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Science Debate Kit:Mars Mission

Science Debate Kit:

For more activities and debate kits in this series go to debate.imascientist.org.uk

Mars Mission

Kit No. 9

Learning notes Learning notes Learning objective:• To practise discussing and debating issues and expressing an opinion.

• Understand more of the technical, physiological, social and ethical issues around human space exploration.

Other learning outcomes:• Consider social, ethical and factual issues in an integrated way.

• Think about different points of view.

• Learn to back up their opinions with facts.

Curriculum points covered:Working scientifically• Understanding of the limitations of science and ethical issues which may arise.• Evaluating personal, social, economic, and environmental implications and making decisions based on evidence and arguments.• Evaluating risks and the perception of risks in the wider societal context.

Facilitation tipsEnsure pupils know there is no right or wrong answer.Be observant of ones who want to speak and are not getting a chance.Encourage students to give a reason for their opinions.

For groups who may need extra support you can put the following prompt sentences upon the board: “I think we should/shouldn’t send humans to Mars because...………………….” “I think ……………… is the most important point to think about.”

You can use all eight characters, or fewer, as you wish.

The minimum is the four essential characters (in bold), this gives two for and two against.

Debate Kit: Mars MissionShould we send a human mission to Mars?A structured practice debate on a controversial topic.The different ‘rounds’ of the debate help students think through the issues and reconsider their opinions.The structure also shows them how to build a discussion and back up their opinions with facts.

KS4: These debate kits have been used with ages 11-18

CharactersYes – We should send a human space mission to Mars

• Bill McIntosh – Spacecraft engineer• Sarah Oakes – Politician and space enthusiast• Sudarat Jaa – Planetary geologist

• Derek Amundsen – Physiologist

No – We should not send a human space mission to Mars

• Penny O'Hara – Helicopter pilot• Robert Pinxton – Astrobiologist• Greta Stevens – Spacecraft engineer

• Kai Buchanan – Ecologist

This

wor

k is

lice

nsed

und

er th

e C

reat

ive

Com

mon

s A

ttrib

utio

n-N

onC

omm

erci

al-S

hare

Alik

e4.

0 In

tern

atio

nal L

icen

se. T

o vi

ew a

cop

y of

this

lice

nse,

visi

t http

://cr

eativ

ecom

mon

s.or

g/lic

ense

s/by

-nc-

sa/4

.0/.

Que

stio

n:

Shou

ld w

e se

nd a

hum

an m

issi

on t

o M

ars?

Teac

her N

otes

Less

on p

lan

The

diffe

rent

‘rou

nds’

of t

he d

ebat

e he

lp s

tude

nts

th

ink

thro

ugh

the

issu

es a

nd re

cons

ider

thei

r opi

nion

s.

The

stru

ctur

e al

so s

how

s th

em h

ow to

bui

ld a

dis

cuss

ion

and

back

up

thei

r opi

nion

s w

ith fa

cts.

Star

ter:

5 m

inut

es.

Wha

t do

they

kno

w a

bout

hum

ans

in s

pace

? W

hen

did

the

first

hum

ans

visi

t spa

ce?

Are

ther

e an

y hu

man

s in

spa

ce

now

? Th

inki

ng a

bout

wha

t the

y kn

ow a

bout

hum

an b

odie

s,

wha

t are

all

the

thin

gs th

at o

ur b

odie

s ne

ed, t

hat a

re h

ard

to

get i

n sp

ace?

Mai

n A

ctiv

ity: 3

5 m

inut

es.

1) S

plit

stud

ents

into

as

man

y gr

oups

as

char

acte

rs y

ou

wan

t to

cove

r.2)

Giv

e th

em th

eir c

hara

cter

car

ds –

one

per

gro

up, a

nd

give

them

a fe

w m

inut

es to

read

them

ove

r.3)

Get

one

stu

dent

in e

ach

grou

p to

read

out

thei

r firs

t se

ctio

n to

the

rest

of t

he c

lass

. Wha

t are

the

clas

s’s

initi

al th

ough

ts?

Is th

ere

one

posi

tion

they

iden

tify

with

or

reje

ct? Th

ese

deba

te k

its h

ave

been

us

ed w

ith a

ges

11-1

8.

KS4:

hosp

ital i

n a

whe

elch

air w

hen

they

get

bac

k to

Ear

th (w

hich

is

why

you

nev

er s

ee tr

ium

phan

t ret

urni

ng a

stro

naut

s w

avin

g fo

r th

e ne

ws

cam

eras

).

The

long

est a

nyon

e ha

s sp

ent o

n th

e IS

S is

one

yea

r.

We

don’

t kno

w w

hat t

he e

ffect

of t

wo

year

s or

mor

e w

ould

be.

As p

art o

f the

rese

arch

for t

his

kit,

we

spok

e to

Chr

is W

elch

, Pr

ofes

sor o

f Ast

rona

utic

s an

d Sp

ace

Engi

neer

ing

at th

e

Inte

rnat

iona

l Spa

ce U

nive

rsity

in S

trasb

ourg

. He

said

, “Th

ere

are

so m

any

varia

bles

in h

ow a

hum

an m

issi

on to

Mar

s w

ould

wor

k,

it’s a

fasc

inat

ing

prob

lem

. To

be h

ones

t, it’s

wha

t spa

cecr

aft

engi

neer

s do

whe

n w

e ar

e bo

red:

des

ign

diffe

rent

fant

asy

miss

ions

to

Mar

s, to

see

if w

e ca

n fin

d a

new

way

of m

akin

g it

wor

k.”

For e

xam

ple,

with

pre

sent

tech

nolo

gy it

wou

ld ta

ke ro

ughl

y 7

mon

ths

to g

et fr

om E

arth

to M

ars,

if th

e jo

urne

y is

tim

ed to

take

ad

vant

age

of w

hen

they

are

clo

sest

to e

ach

othe

r. (T

he n

eare

st

they

eve

r get

is a

bout

54.

6 m

illion

km

, the

furth

est a

part

they

ev

er g

et is

abo

ut 4

01 m

illion

km

, whe

n th

ey a

re a

t opp

osite

en

ds o

f the

ir or

bit,

and

the

Sun

is in

bet

wee

n th

em).

So if

tim

ed

right

, peo

ple

coul

d go

to M

ars

and

stay

a s

hort

time

(a c

oupl

e

of w

eeks

), an

d th

en s

et o

ff ba

ck w

hile

the

two

plan

ets

are

rela

tivel

y cl

ose.

Or t

hey

coul

d w

ait o

n M

ars

for a

bout

a y

ear

until

they

can

hit

anot

her c

lose

app

roac

h. (T

here

is ro

ughl

y 26

m

onth

s be

twee

n cl

oses

t app

roac

hes,

but

obv

ious

ly y

ou h

ave

to s

et o

ff m

onth

s be

fore

hand

, hea

ding

for w

here

you

kno

w th

e pl

anet

is g

oing

to b

e w

hen

you

get t

here

.)

