Announcements and News:
Click here to read the announcements with a non-Java enabled browser Site Navigation: Click here to go to the Lewis Mills HS Home Page
Return to the Lewis Mills HS Environmental Earth Science Homepage Return to the Lewis Mills HS Environmental Earth Science Homepage Go to the EcoAction Team page Go to the Envirothon Team page 

- Page Info -
Title:
   
Page address:
   
File created:
    Nov 5, 1999
Last modified:
   Oct 28, 2002
Definitions:
Double-click on any word

Environmental Earth Science
Nine Planets "Field Trip"

Problem Statement/Introduction/Purpose

In the Space/Earth Section of the course you learned that when we study other places in the Solar System we often acquire knowledge that can be applied to management of our own planet. This "field trip" through the Solar System using The Nine Planets web site (http://dept.physics.upenn.edu/nineplanets/) will continue this process by allowing you to compare other places to Earth with the idea that the places most like Earth will be the best places for humans to live in the far future. You may also use other planetary web sites to find the information you need. You will rank other places based on how similar they are to Earth conditions.

Research

"Surf" the web site to form your hypotheses about places with conditions and materials most like the Earth.

Hypothesis: The five places in the Solar System with conditions the most like Earth's are:

 

 

Test your hypothesis

Make a chart that shows:

A. Columns:

  • 1. Name of planet(oid)

    • Earths properties that allow us to live here:
  • 2. amount of gravity
    3. the composition of the air,
    4. the temperature range at the surface,
    5. the atmospheric pressure at the surface,
    6. the composition of the crust,
    7. distances from Earth (of the other places in the Solar System),
    8. anything else you find that would have to be imitated or supplied for humans to live somewhere else.
    9. Total of the ranks

    B. Rows: Five places in the Solar System that may supply some of the conditions or materials we would need to live there.

    C. Fill in the cells of the chart with notes on the conditions at these five places and on what page you found this information.

    D. When you know all about these other places, rank the places 1-5 for each property according to how close that condition is to Earth's. Example, the gravity on Venus may be closest to Earth's gravity, so it would be ranked 1.

    E. Add up the rankings for each condition and determine the place in the Solar System most like the Earth.

    • Data:

    The tables of your notes

    Conclusion:

    Describe the advantages and disadvantages of the top three ranked places in the Solar System.

     
    (Return to top of page)

    Go to the EcoAction Team page Go to the Envirothon Team page
    This page hosted by Get your own Free Home Page


    Page address: