Top > In the News... > Explore Jupiter’s Moon Europa With Hands-on Activities From NASA
by , posted on 12:32 PM, November 16, 2023
NASA’s Europa Clipper mission will travel 1.8 billion miles to explore Jupiter’s icy moon, Europa. Bring the excitement of the mission into the classroom with a trio of hands-on activities.
 |
Activity #1:
Mapping Alien Worlds
Grades 4-12
Students analyze simulated radar data to map surface elevations on a grid. Next, they determine what kind of surface feature is displayed by the data. Students then build a physical model representing their data.
Activity #2:
Grades 6-8
Scientists believe that Jupiter's icy moon, Europa, has a liquid-water ocean underneath its frozen surface. While we can’t see that ocean directly, we can use the mass and density of known substances to predict what exists underneath the surface. In this activity, students will use the fundamentals of density to propose a model for the interior structure of Europa
Scientists believe that Jupiter's icy moon, Europa, has a liquid-water ocean underneath its frozen surface. While we can’t see that ocean directly, we can use the mass and density of known substances to predict what exists underneath the surface. In this activity, students will use the fundamentals of density to propose a model for the interior structure of Europa
Activity #3:
Grades 8-12
Jupiter's moon Europa poses exciting new possibilities for NASA's search for life beyond Earth. While there's still much to uncover about Europa, scientists have long known that liquid water exists beneath its icy shell. But how?
Jupiter's moon Europa poses exciting new possibilities for NASA's search for life beyond Earth. While there's still much to uncover about Europa, scientists have long known that liquid water exists beneath its icy shell. But how?
In this classroom activity, students will explore the relationship between magnetism and electricity to model how scientists determined that Europa has a magnetic field and a conductive liquid, subsurface ocean.
Minnesota science teachers should know about:
