What's the Point?

Our Moon formed from the materials created when a large asteroid struck Earth.
The Moon’s surface has been shaped by different geological processes — asteroid impacts and volcanism.
The lunar environment is not hospitable for humans. There is no atmosphere to breathe or to protect humans from solar radiation, and temperatures are extremely hot or extremely cold.
NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) Mission to the Moon in 2008 will map the lunar surface and its resources in detail and will gather information about the lunar environment. This will help scientists and engineers better understand our Moon’s history and plan for a lunar outpost

Overview

Children ages 9 to 12 sing about NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Mission to the Moon in this 10–20 minute alternate “Launch” activity. They learn about how our Moon formed and changed through time, the search for water and other resources on the Moon, and future lunar outposts!

Launch and Landing
Follow the song with Build an LRO and/or Moon Pie.

Next extend the children’s learning about the Moon by following with:
Impacts!
Make a Volcano
The Scoop on Moon Dirt

Alternatively, next explore future landing sites and outposts with Mission Moon and Build a Colony

Materials

For each child:

One copy of “The LRO Moon Tune”

Preparation

The song is divided into two parts. Part 1 shares the LRO Mission, and emphasizes lunar features and the Moon’s formation, while Part 2 primarily highlights information about the LRO Mission itself. The song is sung to the tune “You Are My Sunshine.”
Bold sections are the responses for later reference when the children play Moon Pie or Mission: Moon.
You may choose to sing the entire song, or select the parts or verses that are most appropriate for your audience. Consider dividing the children into groups, with each group responsible for different parts or stanzas. Depending on the children’s learning level, consider having them explain the information contained within the stanzas after they have sung the song.

Activity

1. Share with the children that in 2008 NASA will be sending a spacecraft — the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter — to orbit the Moon. This spacecraft will collect science information that will help scientists and engineers determine the best place to build future lunar outpost.

2. Divide the children into groups, distribute the LRO Moon Tune to them and review it before singing.

3. Sing!

4. Review what the children learned from the song.

How did our Moon form? A large, planet-sized body struck Earth, vaporizing the impactor and hurtling pieces of the impactor and Earth’s outer surface into orbit around Earth. Those pieces eventually clumped together — accreted — to form our Moon.
How are craters on the Moon formed? Craters are formed when asteroids or comets strike the Moon. Most of the larger craters formed early in the Moon’s history, until about 3.9 billion years ago; however the Moon and other planetary bodies still are hit by asteroids and comets occasionally.
What important resource may comets deliver to the Moon when they strike? Ice; comets contain water ice.
Why would ice from comets not melt? If it is in the deep craters, or in the polar regions, where the Sun’s heat does not reach it, it could stay frozen.
How did the Moon’s dark patches form? Some craters were later filled by lava that cooled to form smooth, dark areas on the Moon. These dark areas are called “seas” — or mare — but they never had water in them!
What is the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter? What will it orbit and for how long? The LRO is a NASA spacecraft that will orbit the Moon for about a year.
What kinds of information will the LRO collect for scientists? Measurements of temperature and radiation from the Sun, maps of resources like types of rocks and water ice, maps and pictures of the lunar surface and its features..
Why does NASA want to collect more information about the Moon? NASA plans to send humans to the Moon for extended stays at Lunar Outposts around 2018. LRO will provide important information about where certain resources — like water ice and elements in rocks — exist, where the surface is safe for landing and building, and where scientific questions about the Moon’s formation and changes can best be studied. All of these activities will prepare future astronauts — the children in your program! - to explore Mars and beyond.