease problems.

 Radish - has no serious disease problems. Maggots and aphids may be a pest

problem, but radishes are usually harvested quickly enough so these

do not have much effect.

 Peanut - may be attacked by nematodes, aphids, and in some areas, by rodents.
Glossary

Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ 141

A'a: Blocky, angular, and rough type of lava flow.

Agglutinates: Common particle type in lunar

sediment; agglutinates consist of small rock,

mineral, and glass fragments bonded together

with glass.

Agronomist: Scientist who studies soil management and the production of field crops.

Anomaly: A deviation from the common rule,

type, or form; something abnormal or inconsistent.

Anorthosite: An igneous rock made up almost

entirely of plagioclase feldspar.

Antenna: A conductor by which electromagnetic

waves are transmitted or received.

Apollo: U.S. Space Program which included 6

piloted lunar landings between 1969 and 1972.

Apollo astronauts collected and returned 382

kilograms of rock and sediment samples from

the Moon.

Astronaut: Person engaged in or trained for

spaceflight.

Atmosphere: Mixture of gases that surround a

planet.

Basalt: Fine-grained, dark-colored igneous rock

compsed primarily of plagioclase feldspar and

pyroxene; other minerals such as olivine and

ilmenite are usually present.

Beneficial: Advantageous, helpful.

Biodegradable (see Nondegradable): Capable of

decaying and being absorbed by the environment.

Biosphere: The part of Earth's crust, water, and

atmosphere where living organisms can survive.

Botanist: Scientist who studies plant life.

Breccia: Rock consisting of angular, coarse fragments embedded in a fine-grained matrix.

Celsius: A temperature scale that assigns the

value 0o C to the freezing point of water and the

value of 100o

 C to the boiling point of water at

standard pressure.

Channel: A furrow or narrow passageway in the

ground.

Words that appear in italic type within a definition also are defined in the Glossary.

Clementine: A global mapping mission to the

Moon launched in 1994 by the U. S. Department of Defense, with science support from

NASA.

Communicatons: A means of transmitting and

receiving information.

Console: A desklike structure that is the control

unit of an electrical or electronic system.

Consumption: The act of eating or drinking;

using energy and materials.

Core: The central region of a planet or moon

frequently made of different materials than the

surrounding regions (mantle and crust). Earth

and the Moon are thought to have cores of iron

and nickel.

Crater (see Impact): A hole or depression. Most

are roughly circular or oval in outline. On

Earth most natural craters are of volcanic

origin. On the Moon most are of impact origin.

Crater chain: Several craters along a general

line.

Crust: The outermost layer of a planet or moon,

above the mantle.

Dark mantle deposits: Deposits of dark glass on

the Moon, possibly products of volcanic fire

fountaining.

Density: Mass per volume; how much material in

a given space.

Descartes: Lunar highlands site of Apollo 16

landing on April 21, 1972.

Development: The act of bringing into being or

advancing to a more effective state.

Differentiation: Chemical zonation caused by

differences in the densities of minerals; heavy

materials sink, less dense materials float.

Drought: Extended period of dry weather, especially one causing damage to crops.

Earthquake: Sudden motion or trembling of

Earth caused by the abrupt release of slowly

accumulated elastic energy in rocks.

Ejecta: Material thrown out from and deposited

around an impact crater.
Glossary

142 Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ

Electricity: Energy caused by the motion of

electrons, protons, and other charged particles.

Entertainment: Amusement, or diversion; something to hold attention for pleasure.

Erosion: Removal of weathered rocks by moving

water, wind, ice, or gravity.

Eruption (see Source): A break out or brust of

volcanic matter.

Farenheit: A temperature scale with the freezing

point of water assigned the value 32o F and the

boiling point of water 212o F.

Farside: The side of the Moon that never faces

Earth.

Feasible: Capable of being done or accomplished;

probable, likely.

Fissure: Crack extending far into a planet or

moon through which magma travels to and

erupts onto the surface.

Food groups: Categories into which all foods are

divided; meats and protein, fruits, vegetables,

dairy, carbohydrates, and sugars.

