Aging of the Astronaut

Welcome astronaut! So you've traveled to Mars and have made some marvelous explorations in the last two days, now what!?! Well, why not stick around the universe and see what else it has to offer! There are still seven other planets out there that you have not seen, but as you visit each of these planets, beware that something changes. What is it you ask? It's your age! Your task here is to visit each planet and gather the information needed to calculate your new age. First you will estimate, then calculate. After you've gathered your data, you will plot both the estimations and the calculations so that you may understand the relationship between the planetary orbits. With these graphs you can report back to Earth with your discoveries.

Your Task:

• Take the role of a NOSE astronaut and set out to explore the planets! Once you've agreed to this mission it's time to start researching.

• First, print off this chart so that you may record all your findings.

• In order to calculate your age on all the planets, you need to know the orbital period of each planet. To do this, you'll need to blast off into cyberspace and read this data chart.

• Now that you have the facts, you can begin estimating your age on each planet. You need to take your age (in years) and divide it by a planet's orbital period. Remember, you're only estimating so NO calculators! Record these numbers on your chart.

• So, do you think your estimations are close? Pull out your calculator and find out by calculating your age using the same equation as before. Record these numbers on your chart.

• Your chart should be completed at this point so now it's time to take your data and plot your points!

• On a piece of graph paper, create one graph but with two lines. The first line should be your estimation line and the second one your calculated line. They should both show the relationship between the orbital period and your age on each planet.

• With all this information you have gathered, you can now head back to Earth to report your findings! You should be able to describe the relationships between orbital periods and how they affect your age by using graphs.

Mission well done! NOSE has appreciated your intelligence and cooperation!

This task was created by Nicole Peton.