Grades 5-8:

The Origin and Evolution of the Earth System

• The sun, the Earth, and the rest of the solar system formed from a nebular cloud of dust and gas 4.6 billion years ago. The early Earth was very different from the planet we live on today.

Earth's History

• The Earth processes we see today, including erosion, movement of lithospheric plates and changes in atmospheric composition, are similar to those that occurred in the past. Earth history is also influenced by occasional catastrophes, such as the impact of an asteroid or comet.

Transfer of Energy

• Energy is a property of many substances and is associated with heat, light, electricity, mechanical motion, sound, nuclei, and the nature of a chemical. Energy is transferred in many ways.

Grades 9-12

Motions and Forces

• Objects change their motion only when a net force is applied. Laws of motion are used to calculate precisely the effects of forces on the motion of objects. The magnitude of the change in motion can be calculated using the relationship F = ma, which is independent of the nature of the force. Whenever one object exerts force on another, a force equal in magnitude and opposite in direction is exerted on the first object.

• Gravitation is a universal force that each mass exerts on any other mass. The strength of the gravitational attractive force between two masses is proportional to the masses and inversely proportional to the square of the distance between them.

Short Description: A two-to-three week student inquiry into the question: "How do you make a 7-15 stories deep, football stadium-sized crater in a comet?" The lessons are designed to provide students with experience in conducting scientific inquiries, gain a greater understanding of scientific modeling, and get the students involved with the excitement of a NASA mission in development.