Fra Mauro: Landing site of Apollo 14 on the

Moon on February 5, 1971.

Geologist: Scientist who studies Earth, its materials, the physical and chemical changes that

occur on the surface and in the interior, and the

history of the planet and its life forms. Planetary geologists extend their studies to the

Moon, planets, and other solid bodies in the

Solar System.

Giant impact theory: An explanation for the

origin of the Moon from Earth debris which

collected in space after a projectile the size of

planet Mars smashed into a growing Earth.

Hadley-Appenine: Landing site of Apollo 15 on

the Moon on July 31, 1971.

Highland "soil": Sediment on the surface of the

lunar highlands; composed of broken rock and

mineral fragments, and glass produced by impact.

Highlands: Oldest exposed areas on the surface

of the Moon; extensively cratered, and chemically distinct from the maria.

Igneous: Rocks or processes involving the formation and solidification of hot, molten magma.

Ilmenite: Opaque mineral found in basalt; nearly

pure iron-titanium oxide (FeTiO3.)

Impact (see Crater): The forceful striking of one

body, such as a meteorite, against another body

such as a moon or planet.

Impactor (see Projectile, Meteorite): Object that

impacts a surface.

KREEP: On the Moon, type of highlands rock

rich in potassium (K), rare-earth elements

(REE), and phosphorus (P).

Latitude: The angular distance North or South

from the Earth's equator measured in degrees

on the meridian of a point; Equator being 0o and

the poles 90oN and 90oS.

Lava: fluid magma that flows onto the surface of

a planet or moon; erupted from a volcano or

fissure. Also, the rock formed by solidification

of this material.

Levee: Zones in a lava flow where the lava

between the zones is moving faster than the

lava outside the zones.

Lifestyle (see Sedentary): A person's general

pattern of living.

Longitude: The angular distance East or West,

between the meridian of a particular place on

Earth and that of Greenwich, England, expressed in degrees or time.

Lunar: Of or pertaining to the Moon.

Lunar Prospector: U. S. Discovery-class mission to the Moon scheduled for launch in early

1998. Its instruments are designed to provide

global maps and data sets of the Moon's composition and magnetic and gravity fields from

a low polar orbit.

Magma: Term applied to molten rock in the

interior of a planet or moon. When it reaches

the surface, magma is called lava.

Magma Ocean: Term used to describe the layer

of magma, hundreds of kilometers thick;

thought to have covered the Moon 4.5 billion

years ago.

Magnetic field: The region of "altered space" that

will interact with the magnetic properties of a

magnet. It is located mainly between the

opposite poles of a magnet or in the energetic
Glossary

Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ 143

space about an electric charge in motion.

Mantle: A mostly solid layer of Earth lying

beneath the crust and above the core; consisting mostly of iron, magnesium, silicon, and

oxygen.

Mare basalt: Rocks making up the dark, smooth,

mare areas of the Moon

Mare "soil": Sediment on the surface of the lunar

maria; fragments of basalt rocks, broken mineral grains, and glass produced by impact.

Maria (mare): Dark areas on the Moon covered

by basalt lava flows.

Metamorphic: Rocks that have recrystallized in

a solid state as a result of changes in temperature, pressure, and chemical environment.

Meteorite (see Impactor, Projectile): A metallic

or stony (silicate) body that has fallen on Earth

or the Moon from outer space.

Meteoritic bombardment: Intensive and prolonged impacts of a surface by meteorites or

other impactors.

Mineral: Naturally occurring inorganic solid

with a definite chemical composition and crystal structure.

Moonquake (see Earthquake): Sudden motion or

trembling of the Moon caused by the abrupt

release of slowly accumulated elastic energy in

rocks.

Mountain: A natural elevation of a planetary

surface.

NASA: United States federal agency; National

Aeronautics and Space Administration.

Nearside: The side of the Moon that always faces

Earth.

Nondegradable (see Biodegradable): Something

that can not be chemically decomposed.

Norite: Igneous rock found in the lunar highlands

composed of plagioclase and pyroxene.

