grow a potato · 2020-06-24 · put your potato in a warm sunny spot, like on a windowsill or...

Moving to Mars At Home Activity #Moving to Mars At Home Activity #1

Grow a PotatoOne purpose for the exploration of Mars, is to determine whether the Red Planet can support life. Life can be found in plants. The soil here on Earth supports and maintains the growth of plants and life. As a member of our mission to Mars you must understand how to grow and maintain the life of a plant. This potato activity will help supply you with that knowledge. How long does it take to sprout a potato? Maybe you have already seen potatoes sprout on their own.

Get a potato. It can be any potato--red, gold, white, purple.

A potato

Put your potato in a warm sunny spot, like on a windowsill or kitchen counter.

A sunny spotA container and soil to plant in(pots, old containers, etc)A kitchen knife

Wait until you start to see sprouts emerge from the “eyes.” It may take up to 2-3 weeks until you see shoots appear.

Once you see sprouts, ask an adult to help you cut the potato into pieces so that there are 1-2 sprouts on each piece. You can plant each of these sprouting pieces and they will turn into a potato plant that grows multiple potatoes!

Wait a few days for the pieces to dry out and form calluses. This helps the potato form a layer of protection against disease.

You will need:

Steps:

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Credited: Home Grown Veg. Cut potato plant in a pot experiement. Part 1. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5iR7z0sE870 ; Homer, Holly. “Growing Potatoes with Kids” KidsActivities.com. https://kidsactivitiesblog.com/13062/growing-potatoes-with-kids/


To plant, dig a trench about 6-8” deep and put the potato piece(s) into it about 1 foot away from each other, with the eyes facing upward, and cover them with soil. You can plant them in the ground or in pots--unused old containers with holes in them, like laundry baskets, make great DIY containers for growing your potatoes.

Bonus:

Try spouting leftover ends of celery, lettuce, and green onions. Stick the cut off bottom into some water in a sunny spot and see how the top regenerates itself.

Try sprouting an avocado seed. This is tricky and only for the extremely dedicated. Remove the avocado seed from the avocado without damaging it; insert four toothpicks equidistant on all sides and place in a shallow bowl half filled with water so that the toothpicks are resting on the sides and the avocado seed is floating. Place the bowl in a sunny place and wait, changing the wa-ter every few days. Eventually, the seed will soften and a sprout will emerge. This will take many weeks, possibly months. Patience is key! Once it sprouts, you can plant in a (large) pot of soil.

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For more fun activities, visit the UWM Planetarium website at: https://uwm.edu/planetarium/

Credited: Home Grown Veg. Cut potato plant in a pot experiement. Part 1. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5iR7z0sE870 ; Homer, Holly. “Growing Potatoes with Kids” KidsActivities.com. https://kidsactivitiesblog.com/13062/growing-potatoes-with-kids/


The Distance to MarsWhen you look at the night sky you can often see the moon. Sometimes during the day you can even see the moon, but it always feels so close. Unfortunately getting there holds its own chal-lenges. Now imagine something you can’t obviously see in the sky, like the planet Mars. Before we venture on our mission Moving To Mars it is important you get an understanding of what type of journey this will be. We want to show why going to Mars is a much more challenging task than the Moon and the Moon is hard enough.

Using a scale of about 1000 miles equiva-lent to 1mm, place the pea (or small object) on the sidewalk and this will act as your Earth. Measure 9” away from Earth (The Pea) and make a dot mark with your chalk. This will act as your Moon. Take a picture.

A Pea (or similar sized object)ChalkBright colored paperA Ruler or Yardstick

It took Apollo 11 almost 76 hours to travel from the Earth to the Moon. Can you calculate how long it would take to travel an inch on our scale?

You will need:

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Workspace:

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Length (Miles)Earth’s Diameter 1 pea

1 dot with chalk1 lentil9 inches37 yards272 yards

Moon’s DiameterMars’ DiameterDistance of Moon from EarthClosest Mars is from EarthFarthest Mars is from Earth 249170000

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Scale Model


Now, using sturdy paper, make two signs. Label one Closest Mars and label the other Furthest Mars. It might be helpful to use two different colored pieces of paper for each sign. Colorful enough to stand out. If you have people available to help it might be best to use two different individuals, in two different colored shirts to represent Closest Mars and Furthest Mars.

Place the Closest Mars sign or designated person 37 yards away from your Earth (The Pea). Place the Furthest Mars sign or des-ignated person 272 yards away from your Earth. Take a picture.

How does the distance to the Moon compare to the minimum distance to Mars? What do you notice about the farthest location of Mars?

Missions to Mars happen every two years to take advantage of the proximity of Mars to the Earth. Why do we do that?

Bonus:

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Edible Mars RoverCalling all space engineers, a mission to Mars has been approved but we need your help. Our vehicles for exploration are unfit for the Mars terrain and we need you to build a new Mars rover to help with our mission.

Take one of your Oreo’s (rounded cookie) and place one toothpick into the center of the cookie, just enough to reach the center. Take another Oreo and place it on the other end of the same toothpick.