Oth

er v

aria

bles

are

how

big

a c

raft

we’

d se

nd, w

heth

er th

e w

hole

cra

ft w

ould

land

on

the

surfa

ce, o

r (m

ore

likel

y) th

e bu

lk

of th

e cr

aft w

ould

sta

y in

orb

it ar

ound

Mar

s an

d a

smal

l lan

der

mod

ule

wou

ld la

nd o

n th

e pl

anet

. Wha

t kin

d of

hab

itats

as

trona

uts

wou

ld li

ve in

on

Mar

s, a

nd h

ow th

ese

wou

ld g

et

ther

e/be

bui

lt. W

hat f

uel t

he re

turn

trip

wou

ld u

se. I

t’s p

ossi

ble

to s

end

robo

tic c

raft

with

car

go to

Mar

s be

fore

the

hum

an

mis

sion

, so

that

sup

plie

s ar

e w

aitin

g th

ere

whe

n th

e as

trona

uts

arriv

e. B

ut th

e as

trona

uts

wou

ld s

till h

ave

to fi

nd th

ese

on

the

surfa

ce a

nd a

ssem

ble

habi

tats

, etc

.

At b

est t

here

wou

ld b

e a

20 m

inut

e la

g fo

r com

mun

icat

ions

to

Mar

s. A

t som

e po

ints

the

Sun

wou

ld b

e be

twee

n M

ars

and

Earth

and

the

astro

naut

s w

ould

be

inco

mm

unic

ado

for d

ays

or w

eeks

. The

cre

w w

ould

pro

babl

y be

four

or fi

ve p

eopl

e. It

w

ould

be

a di

fficu

lt m

issi

on p

sych

olog

ical

ly. S

pace

age

ncie

s ar

e w

orki

ng w

ith p

sych

olog

ists

who

stu

dy ‘i

sola

ted

and

cont

aine

d en

viro

nmen

ts’ (

for e

xam

ple,

the

Anta

rctic

rese

arch

bas

e) to

hel

p th

em w

ork

out h

ow to

cho

ose

and

how

to tr

ain

astro

naut

s fo

r a

mis

sion

like

this

.

Oth

er re

sour

ces:

The

UK

Spac

e Ag

ency

and

its

partn

ers

have

put

toge

ther

a

prog

ram

me

of e

duca

tion

activ

ities

rela

ted

to th

e Pr

inci

pia

mis

sion

. pr

inci

pia.

org.

uk/g

et-in

volv

ed/

ESER

O-U

K pr

ovid

es fr

ee re

sour

ces,

sup

port

and

info

rmat

ion

for

teac

hers

to e

nhan

ce th

e te

achi

ng a

nd le

arni

ng o

f STE

M u

sing

spa

ce a

s a

cont

ext.

stem

.org

.uk/

eser

o/

We

have

col

lect

ed a

rang

e of

reso

urce

s w

hich

can

be

used

with

this

kit

at: d

ebat

e.im

asci

entis

t.org

.uk/

mar

s-de

bate

-kit-

reso

urce

s/

6pp

A6 In

stru

ctio

ns S

heet

s (M

ars)

FIN

AL.in

dd

120

/04/

2016

12

:12

• How

to la

unch

a s

pace

craf

t int

o sp

ace,

from

the

surfa

ce o

f M

ars

for t

he re

turn

jour

ney.

We’

ve h

ad lo

ts o

f pra

ctic

e at

la

unch

ing

spac

ecra

ft fro

m E

arth

, but

we’

ll ha

ve n

o ch

ance

to

prac

tice

on M

ars.

We’

ll pr

obab

ly h

ave

to m

ine

fuel

from

Mar

s in

som

e w

ay (a

s w

e w

on’t

be a

ble

to ta

ke e

noug

h w

ith u

s), b

ut

we

don’

t kno

w w

hat,

how,

or w

hen.

• We

don’

t kno

w e

noug

h ab

out t

he lo

ng te

rm p

hysi

olog

ical

ef

fect

s of

spa

ce tr

avel

and

how

to m

itiga

te th

em.

• We

also

don

’t re

ally

kno

w h

ow to

kee

p hu

man

s al

ive

all t

he

way

ther

e, o

n M

ars,

and

then

all

the

way

bac

k –

prov

idin

g ai

r, w

ater

, foo

d, k

eepi

ng th

em w

arm

, com

batti

ng th

e ef

fect

s of

m

icro

grav

ity, d

ealin

g w

ith w

aste

. Eith

er w

e ne

ed to

dev

elop

m

uch

bette

r tec

hnol

ogy

than

we

have

now

to d

o al

l the

se

thin

gs. O

r we

send

an

enor

mou

s cr

aft,

whi

ch w

ill be

un

feas

ibly

exp

ensi

ve to

bui

ld a

nd la

unch

. In

a s

ense

, it’s

mai

nly

the

send

ing

bodi

es in

to s

pace

(and

sa

fely

bac

k) th

at m

akes

it d

ifficu

lt, a

s w

e’ve

alre

ady

sent

nu

mer

ous

robo

tic c

raft.

Hum

an b

odie

s ar

e of

cou

rse

op

timis

ed fo

r the

tem

pera

ture

/pre

ssur

e/gr

avity

/radi

atio

n

leve

ls fo

und

on E

arth

. It’s

sai

d it

take

s a

day

on E

arth

to

reco

ver f

rom

eac

h da

y in

spa

ce.

Bein

g in

ext

rem

ely

low

gra

vity

mea

ns re

duce

d lo

adin

g an

d

disu

se o

f wei

ght-b

earin

g tis

sues

- m

uscl

es w

aste

aw

ay a

nd

bone

s lo

se m

ass.

Flu

id is

no

long

er p

ulle

d in

to th

e lo

wer

bod

y by

gra

vity

, so

pool

s in

the

uppe

r bod

y. T

he b

ody

resp

onds

by

redu

cing

blo

od v

olum

e. W

hen

astro

naut

s re

turn

to 1

g, th

ey

don’

t hav

e en

ough

blo

od v

olum

e an

d th

eir h

eart

mus

cles

and

ci

rcul

atio

n ar

e w

eak.

Cre

w o

n th

e In

tern

atio

nal S

pace

Sta

tion

(ISS)

exe

rcis

e fo

r 2.5

hou

rs a

day

, but

they

are

still

take

n of

f to

4) T

ake

it in

turn

s to

read

out

thei

r fac

t. D

oes

it ch

ange

the

way

they

thin

k?5)

Rea

d th

e is

sue.

Any

diff

eren

t fee

lings

?6)

Eac

h te

am a

sks

thei

r que

stio

n to

the

char

acte

r of t

heir

choi

ce.

Sup

port

: To

help

stu

dent

s yo

u ca

n pu

t the

follo

win

g pr

ompt

se

nten

ces

up o

n th

e bo

ard:

“I

thin

k w

e sh

ould

/sho

uldn

’t se

nd h

uman

s to

Mar

s

beca

use…

……

……

… ”

“I th

ink

……

……

……

is th

e m

ost i

mpo

rtant

poi

nt to

thin

k ab

out.”