Nuclear energy: Process by which the fission of

235U releases heat to make steam, which then

drives turbines to create electricity.

Nutrition: Process by which animals and plants

take in and utilize food material.

Ocean of Storms: Landing site of Apollo 12 on

the Moon on Nov. 19, 1969; Oceanus

Procellarum.

Olivine: Mineral found in basalt; ranges from

Mg2SiO4 to Fe2SiO4.

Orange "soil": On the Moon, a mixture of very

small dark orange and black glass balls which

formed from quickly cooled lava droplets during a pyroclastic eruption.

Organism: Any form of animal or plant life.

Pahoehoe: Basaltic lava with a smooth, billowy,

or ropy surface.

Photosynthesis: The process by which plants

convert water and carbon dioxide into carbohydrates, using sunlight as the source of energy

and the aid of chlorophyll.

Plagioclase feldspar: Common mineral; ranges

from NaAlSi3O8 to CaAl2Si2O8.

Plate tectonics: Theory formulated in the late

1960s that states the Earth's crust and upper

mantle (a layer called the lithosphere) is

broken into moving pieces called plates. The

formation of mountains and volcanoes, and the

occurrence of earthquakes have been explained

using this theory.

Pressure ridges: Long, narrow wavelike folds in

the surface of lava flows; formed where lava

may have buckled up against slower moving or

stationary lava downstream.

Projectile (see Impactor, Meteorite): Object that

impacts a surface.

Pyroclastic eruption: Explosive eruption of lava

producing and ejecting hot fragments of rock

and lava.

Ray: Streak of material blasted out and away

from an impact crater.

Recycling: To treat or process waste materials

making them suitable for reuse.

Regolith (see Sediment, Soil): Loose, unconsolidated rock, mineral, and glass fragments. On

the Moon, this debris is produced by impacts

and blankets the surface.

Rille: Long channel on the Moon crossing the

surface of maria; probably formed either as an

open channel in a lava flow, or as an underground tube carrying hot lava which collapsed

as the lava flowed out.
Glossary

144 Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities, NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ

Robot: A machine that does mechanical tasks on

command and operates automatically.

Rock: A naturally formed solid that is an aggregate of one or more minerals.

Scale: The relationship of a distance on a map

or model to the true distance in space; written

as a ratio, such as 1:24,000.

Sea of Serenity: One of the maria on the Moon's

nearside; Mare Serenitatis.

Sea of Tranquillity: Landing site of Apollo 11 on

the Moon on July 20, 1969; Mare Tranquillitatis.

Sedentary (see Lifestyle): characterized by much

sitting and little physical activity.

Sediment (see Regolith): Soild rock or mineral

fragments transported and deposited by wind,

water, gravity, or ice; preciptitated by chemical

reactions; or secreted by organisms;

accummulated as layers in loose, unconsolidated form.

Sedimentary: Rock formed when sediment is

compacted and lithified.

Self-sustaining: Able to exist and function without outside help.

SNC meteorites (see Meteorite): Group of meteorites with relatively young ages (slightly over

1 billion years old) that probably came from

Mars.

Soil (see Regolith, Sediment): The upper layers of

sediment on Earth that support plant growth.

Solar power: Energy derived from the Sun or

sunlight for use as a source of electricity.

Solar system: TheSun and all the objects (planets, moons, asteroids, and comets) that orbit

the Sun.

Solar wind: The stream of charged particles

(mainly ionized hydrogen) moving outward

from the Sun with velocities in the range 300-

500 kilometers per second.

Source (see Eruption): Location where igneous

matter (lava and gases) erupts onto the surface;

vent, fissure, volcano, etc.

Spacecraft: Vehicle capable of traveling in outer

space.

Stratigraphy: Study of layered rock to understand the sequence of geological events.

Taurus-Littrow: Landing site of Apollo 17 on the

Moon on Dec. 11, 1972.

Terrain: Area of the surface with a distinctive

geological character.

Tool carrier: Storage container for tools on the

Apollo Lunar Roving Vehicle.

Transportation: The means of carrying something from one place to another.

