1. Solar System task
Designers for a toy company have been commissioned to design and produce educational toys/visual aids for primary schools. The brief given to the one member of the team is to design a hanging mobile of the solar system. The mobile will include all the planets and the Sun, and will give children a general impression of the planets’ relative size to, and distance from, the Sun. The only guidance on size of the mobile and its constituent parts are that it should not exceed 1m in diameter when assembled and in situ.
In your groups discuss the issues involved in the design and suggest possible solutions that will address the brief.
Present your ideas in a form that will be understood by individuals with limited mathematical knowledge.
Information required for the task is included on the cards provided.

2. Mars Sun Average Distance from the Sun - 2.2793664 x 108 km
Image courtesy of NASA
Image courtesy of NASA
Average Distance from the Sun x 108 km
Equatorial Radius –
6.955 x 105 km
Equatorial Radius x 103 km

3. Mercury Venus Average Distance from the Sun - 5.7909175 x 107 km
Image courtesy of NASA
Image courtesy of NASA
Average Distance from the Sun x 107 km
Average Distance from the Sun x 108 km
Equatorial Radius x 103 km
Equatorial Radius x 103 km

4. Saturn Earth Average Distance from the Sun - 1.4959789 x 108 km
Image courtesy of NASA
Average Distance from the Sun x 109 km
Equatorial Radius x 104 km
Image courtesy of NASA
Average Distance from the Sun x 108 km
Equatorial Radius x 103 km

5. Neptune Jupiter Average Distance from the Sun - 7.7841202 x 108 km
Image courtesy of NASA
Image courtesy of NASA
Average Distance from the Sun x 108 km
Average Distance from the Sun x 109 km
Equatorial Radius – x 104 km
Equatorial Radius x 104 km

6. Pluto Uranus Average Distance from the Sun - 2.8709722 x 109 km
Image courtesy of NASA
Image courtesy of NASA
Average Distance from the Sun x 109 km
Average Distance from the Sun x 109 km
Equatorial Radius x 104 km
Equatorial Radius x 103 km

7. Solar System task (Answer sheet)
There is no one definitive answer against which you can assess any suggested solutions; the issues identified during your analysis and how you choose to present the suggestions are more pertinent to the task.
The issues identified should include how to represent relative size to, and distance from, the Sun, given that the data covers a large range of values. Any attempt to employ linear scales should identify these issues and the design and presentation of any linear solutions should amplify these issues.
Solutions could employ non-linear scales such as a logarithmic scale which would reduce the data to a more manageable range. Presentation of the suggested solutions should be aesthetically suitable for the given audience.
The task also requires ability to communicate the issues and how these could be resolved using language that avoids unnecessary mathematical terminology.