Thinking About Mars

A lot of Mars activity this week. the Mars Science Laboratory was stacked on its launch vehicle at KSC launch complex 41, and the Mars500 mission "landed."

 

In the mean time, my 4th grade science class has been exploring the basic elements of a sustainable ecosystem. My students decided that the essential components of the ecosystem were energy from the sun, nitrogen in the soil, water, carbon dioxide, and oxygen. With these elements, the ecosystem could support algae and bacteria in a sustainable system. How is this relevant to Mars, you ask? Earth is a special planet where these elements have come together in just the height combination to support life. My students were curious to know if we knew of life anywhere else. I asked them how they could find a planet that might support life. Almost immediately, students suggested that looking for planets the right distance from a sun that had evidence of water, carbon dioxide, oxygen, and nitrogen. What life would you look for? Bacteria and algae! 

 

Mars Science Laboratory and the Curiosity rover will be doing just that. With 10 different experiments on board, Curiosity will explore the are around the Gale crater looking for evidence that Mars has, or could now or in the future, support life. Adjacent to the Gale crater is a mountain formation that appears to have been built in layered deposition in an aquatic environment. 

 

MSL/Curiosity is scheduled for launch on Friday, November 25th. In the coming weeks I will be sharing more about the mission and the work my students are doing. On Wednesday, November 23rd I will be participating in a NASA TweetUp at Kennedy Space Center in conjunction with the launch.