Troctolite: Igneous rock found in the lunar highlands composed of plagioclase and olivine.

Vesicle: Bubble-shaped cavity in a volcanic rock

formed by expanding gases.

Volatiles: Chemical elements that enter a vapor

phase at relatively low temperatures.

Volcano: Mountain formed from the eruption of

igneous matter through a source vent.

Water conservation: The wise use of water as a

natural resource; the prevention of loss or

waste of water.

Weathering: The mechanical breakdown and

chemical alteration of rocks and minerals at

Earth's surface during exposure to air,

moisture, and organic matter.

Zoologist: Scientist who studies animals.
145

Lunar Exploration

http://cass.jsc.nasa.gov/moon.html

Lunar & Planetary Institute (Exploring the Moon)

http://www-sn.jsc.nasa.gov/explore/explore.htm

Johnson Space Center (future human exploration)

http://ilewg.jsc.nasa.gov/

International Lunar Exploration Working Group

http://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/planetary/planets/

moonpage.html

National Space Science Data Center (Moon

homepage)

http://spacelink.nasa.gov/Instructional.Materials/

Curriculum.Materials/Sciences/Astronomy/

Our.Solar.System/Earth's.Moon/

Exploring.The.Moon. Teacher.Guide.4-12/

.index.html

Exploring the Moon on-line version of this publication

at NASA Spacelink

Apollo Mission

http://www-sn.jsc.nasa.gov/explore/Data/Apollo/

Apollo.htm

Apollo Experiment Operations

http://www.hq.nasa.gov/office/pao/History/alsj/

Apollo Lunar Surface Journal

Clementine Mission

http://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/planetary/

clementine.html

Lunar data from the Clementine Mission

http://cass.jsc.nasa.gov/publications/slidesets/

clementine.html

Clementine Explores the Moon, annotated slide set

http://cass.jsc.nasa.gov/research/clemen/

clemen.html

Clementine Mission - Images of the Moon

Lunar Prospector Mission

http://lunar.arc.nasa.gov/

Homepage from NASA Ames Research Center

http://juggler.lmsc.lockheed.com/lunar/

Lunar Prospector homepage from Lockheed-Martin

http://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/planetary/

lunarprosp.html

National Space Science Data Center

Planetary Exploration

http://www.soest.hawaii.edu/PSRdiscoveries/

Planetary Science Research Discoveries web

magazine

http://www.soest.hawaii.edu/spacegrant/

class_acts/

Hands-on classroom activities for planetary science

http://spacelink.nasa.gov/

NASA Spacelink

http://bang.lanl.gov/solarsys/

Views Of The Solar System (Calvin Hamilton/LANL)

http://seds.lpl.arizona.edu/nineplanets/

nineplanets/nineplanets/luna.html

The Nine Planets - Moon pages (Bill Arnett/SEDS)

http://pds.jpl.nasa.gov/planets/

Welcome to the Planets (PDS/JPL)

http://stardate.utexas.edu/resources/ssguide/

SSG_Contents.html

Guide to the Solar System (McDonald Observatory)

http://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/imgcat/

NSSDC Planetary Image Catalog

http://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/

NASA Planetary Photojournal

http://nix.nasa.gov/

NASA Image eXchange (NIX)

World Wide Web Resources for Educators

 for the Moon

Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ
NASA Resources for Educators

Regional Educator Resource Centers (RERCs) offer

more educators access to NASA educational materials. NASA

has formed partnerships with universities, museums, and other

educational institutions to serve as RERCs in many states. A

complete list of RERCs is available through CORE, or electronically via NASA Spacelink at http://spacelink.nasa.gov

NASA On-line Resources for Educators provide current

educational information and instructional resource materials to

teachers, faculty, and students. A wide range of information is

available, including science, mathematics, engineering, and

technology education lesson plans, historical information related to the aeronautics and space program, current status

reports on NASA projects, news releases, information on NASA

educational programs, useful software and graphics files. Educators and students can also use NASA resources as learning

tools to explore the Internet, accessing information about educational grants, interacting with other schools which are already

on-line, and participating in on-line interactive projects, communicating with NASA scientists, engineers, and other team members to experience the excitement of real NASA projects.

