Exploring Space 6.E.1.3 Summarize space exploration and the understandings gained from them.

Satellites Today, thousands of artificial satellites orbit Earth. Communication satellites transmit radio and television programs around the world. Other satellites gather scientific data.

Space Probes Space probes have taught us much about the solar system. As they travel through space, these car-size craft gather data with their onboard instruments and send results back to Earth.

Rockets For many years, NASA used to watch 3,000 metric tons of metal and other materials burn up after take off.

Rockets These early rockets were used to launch a small capsule holding astronauts into orbit. Then the sections of the rocket separated from the rest and burned when reentering the atmosphere.

How Rockets Work Rockets work in much the same way that a balloon is propelled through the air by releasing gas. A rocket moves forward when gases expelled from the rear of the rocket push it in the opposite direction. For every force or action there is an equal and opposite force or reaction.

How Rockets Work (Continued) Balloon-Force=air going out Equal Force (reaction)=pushes the balloon forward Rockets=fuel burned to make hot gas which is forced out of narrow nozzles in the back (force) Equal force=propels the rocket forward

Multistage Rockets Early rockets (year 1000) used gunpowder as fuel which burns quickly and is explosive. If they wanted to go outside Earth’s atmosphere they needed something that would burn slowly and continuously. Robert H. Goodard experimented with liquid fuels in 1920s. He showed liquid fuels can provide continuous power, and solid fuels burn slowly and continuously.

How Rockets Work (Continued) Still had the problem of the rockets could only carry so much fuel. When fuel is used up, rocket falls back to Earth Russian Konstantin Tsiolkovsky came up with idea of multistage rocket. As each stage or section of rocket uses up its fuel the empty container drops off. Then the next stage ignites and continues up toward the rocket’s destination. Development of powerful multistage rockets in 1950s and 1960s has made it possible to send rockets to the moon and farther.

Space Shuttle On April 12, 1981, the Space Shuttle Columbia became the first shuttle to orbit the Earth.

Space Shuttle The space shuttle is a reusable spacecraft that transports astronauts, satellites, and other materials to and from space.

Space Shuttle The shuttle is connected to an external liquid-fuel tank and two solid-fuel booster rockets.

Space Shuttle The space shuttle has a cargo bay that can be used as a science laboratory.

Space Shuttle When the cargo bay isn’t being used as a laboratory, the shuttle can launch, repair, and retrieve satellites.

Astronaut An astronaut is a person trained by a human spaceflight program to command, pilot, or serve as a crew member of a spacecraft.

Astronaut The Russian term for an astronaut is called cosmonaut.

“Space Race” The Soviet Union or Russia was the country that put the first human in space. On October 4, 1957, the USSR launched the world's first artificial satellite called the Sputnik 1.

International Space Station The International Space Station (ISS) is a research facility currently being assembled in orbit around the Earth. It shared by space programs from 16 countries.

Missions to Mars Mars Global Surveyor and the Mars Pathfinder were the two most successful missions in exploring Mars. The Mars Climate Orbiter and Polar Lander missions ended in failure.

Questions Which government agency is charged with managing America’s space exploration and research? A. The Smithsonian Institute B. The National Institutes of Science C. The Department of Transportation D. The National Aeronautics and Space Administration

A scientist wants to study the effect of weightlessness on plant growth. Which would be the best place to conduct such experiments? A. the Mars Exploration Rover B. the Hubble Space Telescope C. the Space Shuttle Discovery D. the International Space Station

What is the Russian term for an astronaut? A. Russianaut B. Cosmonaut C. Communaut D. None of the above

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