Madi+P+SFLOM

Energy is defined as “a fundamental entity of nature consisting of negative and positive kinds, observable in the attractions and repulsions of bodies electrified by friction and in natural phenomena, and usually utilized in the form of electric currents”. A kind of energy is electricity. Electricity is a form of energy fueled by the existence of charged particles. These particles either hold negative charges or positive charges. A positive charge is carried by protons. A negative charge is carried by electrons. If an atom is neutral it means that the number of protons is the same as the number of electrons. There are three types of electricity; electric current, electric discharge, and static electricity. Electric current is the controlled flow of electric charge (electrons). Examples of electric current are the wires that connect to your television, computer, etc. Electric discharge is the rapid movement of charge from one place to another. Static charge is the unbalanced amount of electric charge resulting from the removal of electrons caused by two objects rubbing together. The shock that you sometimes receive from static electricity is an example of electric discharge. We would need loads (no pun intended) of electricity to get to Mars. For starters, we would need electricity to work the controls in our rocket. I don’t know about you but, if it’s going to take a while to get to Mars, I don’t want to spend that time in a dark spaceship. We would need electricity for the lighting in our rocket. It may also get dark on Mars sometime during the experiments we’re conducting. If we’re going to do our investigations, we need light throughout them. We should definitely bring flashlights. Lastly, to discover any life forms on Mars we will need certain electric devices/machines to detect things. **Effects of Magnetism and Uses on Mars**
 * Energy and it's Benefits on Mars**

Magnetism is defined as “a class of physical phenomena that includes forces exerted by magnets on other magnets. It has its origin in electric currents and the fundamental magnetic moments of elementary particles.” The magnetic field of a certain object can produce a magnetic force on other objects using magnetic fields. That force is what we call magnetism. Magnetism can affect certain objects (ex: paper clips) and cause them to become magnetized by orienting its magnetic domain. Other effects of magnetism/magnetic fields include motion being converted into energy (this method is used in electric motors) and repelling/attracting objects (depending on the north of south poles).

There are many ways we can use magnetism on our search for life on mars. One example is that there is a probability that we will require an electric motor to power a device (on a machine, a robot, or maybe even our rocket). An electric motor uses magnetic fields to convert motion into energy to power the devices. Also, it would be cool if we had a type of robot that would attract different magnetic minerals, rocks, or metals from the ground as it roamed around.

**Astronomy and the Formation of the Universe**

**//From Big Bangs to Galaxies//**

The most popular theory is that our Earth was created 15 billion years ago. Our universe exploded out of nothing and it was unimaginably hot. It inflated from the size of an atom to around the size of multiple planet earths. Particles of matter were created by a mixture of exotic particles (quarks, antiquarks) and radiant energy. The temperature gradually fell as the universe was created. As the universe was a tenth of a millisecond old, protons and neutrons started to form. Matter and antimatter was created from radiation. The matter and antimatter particles then annihilate into energy as they collide. As temperature fell, annihilation overtook particle creation. When the universe was merely a second old, the temperature had fallen to 10 billion degrees. There is now mostly radiant energy and electron-like particles. As temperatures continue to drop, the majority of the particles are mostly annihilated. The first nucleus that formed is the helium nucleus, created by electrons and neutrons combining.

For the next 3000 years, the universe continues to expand and the temperature continues to fall. When the temperature falls to 3000 degrees Calvin, electrons are able to start orbiting a nucleus to create atoms without being torn apart by heat. Also, radiation is free to travel long distances. The first hint of structure in our universe was reflected as ripples, which were first detected by the Colby satellite. Today, cosmic radiation has cooled to 7.5 degrees. When the universe reached the age of 2 billion years old, the formation of galaxies began. Galaxies are classified by their shape; elliptical, spiral, and irregular. The galaxies were closer together in the early stages of the universe than they are today and collisions and merges were more common. A collision of galaxies can cause spiral arms to grow. Merges occur when two galaxies smash together head-on. This may happen to our galaxy and the Andromeda galaxy.

**//The Milky Way Galaxy//**

The Milky Way Galaxy is the galaxy has over a billion stars. These stars provide the galaxy with light. The sun, our star, is on the outer ring of the Milky Way galaxy. The Milky Way is surrounded by a disc of stars and dust. The Milky Way is a spiral galaxy and it is constantly in orbit. There are bulges of stars pact close together and the center of our galaxy is most like a black hole. **//History of the Solar System//**

The sun was formed when gravity pulled together gas and dust around 4 and a half billion years ago. The gas and dust accumulated into clumps that were a few yards wide. Once the sun had formed, icy particles only survived if they were far away. The only particles near the sun that survived were ones made out of metal or rock. The particles on the outer solar system include the giant planets; Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune. These planets grew discs with moons and are around 2x Earth’s mass. These planets attract a thick atmosphere of gas due to gravitational pull. There were too many collisions for big planets to be created within the inner solar system. These planets are called the terrestrial planets; Mercury, Venus, Earth, and Mars. Their surfaces are hot due to heavy bombardment. During their creation, the metals would sink to the center and the lighter rock would settle on top before they cooled and hardened.