Plen

ary:

10

min

utes

Vote

for w

hich

pos

ition

they

agr

ee w

ith m

ost (

if th

ere

is o

ne).

Why

? W

hich

arg

umen

ts w

ere

the

mos

t per

suas

ive?

Not

e –

Pupi

ls c

an s

tay

in ro

les

all t

he w

ay th

roug

h th

e de

bate

, or

onl

y fo

r the

firs

t rou

nd if

you

pre

fer.

If it’s

all

the

way

thro

ugh,

gi

ve th

em a

cha

nce

to e

xpre

ss th

eir o

wn

opin

ion

at th

e en

d

and

in th

e pl

enar

y.

For g

roup

s w

ho a

re n

ot c

onfid

ent a

t cla

ss d

iscu

ssio

n, it

m

ight

hel

p to

hav

e th

em s

tart

by d

iscu

ssin

g th

e qu

estio

n

and/

or th

eir c

hara

cter

’s p

ositi

on in

pai

rs, a

nd th

en c

ompa

re

note

s in

four

s. T

hey’

ve th

en h

ad c

hanc

e to

rehe

arse

som

e of

w

hat t

hey

wan

t to

say

befo

re h

avin

g to

do

it in

fron

t of

the

who

le c

lass

.

Bac

kgro

und

note

sN

B, t

hrou

ghou

t thi

s ki

t we

have

avo

ided

any

use

of t

he w

ords

‘m

anne

d’ o

r ‘un

man

ned’

, in

line

with

offi

cial

Nas

a st

yle

guid

e.

Inte

rest

ing

disc

ussi

on o

f thi

s ht

tps:

//sto

rify.

com

/ela

kdaw

alla

/fin

ding

-new

-lang

uage

-for-

hum

an-m

issi

ons

Mar

s is

the

four

th p

lane

t fro

m th

e su

n in

our

sol

ar s

yste

m.

It is

a ‘t

erre

stria

l pla

net’

(i.e.

Ear

thlik

e), m

eani

ng it

is c

ompo

sed

mai

nly

of s

ilica

te ro

cks

and

met

als

and

has

a so

lid p

lane

t su

rface

(unl

ike

the

‘Gia

nt p

lane

ts’ l

ike

Jupi

ter a

nd S

atur

n).

It ha

s a

thin

atm

osph

ere.

Mar

s fa

cts-

at-a

-gla

nce

• Mea

n ra

dius

: 3,3

90 k

m (a

bout

53%

that

of E

arth

)• M

ass:

6.4

2 x

1023

kg

(or 6

42 s

extill

ion

kg, a

bout

11%

that

of E

arth

)• S

urfa

ce g

ravi

ty: 3

.71m

/s2 (

abou

t 38%

that

of E

arth

)• A

vera

ge te

mpe

ratu

re o

f atm

osph

ere:

-63°

C (c

f 15°

C fo

r Ear

th)

• Len

gth

of y

ear:

687

Earth

day

s• L

engt

h of

day

: 24h

r 40m

ins

Hum

an m

issi

ons

to M

ars?

Ther

e ar

e m

any

argu

men

ts fo

r and

aga

inst

sen

ding

hum

ans

to

Mar

s (th

is is

why

we

mad

e it

the

basi

s of

a d

ebat

e ki

t!).

But

pra

ctic

ally

spe

akin

g, w

e’d

have

to s

olve

a lo

t of i

ssue

s fir

st.

Thin

gs w

e do

n’t k

now

yet

:• H

ow b

est t

o sh

ield

ast

rona

uts

from

cos

mic

radi

atio

n on

the

jour

ney

ther

e an

d w

hile

on

the

surfa

ce o

f Mar

s.

6pp

A6 In

stru

ctio

ns S

heet

s (M

ars)

FIN

AL.in

dd

220

/04/

2016

12

:12

• How

to la

unch

a s

pace

craf

t int

o sp

ace,

from

the

surfa

ce o

f M

ars

for t

he re

turn

jour

ney.

We’

ve h

ad lo

ts o

f pra

ctic

e at

la

unch

ing

spac

ecra

ft fro

m E

arth

, but

we’

ll ha

ve n

o ch

ance

to

prac

tice

on M

ars.

We’

ll pr

obab

ly h

ave

to m

ine

fuel

from

Mar

s in

som

e w

ay (a

s w

e w

on’t

be a

ble

to ta

ke e

noug

h w

ith u

s), b

ut

we

don’

t kno

w w

hat,

how,

or w

hen.

• We

don’

t kno

w e

noug

h ab

out t

he lo

ng te

rm p

hysi

olog

ical

ef

fect

s of

spa

ce tr

avel

and

how

to m

itiga

te th

em.

• We

also

don

’t re

ally

kno

w h

ow to

kee

p hu

man

s al

ive

all t

he

way

ther

e, o

n M

ars,

and

then

all

the

way

bac

k –

prov

idin

g ai

r, w

ater

, foo

d, k

eepi

ng th

em w

arm

, com

batti

ng th

e ef

fect

s of

m

icro

grav

ity, d

ealin

g w

ith w

aste

. Eith

er w

e ne

ed to

dev

elop

m

uch

bette

r tec

hnol

ogy

than

we

have

now

to d

o al

l the

se

thin

gs. O

r we

send

an

enor

mou

s cr

aft,

whi

ch w

ill be

un

feas

ibly

exp

ensi

ve to

bui

ld a

nd la

unch

. In

a s

ense

, it’s

mai

nly

the

send

ing

bodi

es in

to s

pace

(and

sa

fely

bac

k) th

at m

akes

it d

ifficu

lt, a

s w

e’ve

alre

ady

sent

nu

mer

ous

robo

tic c

raft.

Hum

an b

odie

s ar

e of

cou

rse

op

timis

ed fo

r the

tem

pera

ture

/pre

ssur

e/gr

avity

/radi

atio

n

leve

ls fo

und

on E

arth

. It’s

sai

d it

take

s a

day

on E

arth

to

reco

ver f

rom

eac

h da

y in

spa

ce.

Bein

g in

ext

rem

ely

low

gra

vity

mea

ns re

duce

d lo

adin

g an

d

disu

se o

f wei

ght-b

earin

g tis

sues

- m

uscl

es w

aste

aw

ay a

nd

bone

s lo

se m

ass.

Flu

id is

no

long

er p

ulle

d in

to th

e lo

wer

bod

y by

gra

vity

, so

pool

s in

the

uppe

r bod

y. T

he b

ody

resp

onds

by

redu

cing

blo

od v

olum

e. W

hen

astro

naut

s re

turn

to 1

g, th

ey

don’

t hav

e en

ough

blo

od v

olum

e an

d th

eir h

eart

mus

cles

and

ci

rcul

atio

n ar

e w

eak.

