Introduction~
It is amazing
to look up into the sky and realize
that there is so much more than our earth! Have you ever
wanted to explore all that space up there? Have you every wanted
to go to planets too see what they look like, what they feel like, and
what makes them unique? The planets in our solar system are all
different in some ways, and may be similar in others. For your
challenge, you will learn about one of these planets, and find things
about this planet makes it special and unique!
The Challenge~
You may work
by yourself or with a partner.
You will need to use your imagination for this one! You need to
find out at least five unique features of a planet of your choice in
our solar system. After you do this you will need to try and
imagine that you are exploring the solar system and your spacecraft
runs out of gas! You will need to make an emergency landing on
the planet you see up ahead. The only way you can get off the
planet is if your friend brings you fuel, but you don’t know which
planet you have landed on! Use the information on the planet that you
have learned about, and the letter outline provided to write your
friend a message and tell them about the five different characteristics
of your planet that you have learned about so that your friend can
figure out which planet it is to get you that fuel you need! In
the message we may also have a photo of something you see on the
planet. For example, if you were pretending to have landed on
Mercury you can write in your letter that you have landed on a planet
that is closest to the sun. This will help to give your friend
clues about which planet it could be. Good Luck!!!!
The Journey~
Now, to find
information on those planets I thought
the sites below might be helpful.
~Nasa Kids
http://kids.msfc.nasa.gov
~Kids Astronomy
http://www.kidsastronomy.com/solar_system.htm
~The Nine Planets
http://kids.nineplanets.org
~Nasa Planet Information
http://pds.jpl.nasa.gov/planets/welcome.htm
~The Solar System
http://www.the-solar-system.net/
~Welcome to the Universe
http://www.windows.ucar.edu/tour/link=/our_solar_system/solar_system.html
You may also go to the search
engines below and type in the keywords
“planets”, “solar system”, or the name of the planet you are learning
about.
• 
•
• 
Lost In
Space!
