Space Hazards: Activity – Science S4 card front

Space Hazards: Activity – Science S4

Activity Timing

5 min. Introduction
10 min. Mission
10 min. ID Hazards
15 min. Presentation Prep
25 min. Share Out
5 min. Reflect

70 min. Total

Prep Reminder

The Educator Guide will guide you through every activity, but make sure to have the educator background section bookmarked and be ready to read parts of it to students who are prompted by their notebooks to ask questions.

Combine Decks B, C, & D for each group.

Key Terms

Apollo Missions: The Apollo Program was a series of space missions designed to land humans on the Moon and bring them safely back to Earth. It was mostly active from the 1960's -1970's. We're still analyzing data and samples from the Apollo missions!

Space Hazards FAQ's

Space Hazards Vocab List

S4 Purpose

Youth investigate the hazards and mitigations that apply to a specific mission and learn that hazards and mitigations differ for human vs. robotic missions.

Quick Tips

This long activity can be split into two 30 minute activities: 

  • Part 1 - Intro, Assign Mission, ID Hazards 
  • Part 2 - Presentation Prep, Share Out, Reflect

Many cards apply to each mission. Youth can choose which to focus on.

Videos Related to this Activity

Science Snippet: Build your content knowledge to help answer youth's questions.

End of Activity Science Reflection

Today we explored how we can use information and technology to keep astronauts and equipment safe while exploring space.

Key Take Away

If people want to explore space, they need to mitigate hazards. Different types of missions require different hazard mitigations.

Did you know?

NASA designs suits differently for some missions. For the Moon, space gloves have adjustable pressure to make manipulation easier. Engineers are designing a space glove to allow for control of a drone on Mars.

Bonus: NASA has 200 different missions listed on their website. Check them out here: https://www.nasa.gov/missions