Cre

w o

n th

e In

tern

atio

nal S

pace

Sta

tion

(ISS)

exe

rcis

e fo

r 2.5

hou

rs a

day

, but

they

are

still

take

n of

f to

4) T

ake

it in

turn

s to

read

out

thei

r fac

t. D

oes

it ch

ange

the

way

they

thin

k?5)

Rea

d th

e is

sue.

Any

diff

eren

t fee

lings

?6)

Eac

h te

am a

sks

thei

r que

stio

n to

the

char

acte

r of t

heir

choi

ce.

Sup

port

: To

help

stu

dent

s yo

u ca

n pu

t the

follo

win

g pr

ompt

se

nten

ces

up o

n th

e bo

ard:

“I

thin

k w

e sh

ould

/sho

uldn

’t se

nd h

uman

s to

Mar

s

beca

use…

……

……

… ”

“I th

ink

……

……

……

is th

e m

ost i

mpo

rtant

poi

nt to

thin

k ab

out.”

Plen

ary:

10

min

utes

Vote

for w

hich

pos

ition

they

agr

ee w

ith m

ost (

if th

ere

is o

ne).

Why

? W

hich

arg

umen

ts w

ere

the

mos

t per

suas

ive?

Not

e –

Pupi

ls c

an s

tay

in ro

les

all t

he w

ay th

roug

h th

e de

bate

, or

onl

y fo

r the

firs

t rou

nd if

you

pre

fer.

If it’s

all

the

way

thro

ugh,

gi

ve th

em a

cha

nce

to e

xpre

ss th

eir o

wn

opin

ion

at th

e en

d

and

in th

e pl

enar

y.

For g

roup

s w

ho a

re n

ot c

onfid

ent a

t cla

ss d

iscu

ssio

n, it

m

ight

hel

p to

hav

e th

em s

tart

by d

iscu

ssin

g th

e qu

estio

n

and/

or th

eir c

hara

cter

’s p

ositi

on in

pai

rs, a

nd th

en c

ompa

re

note

s in

four

s. T

hey’

ve th

en h

ad c

hanc

e to

rehe

arse

som

e of

w

hat t

hey

wan

t to

say

befo

re h

avin

g to

do

it in

fron

t of

the

who

le c

lass

.

Bac

kgro

und

note

sN

B, t

hrou

ghou

t thi

s ki

t we

have

avo

ided

any

use

of t

he w

ords

‘m

anne

d’ o

r ‘un

man

ned’

, in

line

with

offi

cial

Nas

a st

yle

guid

e.

Inte

rest

ing

disc

ussi

on o

f thi

s ht

tps:

//sto

rify.

com

/ela

kdaw

alla

/fin

ding

-new

-lang

uage

-for-

hum

an-m

issi

ons

Mar

s is

the

four

th p

lane

t fro

m th

e su

n in

our

sol

ar s

yste

m.

It is

a ‘t

erre

stria

l pla

net’

(i.e.

Ear

thlik

e), m

eani

ng it

is c

ompo

sed

mai

nly

of s

ilica

te ro

cks

and

met

als

and

has

a so

lid p

lane

t su

rface

(unl

ike

the

‘Gia

nt p

lane

ts’ l

ike

Jupi

ter a

nd S

atur

n).

It ha

s a

thin

atm

osph

ere.

Mar

s fa

cts-

at-a

-gla

nce

• Mea

n ra

dius

: 3,3

90 k

m (a

bout

53%

that

of E

arth

)• M

ass:

6.4

2 x

1023

kg

(or 6

42 s

extill

ion

kg, a

bout

11%

that

of E

arth

)• S

urfa

ce g

ravi

ty: 3

.71m

/s2 (

abou

t 38%

that

of E

arth

)• A

vera

ge te

mpe

ratu

re o

f atm

osph

ere:

-63°

C (c

f 15°

C fo

r Ear

th)

• Len

gth

of y

ear:

687

Earth

day

s• L

engt

h of

day

: 24h

r 40m

ins

Hum

an m

issi

ons

to M

ars?

Ther

e ar

e m

any

argu

men

ts fo

r and

aga

inst

sen

ding

hum

ans

to

Mar

s (th

is is

why

we

mad

e it

the

basi

s of

a d

ebat

e ki

t!).

But

pra

ctic

ally

spe

akin

g, w

e’d

have

to s

olve

a lo

t of i

ssue

s fir

st.

Thin

gs w

e do

n’t k

now

yet

:• H

ow b

est t

o sh

ield

ast

rona

uts

from

cos

mic

radi

atio

n on

the

jour

ney

ther

e an

d w

hile

on

the

surfa

ce o

f Mar

s.

6pp

A6 In

stru

ctio

ns S

heet

s (M

ars)

FIN

AL.in

dd

220

/04/

2016

12

:12

This

wor

k is

lice

nsed

und

er th

e C

reat

ive

Com

mon

s A

ttrib

utio

n-N

onC

omm

erci

al-S

hare

Alik

e4.

0 In

tern

atio

nal L

icen

se. T

o vi

ew a

cop

y of

this

lice

nse,

visi

t http

://cr

eativ

ecom

mon

s.or

g/lic

ense

s/by

-nc-

sa/4

.0/.

Que

stio

n:

Shou

ld w

e se

nd a

hum

an m

issi

on t

o M

ars?

Teac

her N

otes

Less

on p

lan

The

diffe

rent

‘rou

nds’

of t

he d

ebat

e he

lp s

tude

nts

th

ink

thro

ugh

the

issu

es a

nd re

cons

ider

thei

r opi

nion

s.

The

stru

ctur

e al

so s

how

s th

em h

ow to

bui

ld a

dis

cuss

ion

and

back

up

thei

r opi

nion

s w

ith fa

cts.

Star

ter:

5 m

inut

es.

Wha

t do

they

kno

w a

bout

hum

ans

in s

pace

? W

hen

did

the

first

hum

ans

visi

t spa

ce?

Are

ther

e an

y hu

man

s in

spa

ce

now

? Th

inki

ng a

bout

wha

t the

y kn

ow a

bout

hum

an b

odie

s,

wha

t are

all

the

thin

gs th

at o

ur b

odie

s ne

ed, t

hat a

re h

ard

to

get i

n sp

ace?

Mai

n A

ctiv

ity: 3

5 m

inut

es.

1) S

plit

stud

ents

into

as

man

y gr

oups

as

char

acte

rs y

ou

wan

t to

cove

r.2)

Giv

e th

em th

eir c

hara

cter

car

ds –

one

per

gro

up, a

nd

give

them

a fe

w m

inut

es to

read

them

ove

r.3)

Get

one

stu

dent

in e

ach

grou

p to

read

out

thei

r firs

t se

ctio

n to

the

rest

of t

he c

lass

. Wha

t are

the

clas

s’s

initi

al th

ough

ts?

Is th

ere

one

posi

tion

they

iden

tify

with

or

reje

ct? Th

ese

deba

te k

its h

ave

been

us

ed w

ith a

ges

11-1

8.

KS4:

hosp

ital i

n a

whe

elch

air w

hen

they

get

bac

k to

Ear

th (w

hich

is

why

you

nev

er s

ee tr

ium

phan

t ret

urni

ng a

stro

naut

s w

avin

g fo

r th

e ne

ws

cam

eras

).

The

long

est a

nyon

e ha

s sp

ent o

n th

e IS

S is

one

yea

r.

We

don’

t kno

w w

hat t

he e

ffect

of t

wo

year

s or

mor

e w

ould

be.

As p

art o

f the

rese

arch

for t

his

kit,

we

spok

e to

Chr

is W

elch

, Pr

ofes

sor o

f Ast

rona

utic

s an

d Sp

ace

Engi

neer

ing

at th

e

Inte

rnat

iona

l Spa

ce U

nive

rsity

in S

trasb

ourg

. He

said

, “Th

ere

are

so m

any

varia

bles

in h

ow a

hum

an m

issi

on to

Mar

s w

ould

wor

k,

it’s a

fasc

inat

ing

prob

lem

. To

be h

ones

t, it’s

wha

t spa

cecr

aft

engi

neer

s do

whe

n w

e ar

e bo

red:

des

ign

diffe

rent

fant

asy

miss

ions

to

Mar

s, to

see

if w

e ca

n fin

d a

new

way

of m

akin

g it

wor

k.”

For e

xam

ple,

with

pre

sent

tech

nolo

gy it

wou

ld ta

ke ro

ughl

y 7

mon

ths

to g

et fr

om E

arth

to M

ars,

if th

e jo

urne

y is

tim

ed to

take

ad

vant

age

of w

hen

they

are

clo

sest

to e

ach

othe

r. (T

he n

eare

st

they

eve

r get

is a

bout

54.

6 m

illion

km

, the

furth

est a

part

they

ev

er g

et is

abo

ut 4

01 m

illion

km

, whe

n th

ey a

re a

t opp

osite

en

ds o

f the

ir or

bit,

and

the

Sun

is in

bet

wee

n th

em).

So if

tim

ed

right

, peo

ple

coul

d go

to M

ars

and

stay

a s

hort

time

(a c

oupl

e

of w

eeks

), an

d th

en s

et o

ff ba

ck w

hile

the

two

plan

ets

are

rela

tivel

y cl

ose.

Or t

hey

coul

d w

ait o

n M

ars

for a

bout

a y

ear

until

they

can

hit

anot

her c

lose

app

roac

h. (T

here

is ro

ughl

y 26

m

onth

s be

twee

n cl

oses

t app

roac

hes,

but

obv

ious

ly y

ou h

ave

to s

et o

ff m

onth

s be

fore

hand

, hea

ding

for w

here

you

kno

w th

e pl

anet

is g

oing

to b

e w

hen

you

get t

here

.)

Oth

er v

aria

bles

are

how

big

a c

raft

we’

d se

nd, w

heth

er th

e w

hole

cra

ft w

ould

land

on

the

surfa

ce, o

r (m

ore

likel

y) th

e bu

lk

of th

e cr

aft w

ould

sta

y in

orb

it ar

ound

Mar

s an

d a

smal

l lan

der

mod

ule

wou

ld la

nd o

n th

e pl

anet

. Wha

t kin

d of

hab

itats

as

trona

uts

wou

ld li

ve in

on

Mar

s, a

nd h

ow th

ese

wou

ld g

et

ther

e/be

bui

lt. W

hat f

uel t

he re

turn

trip

wou

ld u

se. I

t’s p

ossi

ble

to s

end

robo

tic c

raft

with

car

go to

Mar

s be

fore

the

hum

an

mis

sion

, so

that

sup

plie

s ar

e w

aitin

g th

ere

whe

n th

e as

trona

uts

arriv

e. B

ut th

e as

trona

uts

wou

ld s

till h

ave

to fi

nd th

ese

on

the

surfa

ce a

nd a

ssem

ble

habi

tats

, etc

.

At b

est t

here

wou

ld b

e a

20 m

inut

e la

g fo

r com

mun

icat

ions

to

Mar

s. A

t som

e po

ints

the

Sun

wou

ld b

e be

twee

n M

ars

and

Earth

and

the

astro

naut

s w

ould

be

inco

mm

unic

ado

for d

ays

or w

eeks

. The

cre

w w

ould

pro

babl

y be

four

or fi

ve p

eopl

e. It

w

ould

be

a di

fficu

lt m

issi

on p

sych

olog

ical

ly. S

pace

age

ncie

s ar

e w

orki

ng w

ith p

sych

olog

ists

who

stu

dy ‘i

sola

ted

and

cont

aine

d en

viro

nmen

ts’ (

for e

xam

ple,

the

Anta

rctic

rese

arch

bas

e) to

hel

p th

em w

ork

out h

ow to

cho

ose

and

how

to tr

ain

astro

naut

s fo

r a

mis

sion

like

this

.

Oth

er re

sour

ces:

The

UK

Spac

e Ag

ency

and

its

partn

ers

have

put

toge

ther

a

prog

ram

me

of e

duca

tion

activ

ities

rela

ted

to th

e Pr

inci

pia

mis

sion

. pr

inci

pia.

org.

uk/g

et-in

volv

ed/

ESER

O-U

K pr

ovid

es fr

ee re

sour

ces,

sup

port

and

info

rmat

ion

for

teac

hers

to e

nhan

ce th

e te

achi

ng a

nd le

arni

ng o

f STE

M u

sing

spa

ce a

s a

cont

ext.

stem

.org

.uk/

eser

o/

We

have

col

lect

ed a

rang

e of

reso

urce

s w

hich

can

be

used

with

this

kit

at: d

ebat

e.im

asci

entis

t.org

.uk/

mar

s-de

bate

-kit-

reso

urce

s/

6pp

A6 In

stru

ctio

ns S

heet

s (M

ars)

FIN

AL.in

dd

120

/04/

2016

12

:12

• How

to la

unch

a s

pace

craf

t int

o sp

ace,

from

the

surfa

ce o

f M

ars

for t

he re

turn

jour

ney.

We’

ve h

ad lo

ts o

f pra

ctic

e at

la

unch

ing

spac

ecra

ft fro

m E

arth

, but

we’

ll ha

ve n

o ch

ance

to

prac

tice

on M

ars.

We’

ll pr

obab

ly h

ave

to m

ine

fuel

from

Mar

s in

som

e w

ay (a

s w

e w

on’t

be a

ble

to ta

ke e

noug

h w

ith u

s), b

ut

we

don’

t kno

w w

hat,

how,

or w

hen.

• We

don’

t kno

w e

noug

h ab

out t

he lo

ng te

rm p

hysi

olog

ical

ef

fect

s of

spa

ce tr

avel

and

how

to m

itiga

te th

em.

• We

also

don

’t re

ally

kno

w h

ow to

kee

p hu

man

s al

ive

all t

he

way

ther

e, o

n M

ars,

and

then

all

the

way

bac

k –

prov

idin

g ai

r, w

ater

, foo

d, k

eepi

ng th

em w

arm

, com

batti

ng th

e ef

fect

s of

m

icro

grav

ity, d

ealin

g w

ith w

aste

. Eith

er w

e ne

ed to

dev

elop

m

uch

bette

r tec

hnol

ogy

than

we

have

now

to d

o al

l the

se

thin

gs. O

r we

send

an

enor

mou

s cr

aft,

whi

ch w

ill be

un

feas

ibly

exp

ensi

ve to

bui

ld a

nd la

unch

. In

a s

ense

, it’s

mai

nly

the

send

ing

bodi

es in

to s

pace

(and

sa

fely

bac

k) th

at m

akes

it d

ifficu

lt, a

s w

e’ve

alre

ady

sent

nu

mer

ous

robo

tic c

raft.

Hum

an b

odie

s ar

e of

cou

rse

op

timis

ed fo

r the

tem

pera

ture

/pre

ssur

e/gr

avity

/radi

atio

n

leve

ls fo

und

on E

arth

. It’s

sai

d it

take

s a

day

on E

arth

to

reco

ver f

rom

eac

h da

y in

spa

ce.

Bein

g in

ext

rem

ely

low

gra

vity

mea

ns re

duce

d lo

adin

g an

d

disu

se o

f wei

ght-b

earin

g tis

sues

- m

uscl

es w

aste

aw

ay a

nd

bone

s lo

se m

ass.

Flu

id is

no

long

er p

ulle

d in

to th

e lo

wer

bod

y by

gra

vity

, so

pool

s in

the

uppe

r bod

y. T

he b

ody

resp

onds

by

redu

cing

blo

od v

olum

e. W

hen

astro

naut

s re

turn

to 1

g, th

ey

don’

t hav

e en

ough

blo

od v

olum

e an

d th

eir h

eart

mus

cles

and

ci

rcul

atio

n ar

e w

eak.

Cre

w o

n th

e In

tern

atio

nal S

pace

Sta

tion

(ISS)

exe

rcis

e fo

r 2.5

hou

rs a

day

, but

they

are

still

take

n of

f to

4) T

ake

it in

turn

s to

read

out

thei

r fac

t. D

oes

it ch

ange

the

way

they

thin

k?5)

Rea

d th

e is

sue.

Any

diff

eren

t fee

lings

?6)

Eac

h te

am a

sks

thei

r que

stio

n to

the

char

acte

r of t

heir

choi

ce.

Sup

port

: To

help

stu

dent

s yo

u ca

n pu

t the

follo

win

g pr

ompt

se

nten

ces

up o

n th

e bo

ard:

“I

thin

k w

e sh

ould

/sho

uldn

’t se

nd h

uman

s to

Mar

s

beca

use…

……

……

… ”

“I th

ink

……

……

……

is th

e m

ost i

mpo

rtant

poi

nt to

thin

k ab

out.”

Plen

ary:

10

min

utes

Vote

for w

hich

pos

ition

they

agr

ee w

ith m

ost (

if th

ere

is o

ne).

Why

? W

hich

arg

umen

ts w

ere

the

mos

t per

suas

ive?

Not

e –

Pupi

ls c

an s

tay

in ro

les

all t

he w

ay th

roug

h th

e de

bate

, or

onl

y fo

r the

firs

t rou

nd if

you

pre

fer.

If it’s

all

the

way

thro

ugh,

gi

ve th

em a

cha

nce

to e

xpre

ss th

eir o

wn

opin

ion

at th

e en

d

and

in th

e pl

enar

y.

For g

roup

s w

ho a

re n

ot c

onfid

ent a

t cla

ss d

iscu

ssio

n, it

m

ight

hel

p to

hav

e th

em s

tart

by d

iscu

ssin

g th

e qu

estio

n

and/

or th

eir c

hara

cter

’s p

ositi

on in

pai

rs, a

nd th

en c

ompa

re

note

s in

four

s. T

hey’

ve th

en h

ad c

hanc

e to

rehe

arse

som

e of

w

hat t

hey

wan

t to

say

befo

re h

avin

g to

do

it in

fron

t of

the

who

le c

lass

.

Bac

kgro

und

note

sN

B, t

hrou

ghou

t thi

s ki

t we

have

avo

ided

any

use

of t

he w

ords

‘m

anne

d’ o

r ‘un

man

ned’

, in

line

with

offi

cial

Nas

a st

yle

guid

e.

Inte

rest

ing

disc

ussi

on o

f thi

s ht

tps:

//sto

rify.

com

/ela

kdaw

alla

/fin

ding

-new

-lang

uage

-for-

hum

an-m

issi

ons

Mar

s is

the

four

th p

lane

t fro

m th

e su

n in

our

sol

ar s

yste

m.

It is

a ‘t

erre

stria

l pla

net’

(i.e.

Ear

thlik

e), m

eani

ng it

is c

ompo

sed

mai

nly

of s

ilica

te ro

cks

and

met

als

and

has

a so

lid p

lane

t su

rface

(unl

ike

the

‘Gia

nt p

lane

ts’ l

ike

Jupi

ter a

nd S

atur

n).

It ha

s a

thin

atm

osph

ere.

Mar

s fa

cts-

at-a

-gla

nce

• Mea

n ra

dius

: 3,3

90 k

m (a

bout

53%

that

of E

arth

)• M

ass:

6.4

2 x

1023

kg

(or 6

42 s

extill

ion

kg, a

bout

11%

that

of E

arth

)• S

urfa

ce g

ravi

ty: 3

.71m

/s2 (

abou

t 38%

that

of E

arth

)• A

vera

ge te

mpe

ratu

re o

f atm

osph

ere:

-63°

C (c

f 15°

C fo

r Ear

th)

• Len

gth

of y

ear:

687

Earth

day

s• L

engt

h of

day

: 24h

r 40m

ins

Hum

an m

issi

ons

to M

ars?

Ther

e ar

e m

any

argu

men

ts fo

r and

aga

inst

sen

ding

hum

ans

to

Mar

s (th

is is

why

we

mad

e it

the

basi

s of

a d

ebat

e ki

t!).

But

pra

ctic

ally

spe

akin

g, w

e’d

have

to s

olve

a lo

t of i

ssue

s fir

st.

Thin

gs w

e do

n’t k

now

yet

:• H

ow b

est t

o sh

ield

ast

rona

uts

from

cos

mic

radi

atio

n on

the

jour

ney

ther

e an

d w

hile

on

the

surfa

ce o

f Mar

s.

6pp

A6 In

stru

ctio

ns S

heet

s (M

ars)

FIN

AL.in

dd

220

/04/

2016

12

:12

This

wor

k is

lice

nsed

und

er th

e C

reat

ive

Com

mon

s A

ttrib

utio

n-N

onC

omm

erci

al-S

hare

Alik

e4.

0 In

tern

atio

nal L

icen

se. T

o vi

ew a

cop

y of

this

lice

nse,

visi

t http

://cr

eativ

ecom

mon

s.or

g/lic

ense

s/by

-nc-

sa/4

.0/.

Que

stio

n:

Shou

ld w

e se

nd a

hum

an m

issi

on t

o M

ars?

Teac

her N

otes

Less

on p

lan

The

diffe

rent

‘rou

nds’

of t

he d

ebat

e he

lp s

tude

nts

th

ink

thro

ugh

the

issu

es a

nd re

cons

ider

thei

r opi

nion

s.

The

stru

ctur

e al

so s

how

s th

em h

ow to

bui

ld a

dis

cuss

ion

and

back

up

thei

r opi

nion

s w

ith fa

cts.

Star

ter:

5 m

inut

es.

Wha

t do

they

kno

w a

bout

hum

ans

in s

pace

? W

hen

did

the

first

hum

ans

visi

t spa

ce?

Are

ther

e an

y hu

man

s in

spa

ce

now

? Th

inki

ng a

bout

wha

t the

y kn

ow a

bout

hum

an b

odie

s,

wha

t are

all

the

thin

gs th

at o

ur b

odie

s ne

ed, t

hat a

re h

ard

to

get i

n sp

ace?

Mai

n A

ctiv

ity: 3

5 m

inut

es.

1) S

plit

stud

ents

into

as

man

y gr

oups

as

char

acte

rs y

ou

wan

t to

cove

r.2)

Giv

e th

em th

eir c

hara

cter

car

ds –

one

per

gro

up, a

nd

give

them

a fe

w m

inut

es to

read

them

ove

r.3)

Get

one

stu

dent

in e

ach

grou

p to

read

out

thei

r firs

t se

ctio

n to

the

rest

of t

he c

lass

. Wha

t are

the

clas

s’s

initi

al th

ough

ts?

Is th

ere

one

posi

tion

they

iden

tify

with

or

reje

ct? Th

ese

deba

te k

its h

ave

been

us

ed w

ith a

ges

11-1

8.

KS4:

hosp

ital i

n a

whe

elch

air w

hen

they

get

bac

k to

Ear

th (w

hich

is

why

you

nev

er s

ee tr

ium

phan

t ret

urni

ng a

stro

naut

s w

avin

g fo

r th

e ne

ws

cam

eras

).

The

long

est a

nyon

e ha

s sp

ent o

n th

e IS

S is

one

yea

r.

We

don’

t kno

w w

hat t

he e

ffect

of t

wo

year

s or

mor

e w

ould

be.

As p

art o

f the

rese

arch

for t

his

kit,

we

spok

e to

Chr

is W

elch

, Pr

ofes

sor o

f Ast

rona

utic

s an

d Sp

ace

Engi

neer

ing

at th

e

Inte

rnat

iona

l Spa

ce U

nive

rsity

in S

trasb

ourg

. He

said

, “Th

ere

are

so m

any

varia

bles

in h

ow a

hum

an m

issi

on to

Mar

s w

ould

wor

k,

it’s a

fasc

inat

ing

prob

lem

. To

be h

ones

t, it’s

wha

t spa

cecr

aft

engi

neer

s do

whe

n w

e ar

e bo

red:

des

ign

diffe

rent

fant

asy

miss

ions

to

Mar

s, to

see

if w

e ca

n fin

d a

new

way

of m

akin

g it

wor

k.”

For e

xam

ple,

with

pre

sent

tech

nolo

gy it

wou

ld ta

ke ro

ughl

y 7

mon

ths

to g

et fr

om E

arth

to M

ars,

if th

e jo

urne

y is

tim

ed to

take

ad

vant

age

of w

hen

they

are

clo

sest

to e

ach

othe

r. (T

he n

eare

st

they

eve

r get

is a

bout

54.

6 m

illion

km

, the

furth

est a

part

they

ev

er g

et is

abo

ut 4

01 m

illion

km

, whe

n th

ey a

re a

t opp

osite

en

ds o

f the

ir or

bit,

and

the

Sun

is in

bet

wee

n th

em).

So if

tim

ed

right

, peo

ple

coul

d go

to M

ars

and

stay

a s

hort

time

(a c

oupl

e

of w

eeks

), an

d th

en s

et o

ff ba

ck w

hile

the

two

plan

ets

are

rela

tivel

y cl

ose.

Or t

hey

coul

d w

ait o

n M

ars

for a

bout

a y

ear

until

they

can

hit

anot

her c

lose

app

roac

h. (T

here

is ro

ughl

y 26

m

onth

s be

twee

n cl

oses

t app

roac

hes,

but

obv

ious

ly y

ou h

ave

to s

et o

ff m

onth

s be

fore

hand

, hea

ding

for w

here

you

kno

w th

e pl

anet

is g

oing

to b

e w

hen

you

get t

here

.)

Oth

er v

aria

bles

are

how

big

a c

raft

we’

d se

nd, w

heth

er th

e w

hole

cra

ft w

ould

land

on

the

surfa

ce, o

r (m

ore

likel

y) th

e bu

lk

of th

e cr

aft w

ould

sta

y in

orb

it ar

ound

Mar

s an

d a

smal

l lan

der

mod

ule

wou

ld la

nd o

n th

e pl

anet

. Wha

t kin

d of

hab

itats

as

trona

uts

wou

ld li

ve in

on

Mar

s, a

nd h

ow th

ese

wou

ld g

et

ther

e/be

bui

lt. W

hat f

uel t

he re

turn

trip

wou

ld u

se. I

t’s p

ossi

ble

to s

end

robo

tic c

raft

with

car

go to

Mar

s be

fore

the

hum

an

mis

sion

, so

that

sup

plie

s ar

e w

aitin

g th

ere

whe

n th

e as

trona

uts

arriv

e. B

ut th

e as

trona

uts

wou

ld s

till h

ave

to fi

nd th

ese

on

the

surfa

ce a

nd a

ssem

ble

habi

tats

, etc

.

At b

est t

here

wou

ld b

e a

20 m

inut

e la

g fo

r com

mun

icat

ions

to

Mar

s. A

t som

e po

ints

the

Sun

wou

ld b

e be

twee

n M

ars

and

Earth

and

the

astro

naut

s w

ould

be

inco

mm

unic

ado

for d

ays

or w

eeks

. The

cre

w w

ould

pro

babl

y be

four

or fi

ve p

eopl

e. It

w

ould

be

a di

fficu

lt m

issi

on p

sych

olog

ical

ly. S

pace

age

ncie

s ar

e w

orki

ng w

ith p

sych

olog

ists

who

stu

dy ‘i

sola

ted

and

cont

aine

d en

viro

nmen

ts’ (

for e

xam

ple,

the

Anta

rctic

rese

arch

bas

e) to

hel

p th

em w

ork

out h

ow to

cho

ose

and

how

to tr

ain

astro

naut

s fo

r a

mis

sion

like

this

.

