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| Sample Projects |
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Here are
some ideas for projects relating to the Moon. You don't have to do one of
these - they are just meant to show you some ideas. Feel free to make up
your own project. Just remember, you have to ask a question that can
be answered by making a measurement.
The projects described here are listed in order of
increasing difficulty.
Your mission is to
place solar powered transmitters on the Moon. The receiving stations on Earth
(one at your latitude and one at the Equator) need to be able to track the
Moon as a function of phase and are programmed to receive signals at a certain
time.
- Question:
At what phase(s) is the Moon at an altitude
of 45 degrees above the horizon at the two receiving stations?
- Measurement: Measure the altitude above the horizon
and record the phase of the Moon at a given time (e.g. 6 PM) from one location.
The Moon, like the
Earth, is not a smooth, round ball. It has features like mountains and valleys
and seas. You have to decide where your spacecraft should land on the Moon.
- Question:
Does a spacecraft have to land on the lunar
maria, or could it land in a crater?
- Measurement: Determine the sizes of the craters on
the Moon.
You are looking for
a place to land your spacecraft on the Moon.
- Question:
Is there any difference between the near and far sides of the Moon, other
than one faces Earth and one doesn’t?
- Measurement: Determine
the if size distribution of craters is the same on the near and far sides
of the Moon using Clementine data.
A landing site has
been selected. You need to know about the rotation of the Moon so that the
spacecraft can be pointed in the correct direction with the correct speed.
- Question:
How long does it take the Moon to rotate once
on its axis?
- Measurement: Track
the speed of features across the surface of the Moon throughout a complete
lunar cycle.
You need to know where
to point your spacecraft and how fast to send it.
- Question:
Does the Moon move at a constant speed in its orbit?
- Measurement: Measure
the times between transits (of a pre-determined line) by the Moon over the
course of a lunar cycle to determine its orbital speed as a function of time
(e.g. date, phase).
You need to know how
much fuel you’ll need to send a spacecraft from the Earth to the Moon, so
you need to know how far the Moon is from the Earth.
- Question: Is the Moon
always the same distance from the Earth?
- Measurement: Measure
the size of the Moon over the course of one lunar cycle and determine how
much the distance from the Earth to the Moon is changing.
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