Students are given the following challenge: "The invasion has taken place and we need to find a new home. To ensure your survival beyond Earth's occupation you must design a shelter that can be built on another planet." Then students research the characteristics of a planet of their choice. They design shelter that would allow them to survive on a new planet, and explain it in words.

If it were necessary to build shelter on another planet, many types of engineers would be involved. Civil and environmental engineers would design the structure, while electrical and mechanical engineers would design power sources for the shelter. Depending on the planet and the complexity of the shelter, other types of engineers, such as materials, computer, biomedical, environmental or chemical engineers, would be involved in the project, too. atmosphere design Earth planet shelter space Research skills Planets Application of research results Design techniques Presentation skills library books paper, pens, markers (optional) internet access (optional) Microsoft PowerPoint software Imagine what it would be like to live on another planet! The conditions on Earth are very different from the other planets of our solar system. Earth has an atmosphere abundant with oxygen for us to breathe, fresh water for us to drink, soil that enables us to grow food to eat, and resources that provide energy. The Earth has been a successful biosphere for more than 3.8 billion years. But if the human race was forced to leave its planet, how would we adapt to living on another planet? Think of what you would need to survive, such as food, water, oxygen and shelter. What questions come to mind? How would you create air, water and food supplies on the new planet? What would you take with you from Earth and how would you get to your new home? What are the conditions on the new planet (temperature, weather, climate, etc.)? How would you build a shelter to protect you from your new environment? Engineer would be responsible for addressing a challenge like this. They would find solutions to help the human race survive on a new planet. Include this activity with a unit on the solar system. Recommended Resources: About astronauts living in space on the shuttle: http://spaceflight.nasa.gov/living/index.html More on living in space, requirements, etc.: http://www.pbs.org/spacestation/station/living.htm Biospheres and cool stuff about them: http://www.biospheres.com/ Assign or allow students to choose planets to research. Earth has just been invaded by aliens, and humans must relocate to another planet. To ensure your survival beyond Earth's occupation you must design a shelter that can be built on another planet. You will also have to consider how to get to your new or chosen planet from Earth, and five items that you will take and why you chose them. Pick a planet that you would like to move to. Research this planet and find out about the new environment in which you will live. Some things to think about for survival are climate, atmosphere composition, surface composition, day length, distance from the sun, force of gravity, etc. (see the attached Space Shelter Research Guide). Design an ideal shelter that would allow you to survive on the new planet. Explain the characteristics of your house, including materials used and special design features. You may need to design new materials to survive the harsh environments of other planets. Present your design to the class (this could be done in PowerPoint presentation). The focus of the presentation should be the design and the feasibility of human survival (this decreases the redundancy of presentations if several students pick the same planet). Reer to the attached Space Shelter Research Guide for additional information that can be covered. A good homework extension: Once you have designed your shelter, consider what five items you would take with you and why. Have student write a journal entry to describe and explain. Space Shelter Research Handout (doc) Space Shelter Research Handout (pdf) Why did you choose that planet? What features of your design will help you to survive on your planet? Why do people not live on that planet now? Where is a good place to find information about planets? Rubric for Performance Assessment (doc) Rubric for Performance Assessment (pdf)