The moon most likely began its creation in a catastrophic collision between Earth and a planet around the size of Mars. It continued to grow and create in bombardment for a million years. Larger rocks were more common in the early solar system. Most planet particles were destroyed in collisions. They were then ejected into the outer solar system or settled into the asteroid belt that lies between Mars and Jupiter. A few of them were captured as moons. The rings on planets were created by particles that were torn apart by gravity when they got too close. The planets acquired atmospheres at a later stage. The oxygen on our Earth was produced by plants breaking down carbon dioxide. The mass extinction of many animals on Earth can be blamed on asteroids.

**//Lives of the Stars//**

Stars form in a cold, dark cloud of gas and dust in interstellar space. Exploding stars or other ripples/disturbances can cause clumps to form. These clumps can form cores, which gradually contract as gravity pulls on them. The core rotates and the gas at the center heats up. A protostar forms, surrounded by clear gas, and the center is hot enough for nuclear reactions to start. The protostar spins faster, starts to shrink, and then the surrounding gas flattens into a disc. The new star settles down into a period without much change. Turning hydrogen gas into helium gas will supply the star with energy. Blue stars shine the brightest, 1,000 times brighter than our sun. The more orange the star is, the cooler the temperature is. When a star runs out of hydrogen, it grows until it doubles in size and the color changes from yellow to orange. In the last stages it begins to shine brighter, gives off materials, and shrinks until it becomes a white dwarf star. Large stars die differently. They grow bigger and turn yellow, pulse as the structure becomes unstable, start to lose materials, and grow bigger. The core then collapses to less than 50km across. Lastly, much of the material explodes outward which causes a shockwave. This shockwave can create a supernova. **//The Sun//**

The sun is a star in the center of our solar system. It is the closest star to earth. It’s a ball of 76% hydrogen and the other percentage is mainly helium. The corona of the sun is millions of degrees and radiates off the sun. It can almost only be seen during eclipses. The surface of the sun is covered in hot gas. The gas shoots up (like flames) and can occasionally be 1000km tall. There are sun spots on the surface. The number of sun spots varies. Sun spots look dark because they are more than 1000 degrees cooler than their surroundings. Sun spots are caused by the sun’s magnetic field. The sun has a magnetic field similar to Earth’s. Solar flares can blast atomic particles (which can go as far as Earth & beyond) that the Earth’s magnetic field deflects. **The Hazards of Mars**

There are many hazardous occurrences that would threaten our health if we were to land on the surface of Mars. Some are quite obvious, such as that the astronauts could run out of food, water, and oxygen. If a lack of oxygen was to occur, said astronauts could end up inhaling carbon dioxide. This could cause these astronauts to pass out and die. Also, the temperatures on Mars vary from a high of 20⁰C or 70⁰F (at the equator, at noon, and in the summer) and a low of -153⁰C or -225⁰F (at the poles). Without proper, insulating attire, the temperature would be so cold that it would freeze the astronauts. Their corpse would become mummified as a result of lack of moisture. Ultraviolet radiation from the Sun would then blacken the body.

Some of the less-commonly thought of hazards are dust storms. The dust storms on Mars are strong and can last for months. The dust could get into filters, machinery, and electronics. The dust could cause solar-powered machines to stop working, meaning machines that use another type of renewable power would necessary, and cloud the vision of astronauts. Not to mention that the atmosphere on Mars is extremely thin and the magnetic field is almost nonexistent. This means that a special suit with airtight material, radiation shielding, and heating would be needed. There are even some hazards that may occur during the trip to Mars. Some examples of these hazards are that diseases would be almost untreatable (along with injuries), radiation from the sun would be harmful, and the lack of gravity will cause the bones to deteriorate and/or trigger muscle change.



**The History of Rocketry**

Today’s rockets are expansions from thousands of years of work, discoveries, experiments & innovations. The early years of rocketry began with the first rocket-like device to successfully employ the key elements of rocketry; the Aeolipile. The Aeolipile was created around 100 B.C. by a Greek Inventor by the name of Hero of Alexandria. It used steam as a propulsive gas. Hero mounted a sphere on top of a kettle, whilst a fire below the kettle turned the water into steam. Gas then traveled through the pipes to the sphere. Two L-shaped tubes on opposite sides of the sphere allowed gas to escape, causing the sphere to rotate. It is unclear as to when the first rockets began to appear, but stories of the first rockets appear throughout the historical records of various cultures. Such as the Chinese, who employed rocket-like devices in many ways. They experimented with gunpowder-filled tubes, used cross-fire arrows, and fire arrows.