2 tablespoons of cake icingCandy (Skittles, M&M’s and Mini Marshmallows)Cookies (Oreo’s and Graham Crackers)2 plastic straws1 plastic knife1 plastic spoon6-8 toothpicks

Repeat step one and you should have two separate pieces, these will be the wheels of your rover.

Break one of your Graham crackers into 4 equal pieces.

Smear some of your cake icing on the top and bottom ends of your graham cracker.

The icing will act as your glue. Place each graham cracker end with icing onto one of the toothpicks holding your wheels together. This will act as your base.

You will need:

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Credited: Yakacki, Chris; Hill, Geoffrey; Kotys-Schwartz, Daria; Schaefer Zarske, Melinda; Yowell, Janet; W. Carslon, Denise. “Hands On Activity: Edible Rover” Teach Engineering. 2004. Web. May 29 2020. https://www.teachengineering.org/activities/view/cub_mars_lesson03_activity1


Take two mini marshmallows and apply some of your cake icing to the bottom of each. Place both next to each other on one end of the graham cracker in between two of your wheels.

Take two more mini marshmallows amd apply some of your cake icing to the bottom of each.

Stick one plastic straw into each of the mini marshmallows. Place these two mini marshmallows on the other end of the graham cracker between the wheels. The straws should be sticking up.

Take two skittles, apply cake icing to the bottom of each and place both on their own mini marshmallow. These will be the marshmallows on the other end of the graham cracker.

Take 4 M&M’s and apply cake icing to the bottom of each. Place each on the outside of one of the Oreo wheels. One M&M for each Oreo.

At this point your rover construction is completed. Final step is to test it out.

Bonus:

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Take a picture of your own completed rover and send to back to us here at the UW-Milwaukee Planetarium. Our email is [email protected]. Once completed enjoy your edible creation or add a few unique details of your own to add some character to your rover, like this.


Credited: Yakacki, Chris; Hill, Geoffrey; Kotys-Schwartz, Daria; Schaefer Zarske, Melinda; Yowell, Janet; W. Carslon, Denise. “Hands On Activity: Edible Rover” Teach Engineering. 2004. Web. May 29 2020. https://www.teachengineering.org/activities/view/cub_mars_lesson03_activity1


Mars HelicopterWe need your help once again space engineer. NASA’s Perseverance Mars Rover will be launching in July of 2020 and will be carrying the first helicopter to the surface of Mars. This helicopter must be lightweight to fly on Mars but have large blades that can rotate quickly. This is so the helicopter can generate enough power to overcome the gravity of the Red Planet and lift it off the surface. With this mission, if you choose to accept, you will build your own paper helicopter.

Draw a rectangle 3” wide and 9” long with dashed lines.

PencilScrap PaperRulerScissorsMeasruing Tape

(Optional) 10 Feet of lightweight ribbon

Your starting point is the top middle of your rectangle. Draw a dashed line about 3 ½ “ straight down.

You have two starting points. From the mid-dle of your rectangle, on the left and right draw two dashed lines about a 1” straight towards the middle of your rectangle. These lines should not meet.

Your starting point will be the end of the middle-dashed line on the right side. Draw a straight solid line down from that point until it meets the bottom of your rectangle. Use a ruler. Repeat on the left side.

You will need:

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Credited: NASA, “Make A Paper Mars Helicopter” NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory. 2020. Web. 29 May 2020. https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/edu/learn/project/make-a-paper-mars-helicopter/


Your starting point will be about 1” above the bottom of your rectangle. Going from left to right, draw a straight line from the left dotted line to the right dotted line. Use a ruler. This should create three equally sized squares at the bottom of your rectangle.

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Your starting point will be 1” above the left middle-dashed line. Draw a solid line to the middle-dashed line you made earlier. Use a ruler and the line should have an incline of about ¼ “. Repeat for the right side. These two lines should meet.

There will be two spaces in the top half of your rectangle. Label the left space A and label the right space B.

There will be two rectangles on the left and right of the bottom half of your bigger rectangle. Label the left X and label the right Y.

At the bottom of your bigger rectangle there will be three small squares. Label the center square Z.

Cut along all dashed lines.

Your propeller blades will be sections A and B. Fold along the solid lines. Fold section A backwards and fold section B forwards toward the center.

Fold the X and Y panels toward the center, and Z is folded upward to give the body of the helicopter rigidity and lower its center of gravity for more stable flight.

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It is time for a test flight. Stand up and hold the helicopter by its body. Raise it as high in the air as you can. Now, drop it. What do you observe? Which way do the blades turn? Drop the helicopter from a higher spot. (Climb a few stairs or stand on a step stool.) How does the performance change?


Grab an unfolded piece of paper the same size as the one used to make the helicopter. Drop it at the same time as the helicopter. Which falls faster? Wad up the piece of paper into a ball. Drop this paper ball at the same time as the helicopter. Which falls faster? Can you guess why?

To make the Mars helicopter, NASA engineers had to build and test multiple designs to find some-thing that could get enough lift from the Red Planet’s thin atmosphere.

Experiment a little. Make one change to your helicopter. Try folding the bottom up one more fold, or shortening or changing the shape of the blades. Fold the blades in opposite directions. How does the performance of your helicopter change? Why? Can you figure out a way to make your helicopter blades turn faster or slower?

Think about how you want to improve the performance of your helicopter and make another one that is different from your first. Use a different kind of paper or make a much smaller or much larger one. How big of a helicopter can you make that will still work? How small of a he-licopter can you make? How do helicopters with different blade sizes compare in performance? What size works best? Experiment with a few different models of helicopter.

Using your measuring tape measure the height of your shoulder and write this down. Choose your best-performing helicopter and drop it from shoulder height. Count the number of rota-tions it makes before landing. If counting the rotations is difficult because of the speed, attach a straightened ribbon to the bottom of the helicopter body. You can count the twists in the ribbon after it lands. Record this number next to the drop height.

What would happen if you dropped the helicopter from a lower height? Repeat the mea-suring, dropping and counting from a lower height.

How many times would the helicopter rotate if you dropped it from a taller height? Measure a taller height, and then predict the number of rotations your helicopter will make.

Drop your helicopter from the taller height and see how close your prediction was. Try again from other heights and see if you can make better predictions each time.


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Making a Space SuitIt seems NASA has misplaced your space suit for the upcoming mission to Mars. It is your duty as an astronaut to be prepared for any circumstance, this includes making your own space suit. The following information will provide you with the materials and steps to create a successful, homemade space suit.

Wood glueWaterReally round balloon (available at party stores)Phonebook, or any other abundant amount of thin scrap paperWood filler or filler spray paintWireWhite Acrylic PaintSilver Spray Paint

Painter SuitWhite SatinSilver LameInterfacingFeltThread

Stir StickScissorsGlovesRazor BladeSand Paper (80 Grit and 150 Grit)Wire SnipsPaint BrushLarge BowlSewing Machine or Sewing Kit

Helmet Materials

Space Suit Materials

Tools

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Credited: Obscura, Audrey “Astronaut Costume” Instructables Crafts. 2017. Web. May 29 2020. https://www.instructables.com/id/Astronaut-Costume/


Paper Mache will be utilized in this project. Begin with the wood glue, use a 1:1 ratio of water to glue and mix the two in a large bowl.

Slice strips of paper from your phone book or whatever assortment of loose paper you were able to find. There should be enough strips to cover a large balloon.

Soak these strips in your glue/water mixture.

Inflate your large balloon and tie the bottom to keep air from escaping.

Begin taking your soaked strips of paper and apply them to the balloon. There should be 4 to 6 layers of paper covering the balloon. DO NOT cover the entire balloon. Leave a space around the knot at the bottom, enough for a head hole.

Once your balloon is covered, take a paint brush and lightly coat the entire balloon in your glue/water mixture.

Walk away and allow the paper mache to dry. Allow about two days for it to dry or make sure the paper is completely hardened before moving forward.

Using adult supervision or the help of an adult grab your razor blade and puncture the balloon.

Once all the air has been released from the balloon, shape the hole for the head with a pair of scissors and remove the balloon from the paper. Test it out!

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There may be some larger wrinkles on the outside of the helmet. Use wood filler to cover any type of large wrinkles. Allow the wood filler to dry.

With your 80 grit sandpaper, sand the entire sphere so that the wood-filler will bond to the sphere.

Wearing gloves, squeeze the wood filler from the tube and smooth it into any cracks. Allow this to dry.

Re-sand the entire helmet using the 150 grit sandpaper.

Paint the outside of the helmet with white acrylic paint. Allow it to dry, it will take about 30 mins.

Trace out a basic shape around the sphere that would be the helmet’s opening. Then, using the razor blade, cut the opening out.

Using some bailing wire, and some mask-ing tape, form a ring a little larger than the opening of your helmet.

Using your circular formed wire and some more masking tape, reinforce the cut edge of the helmet, so that it won’t slump on your head.

Then spray the inside of the sphere with silver spray paint.

Your helmet has been completed. You can get creative on your own and add your own unique design to the helmet with paint, markers, or colored pencils.

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Now comes the suit. The base of the suit will be a really big painters suit which can be purchased at any hardware store.

Using silver lame and interfacing as elbow and knee pads, sew ruches in the material using the sewing machine.

Sew your newly formed elbow and knee pads onto the suit in the appropriate positions.

Now is the time to get creative. Print patches off the internet or find or create patches of your own and sew them onto your suit. Use paint, markers, or other materials to make your space suit unique to you.

Any basic large snow boot will work perfectly for your space boots.

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Steps (Suit):

Bonus:

Take a picture of your completed space suit and send to back to us here at the UW-Milwaukee Planetarium. Our email is [email protected]. Have fun exploring deep space!


grow a potato · 2020-06-24 · put your potato in a warm sunny spot, like on a windowsill or...

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