What goes on aboard the International Space Station (ISS)? This question has been asked in many science classrooms.
We all know that, launched in 1998, the ISS is an international partnership of countries and their space agencies which provides and operates the ISS. The principals partners are the space agencies of the United States, Russia, Europe, Japan, and Canada. ISS is the largest space station ever constructed, and continues to be assembled in orbit and has been visited by astronauts from 18 countries.
Since the early 2000, thousands of experiments have been conducted aboard the ISS, including hundreds related to educational activities. From Story Time From Space to Gecko Gripper adhesives that use microscopic angled hairs to stick to surfaces using van der Waals forces. You can see the complete list here.
Prepmagic.com will be featuring some very interesting interactives. Our next update will introduce:
Thermal Conduction
- Explore the process of heat transfer through conduction and compare thermal conductivity of different materials.
NGSS: Physical Sciences MS-PS1-4. Develop a model that predicts and describes changes in particle motion, temperature, and state of a pure substance when thermal energy is added or removed.
Thermal Expansion
- Investigate the phenomenon of linear and volumetric thermal expansion in metals. Compare the extent of expansion across different materials.
NGSS: Physical Sciences MS-PS1-4. Develop a model that predicts and describes changes in particle motion, temperature, and state of a pure substance when thermal energy is added or removed.
Rocket Propulsion and Newton’s Laws of Motion 2 - Overcoming Planet Gravity
- Explore how the thrust generated by a rocket engine is used to overcome the gravitational pull exerted by the planet as the rocket lifts off from the surface. In case of rocket propulsion, Newton's third law explains the generation of thrust by a rocket engine, while Newton's second law describes the acceleration of the rocket due to the thrust generated.
NGSS: Physical Sciences HS-PS2-1. Analyze data to support the claim that Newton’s second law of motion describes the mathematical relationship among the net force on a macroscopic object, its mass, and its acceleration. HS-PS2-2. Use mathematical representations to support the claim that the total momentum of a system of objects is conserved when there is no net force on the system.
Potential and Kinetic Energy Conversion
- Explore the conversion between kinetic and potential energy of an object thrown vertically upwards and falling back to ground.
NGSS: Physical Sciences MS-PS3-1. Construct and interpret graphical displays of data to describe the relationships of kinetic energy to the mass of an object and to the speed of an object.
MS-PS3-2. Develop a model to describe that when the arrangement of objects interacting at a distance changes, different amounts of potential energy are stored in the system.
Vector Addition
- Determine the resultant of two vectors using the triangle and parallelogram methods of vector addition.
NGSS: Physical Sciences HS-PS2-1. Analyze data to support the claim that Newton’s second law of motion describes the mathematical relationship among the net force on a macroscopic object, its mass, and its acceleration.
Motion Vectors
- Explore how the specified velocity vector and the acceleration vector determine the resultant motion of an object.
NGSS: Physical Sciences HS-PS2-1. Analyze data to support the claim that Newton’s second law of motion describes the mathematical relationship among the net force on a macroscopic object, its mass, and its acceleration.
Acid Base Titration
- A series of configurable DIY interactives to investigate the neutralization reaction between acid and base. Select the type, strength and volume of the analyze as well as the strength of the titrant and the indicator for the reaction.
NGSS: Physical Sciences MS-PS1-2. Analyze and interpret data on the properties of substances before and after the substances interact to determine if a chemical reaction has occurred.
Catalyst Action on Activation Energy - Interactive Graph
- Investigate how a catalyst changes the activation energy of a chemical reaction, altering the Potential Energy - Reaction Coordinate . difference in the potential energy of the reactants and the products determine whether the reaction is exothermic or endothermic in nature.
NGSS: Physical Sciences HS-PS1-4. Develop a model to illustrate that the release or absorption of energy from a chemical reaction system depends upon the changes in total bond energy.
Element Periodicity - Physical Property Trends
- Explore and compare the trends exhibited for different physical properties (atomic radius, density, melting point, boiling point, etc.) across selected elements in the periodic table.
NGSS: Physical Sciences HS-PS1-1. Use the periodic table as a model to predict the relative properties of elements based on the patterns of electrons in the outermost energy level of atoms.
Punnett Square - Monohybrid Cross
- Interactive exercise on completing the punnett square for a randomly generated monohybrid cross.
NGSS: Life Sciences MS-LS3-2. Develop and use a model to describe why asexual reproduction results in offspring with identical genetic information and sexual reproduction results in offspring with genetic variation.
Homeostasis - Goldfish Heart Rate Lab
- Explore the effect of temperature on the heart rate of a goldfish. The heart rate is determined indirectly by measuring the respiration rate of the gold fish in terms of the opening and closing of its mouth. The interactive also compares the metabolism of the fish with the standard Q10 curve.
NGSS: Life Sciences HS-LS1-3. Plan and conduct an investigation to provide evidence that feedback mechanisms maintain homeostasis.