Water in Extreme Environments: Activity – Science S3

Water in Extreme Environments: Activity – Science S3 card front

Activity Timing

Introduction: 5 min
Make a Choice: 15 min
Prepare: 15 min
Present: 25 min
Wrap Up: 5 min

65 min. Total

Prep Corner

No prep for this activity.

Key Terms

Purpose

Youth propose a planetary body to explore based on the availability, accessibility and usability of water and present their choice.

Quick Tips

  • Consider showing the whole play-list of background content videos on our website, or just video 7 - Water and Habitability
  • When we don't have sufficient evidence for something its called scientific uncertainty.

Cheat Sheet for Potential Answers

Although arguments can be made for other states, liquid water is generally more usable & habitable. Cards that have liquid water: Earth surface, and the subsurface of Earth, Europa, Uranus, Titania, Ganymede, Callisto, Pluto, Titan, Triton, Enceladus, & Dione.

Videos Related to this Activity

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

Science Reflection

Today we explored how we can use data about water from elsewhere in the solar system to make recommendations for future exploration.

Key Take Away

We can use what we learned about earth's water and evidence of water in the solar system to make an argument about what to explore.

Did you know?

  • We don't actually know if water is usable on other planets. If it's mixed with other substances or appears rocky, then at least we know its not pure.
  • Amino acids are organic compounds that form the building blocks of life. Scientists have found evidence for them in space - on meteorites, comets, and in deep space.