Access these resources through the NASA Education Home

Page: http://www.hq.nasa.gov/education

NASA Television (NTV)is the Agency's distribution system for

live and taped programs. It offers the public a front-row seat for

launches and missions, as well as informational and educational

programming, historical documentaries, and updates on the latest

developments in aeronautics and space science. NTV is transmitted

on the GE-2 satellite, Transponder 9C at 85 degrees West

longitude, vertical polarization, with a frequency of 3880 megahertz,

and audio of 6.8 megahertz.

Apart from live mission coverage, regular NASA Television

programming includes a Video File from noon to 1:00 pm, a NASA

Gallery File from 1:00 to 2:00 pm, and an Education File from 2:00

to 3:00 pm (all times Eastern). This sequence is repeated at

3:00 pm, 6:00 pm, and 9:00 pm, Monday through Friday. The NTV

Education File features programming for teachers and students on

science, mathematics, and technology. NASA Television

programming may be videotaped for later use.

For more information on NASA Television, contact:

NASA Headquarters, Code P-2, NASA TV, Washington, DC

20546-0001 Phone: (202) 358-3572

NTV Home Page: http://www.hq.nasa.gov/ntv.html

How to Access NASA's Education Materials and Services,

EP-1996-11-345-HQ This brochure serves as a guide to accessing a variety of NASA materials and services for educators.

Copies are available through the ERC network, or electronically

via NASA Spacelink. NASA Spacelink can be accessed at the

following address: http://spacelink.nasa.gov

AK, AZ, CA, HI, ID, MT, NV, OR,

UT, WA, WY

NASA Educator Resource Center

Mail Stop 253-2

NASA Ames Research Center

Moffett Field, CA 94035-1000

Phone: (650) 604-3574

CT, DE, DC, ME, MD, MA, NH,

NJ, NY, PA, RI, VT

NASA Educator Resource Laboratory

Mail Code 130.3

NASA Goddard Space Flight Center

Greenbelt, MD 20771-0001

Phone: (301) 286-8570

CO, KS, NE, NM, ND, OK, SD, TX

JSC Educator Resource Center

Space Center Houston

NASA Johnson Space Center

1601 NASA Road One

Houston, TX 77058-3696

Phone: (281) 483-8696

FL, GA, PR, VI

NASA Educator Resource Laboratory

Mail Code ERL

NASA Kennedy Space Center

Kennedy Space Center, FL 32899-0001

Phone: (407) 867-4090

KY, NC, SC, VA, WV

Virginia Air and Space Museum

NASA Educator Resource Center for

NASA Langley Research Center

600 Settler's Landing Road

Hampton, VA 23669-4033

Phone: (757) 727-0900 x 757

IL, IN, MI, MN, OH, WI

NASA Educator Resource Center

Mail Stop 8-1

NASA Lewis Research Center

21000 Brookpark Road

Cleveland, OH 44135-3191

Phone: (216) 433-2017

AL, AR, IA, LA, MO,TN

U.S. Space and Rocket Center

NASA Educator Resource Center for

NASA Marshall Space Flight Center

P.O. Box 070015

Huntsville, AL 35807-7015

Phone: (205) 544-5812

MS

NASA Educator Resource Center

Building 1200

NASA John C. Stennis Space Center

Stennis Space Center, MS 39529-6000

Phone: (228) 688-3338

NASA Educator Resource Center

JPL Educational Outreach

Mail Stop CS-530

NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory

4800 Oak Grove Drive

Pasadena, CA 91109-8099

Phone: (818) 354-6916

CA cities near the center

NASA Educator Resource Center for

NASA Dryden Flight Research Center

45108 N. 3rd Street East

Lancaster, CA 93535

Phone: (805) 948-7347

VA and MD's Eastern Shores

NASA Educator Resource Lab

Education Complex - Visitor Center

Building J-1

NASA Wallops Flight Facility

Wallops Island, VA 23337-5099

Phone: (757) 824-2297/2298

NASA’s Central Operation of Resources for Educators (CORE) was established for the national and international distribution of NASA-produced educational materials in

audiovisual format. Educators can obtain a catalogue and an

order form by one of the following methods:

• NASA CORE

Lorain County Joint Vocational School

15181 Route 58 South

Oberlin, OH 44074

• Phone (440) 774-1051, Ext. 249 or 293

• Fax (440) 774-2144

• E-mail nasaco@leeca.esu.k12.oh.us

• Home Page: http://spacelink.nasa.gov/CORE

Educator Resource Center Network

To make additional information available to the education

community, the NASA Education Division has created the

NASA Educator Resource Center (ERC) network. ERCs contain a wealth of information for educators: publications, reference books, slide sets, audio cassettes, videotapes, telelecture

programs, computer programs, lesson plans, and teacher

guides with activities. Educators may preview, copy, or receive

NASA materials at these sites. Because each NASA Field

Center has its own areas of expertise, no two ERCs are exactly

alike. Phone calls are welcome if you are unable to visit the ERC

that serves your geographic area. A list of the centers and the

regions they serve includes:

146 Exploring the Moon -- A Teacher's Guide with Activities NASA EG-1997-10-116-HQ
Exploring the Moon—A Teacher's Guide with

Activities for Earth and Space Sciences

EDUCATOR REPLY CARD

To achieve America’s goals in Educational Excellence, it is NASA’s mission to develop

supplementary instructional materials and curricula in science, mathematics, geography, and technology. NASA seeks to involve the educational community in the

development and improvement of these materials. Your evaluation and suggestions are

vital to continually improving NASA educational materials.

Otherwise, please return the reply card by mail. Thank you.

1. With what grades did you use the educator guide?

Number of Teachers/Faculty:

 K-4 5-8 9-12 Community College

College/University - Undergraduate Graduate

Number of Students:

 K-4 5-8 9-12 Community College

College/University - Undergraduate Graduate

Number of Others:

 Administrators/Staff Parents Professional Groups

 General Public Civic Groups Other

2. What is your home 5- or 9-digit zip code? __ __ __ __ __ — __ __ __ __

3. This is a valuable educator guide?

❏ Strongly Agree ❏ Agree ❏ Neutral ❏ Disagree ❏ Strongly Disagree

4. I expect to apply what I learned in this educator guide.

❏ Strongly Agree ❏ Agree ❏ Neutral ❏ Disagree ❏ Strongly Disagree

5. What kind of recommendation would you make to someone who asks about this

educator guide?

❏ Excellent ❏ Good ❏ Average ❏ Poor ❏ Very Poor

6. How did you use this educator guide?

❏ Background Information ❏ Critical Thinking Tasks

❏ Demonstrate NASA Materials ❏ Demonstration

❏ Group Discussions ❏ Hands-On Activities

❏ Integration Into Existing Curricula ❏ Interdisciplinary Activity

❏ Lecture ❏ Science and Mathematics

❏ Team Activities Standards Integration

❏ Other: Please specify: _________________________________________

7. Where did you learn about this educator guide?

❏ NASA Educator Resource Center

❏ NASA Central Operation of Resources for Educators (CORE)

❏ Institution/School System

❏ Fellow Educator

❏ Workshop/Conference

❏ Other: Please specify: _________________________________________

8. What features of this educator guide did you find particularly

helpful?

____________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________

9. How can we make this educator guide more effective for you?

______________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________

10.Additional comments:

______________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________

Today’s Date:

Please take a moment to respond to the statements and questions below.

You can submit your response through the Internet or by mail. Send your

reply to the following Internet address:

http://ednet.gsfc.nasa.gov/edcats/teachers_guide

You will then be asked to enter your data at the appropriate prompt.

EG-1997-10-116-HQ
NATIONAL AERONAUTICS AND SPACE ADMINISTRATION

WASHINGTON DC 20546–0001

MAIL CODE FE

EDUCATION DIVISION

Fold along line and tape closed.

!2054600012!