Oth

er re

sour

ces:

The

UK

Spac

e Ag

ency

and

its

partn

ers

have

put

toge

ther

a

prog

ram

me

of e

duca

tion

activ

ities

rela

ted

to th

e Pr

inci

pia

mis

sion

. pr

inci

pia.

org.

uk/g

et-in

volv

ed/

ESER

O-U

K pr

ovid

es fr

ee re

sour

ces,

sup

port

and

info

rmat

ion

for

teac

hers

to e

nhan

ce th

e te

achi

ng a

nd le

arni

ng o

f STE

M u

sing

spa

ce a

s a

cont

ext.

stem

.org

.uk/

eser

o/

We

have

col

lect

ed a

rang

e of

reso

urce

s w

hich

can

be

used

with

this

kit

at: d

ebat

e.im

asci

entis

t.org

.uk/

mar

s-de

bate

-kit-

reso

urce

s/

6pp

A6 In

stru

ctio

ns S

heet

s (M

ars)

FIN

AL.in

dd

120

/04/

2016

12

:12

Robert Pinxton –AstrobiologistI am a scientist who looks for evidence of life on other planets. The more I study, the more I realise that we just don't know what life on other planets would be like. Everything we know is based on the life we see here on Earth. We could be completely missing living things, just because they are nothing like what we recognise. There could be life on Mars, and we could accidentally contaminate the planet and destroy it.

Fact: Some interstellar dust is made of organic molecules. Some people think that life on Earth is all descended from viruses brought by comets.

Issue: We can't be sure there is no life on another planet before we get there. But we could destroy that life by going to look.

Question: What right do we have to go and contaminate other planets, just out of curiosity, like a spoilt child?

IAS Mars Debate Debate Cards (Robert Pinxton) 20th Apr .pdf 1 20/04/2016 13:26

Penny O'Hara – Helicopter pilotI was a mountaineer in my youth, and climbed some of the most dangerous mountains in the world. Now I fly a mountain rescue helicopter. I understand what makes people want to explore and take risks, but looking back, I was an idiot. Every day in microgravity, people's muscles and bones get weaker, their hearts get weaker. Every day on the journey and on Mars they'd be exposed to levels of cosmic radiation that we don't know how to shield them from. We don't even know the long term effects of these things.

Fact: It takes about a day on Earth to recover from a day in space. So two years in space would take two years to recover.

Issue: I don't think we as a society should send people on such a dangerous mission, even if they say they want to go.

Question: Would the people who are so keen on the idea be happy if their brother or sister was going on the trip?

C

M

Y

CM

MY

CY

CMY

K

Derek Amundsen – PhysiologistPhysiologists study how the bodies of living organisms work. I specialise in how the human body responds to extreme conditions. We can learn so much by studying what happens to our bodies in space. And it's a fascinating challenge, working out how to design spacecraft and equipment to protect human bodies from space radiation, low temperatures, and the effects of microgravity. The hard thing about a mission to Mars is keeping humans alive on the space flight and when we get there.

Fact: Humans have evolved to live in the tropics. Our bodies are comfortable at 28°C, 1g of gravity, and 1 atmosphere of pressure. We can live in colder climates, because we invented clothes and houses.

Issue: We can find out so much we can't here on Earth.

Question: We could learn so much about health by studying the body's response to new environments. Are we really going to pass up this opportunity?

C

M

Y

CM

MY

CY

CMY

K

IAS Mars Debate Debate Cards (Derek Amundsen) 20th Apr .pdf 1 20/04/2016 13:24

Kai Buchanan –EcologistI study desertification – how land turns into desert and stops being able to produce food or support plants and animals. Deserts are growing all over the world. I'm horrified that people talk about a Mars mission like it's a lifeboat for humans. We can't just give up on Earth, our home, and run away to another planet. We should stay here and put our energy into trying to fix this one.

Fact: It costs £10,000 per kg just to launch things into a low Earth orbit. A mission to Mars will cost hundreds of billions of pounds.

Issue: I think that money and all that brain power would be better spent trying to solve our problems here on Earth.

Question: Shouldn't we work out how to live sustainably on this planet before colonising a new one?

IAS Mars Debate Debate Cards (Kai Buchanan) 20th April.pdf 1 20/04/2016 13:24

Bill McIntosh –Spacecraft engineer I've spent my life studying and designing spacecraft. Of course I want us to send people to Mars! Partly just because it would be really amazing to see. But far more seriously - sooner or later we need to leave Earth, or we'll all be wiped out. Mars would be a first step and staging post.

Fact: So many things could destroy life on Earth. Climate change, nuclear war, we could be wiped out by an asteroid, like the dinosaurs, and we're overdue a super-volcano eruption. Or, if we last that long, our sun will burn out in 4.5 billion years.

Issue: While all the humans are on Earth, it's like we've got all our eggs in one basket. It's too easy for us to get obliterated!

Question: How else can we develop all the technology and knowledge we need to send humans into the rest of the solar system?

C

M

Y

CM

MY

CY

CMY

K

Sarah Oakes – Politician and space enthusiastI think sending humans to Mars could be the Moon landings for a new generation. More than that, it's an incredible, amazing goal. Mars could be the start of the next phase for humanity. It will inspire so many people, and new inventions. I think it is our human destiny to do this. It could bring us together as a species, give us a common goal.

Fact: Many famous and successful scientists and engineers today were inspired by seeing the Moon landings when they were children.

Issue: The space race had dozens of spin-offs – technology that was developed for the space programme, but then has been useful on Earth too. Including lifesaving ways to detect cancer cells and many other medical improvements.

Question: Are we really going to just sit here on Earth, while there's a whole universe out there to explore?

Sudarat Jaa –Planetary geologistIt's so tantalising seeing the bits of data that the Mars Rover has sent back. But it's so limited. Robots can't 'think on their feet', they can't interpret what they see and think of another question to ask or experiment to do. I'm just itching for us to send up a geologist with a hammer! We know Mars used to be more like Earth, with water and an atmosphere. What happened to it? Finding out could tell us a lot about Earth and our possible future.

Fact: It can take weeks of programming just to get the Mars Rover to go back ten metres and take another look at an interesting-looking rock they passed.

Issue: A team of people could find out more in a week than robot probes could in years.

Question: Don't you think we should go to Mars to learn as much as possible about what Earth's future might hold?

IAS Mars Debate Debate Cards (Sudarat Jaa) 20th Apr .pdf 1 20/04/2016 12:23

Greta Stevens – Aerospace engineerI totally agree we need to send humans into space as a safeguard, like a sort of lifeboat if something happens to Earth. But I think Mars is the wrong mission. Too far away, too inhospitable, too difficult! We should start with a colony on the Moon.

Fact: We can get to the Moon in 3 days. The quickest journey to Mars would be about 7 months one way. And that's when Mars and Earth are at their closest, which only happens about every 2 years.

Issue: It's so much easier to get to the Moon, and to bring people or equipment back if there are any problems.

Question: What happens if someone falls ill or a crucial piece of equipment fails on Mars? It could be years before we could get there to help.

C

M

Y

CM

MY

CY

CMY

K

IAS Mars Debate Debate Cards (Greta Stevens) 20th Apr.pdf 1 20/04/2016 12:21