There are many strong figures in modern rocketry. One of these people is Konstantin Tsiolkovsky, a Russian schoolteacher. Konstantin Tsiolkovsky brought the idea of space exploration by rocket to the public in 1898. In a report he wrote in 1903, Tsiolkovsky also suggested the use of liquid propellants in rockets. He was later named the father of modern astronautics for his research and great visions on the topic. Another important figure in rocketry was Robert H. Goddard. Goddard was an American who conducted practical experiments in rocketry in the early 20th century. Robert H. Goddard had an interest in achieving higher altitudes than those possible of lighter-than-air balloons. He began his earliest experiments with solid-propellant rockets in 1915. Whilst doing these experiments, Goddard concluded that rockets would be better propelled using liquid fuel. To use liquid propellants was a much more difficult task than to use solid propellants. Robert H. Goddard’s first successful liquid-propellant rocket flew 2.5 seconds, climbed 12.5 metres, and landed 56 metres away in a cabbage patch. Goddard’s gasoline rocket was the forerunner of an innovative new era in rocket flight.

**Rocket Launch and Mechanics**

This experiment began when we were handed kits to construct a rocket. The purpose of this experiment was to simulate the flight of a rocket and give us some idea of how a rocket flight would commence. It was performed outside on a field with the students standing in a circle around where the rocket would launch. Two red wires were clipped on to the tongs on the ignition. The two red wires were connected to a circuit board/remote control of sorts. You would then press two of the buttons on the remote down and the rocket would shoot up into the air.

The first stage of our rocket began when the two buttons were pressed down forcefully. Unfortunately for us, even after we counted down to takeoff, our rocket didn't move at all. It turned out that the ignition in our rocket needed replacing. Once that was completed, the rocket shot into the air. It peaked and then started to rapidly descend. It flew over the roof of the Cafeteria until we couldn't see it anymore. We were unable to locate our rocket. Although we didn’t get the opportunity to view the state of our rocket after the launch, a few of the other rockets ended up breaking a bit (a fin or two would fall off, the nose cone would crack, or the parachute would burn slightly).

My hypothesis was that the higher the mass, the lower the rocket’s max height would be because the weight would weigh it down. It turned out, though, that the mass didn't have a very strong impact on how high the rocket flew. The altitudes and weights varied and didn't show much of a pattern. It seemed as though the mass of the rocket really didn't have much of an effect on the altitude. This was shown when the mass was 46.2 and the altitude was 91.6, when the mass was 46.4 and the altitude was 76.7, and when the mass was 44.9 and the altitude was 100. As a result of painting the rockets, I thought the mass might increase. The mass did increase a bit, but not enough to be very significant.



**//Parts of the Rocket//**

//Nose Cone:// Guides airflow around the rocket. //Body Tube:// Main structural part. //Recovery System:// Device used for getting rocket back safely and intact. //Recovery Wadding:// Protects recovery system from hot ejection charge gases. //Launch Lug//: Guides rocket straight off launch pad.//Fins:// Keep rocket traveling straight//Motor Mount:// Holds rocket motor in place //Ro////cket Motor:// Safe, non-reusable device. New rocket motor is needed for each flight.


 * Rover Drop Simulation**

Our “rover” began as two paper cups placed so that the openings were pressed together. The openings were then secured shut by two rubber bands hooked on each side, giving the contraption the ability to easily be re-opened. The egg would be placed inside the two cups. A pad made out of paper towel and bubble wrap sat at the bottom of each cup so the egg would be cushioned. A small amount of bubble wrap was also taped on the outside of each cup. The egg and its surrounding cup-armor was then placed in a large plastic bag, which held two balloons. Unfortunately, one of our balloons popped before the launch. A mixture of paper towels, sheets of printer paper, and bubble wrap was substituted for the second balloon. The bag was then inflated with air. Our rover can be seen in Figure 9.



The results of the launch were mediocre; fortunately, the “rover” hit the ground [relatively] softly and the bag inflated like we wanted it to. Unfortunately, our rover ended up as scrambled eggs all over the tennis court. My hypothesis is that the egg broke because the padding didn’t operate as we thought it would, the throw was less than sufficient, and it hit the ground too hard. I think the outcome of the launch would differ if we were to have better padding inside the cup, more balloons inside the bag, and some kind of parachute to catch the “rover”.


 * The History of Robotics**

The creation of robots was supposedly assisted by the Industrial Revolution, which allowed for more common use of complex machines. Some of the first robots were used in factories as industrial robots. They were simple machines capable of manufacturing and producing without the need of human assistance. Although robots that make use of artificial intelligence have been employed since 1960, the concept of artificial servants/companions dates back to ancient mythology. Legends such as ones depicting dragon teeth being sown together to create soldiers (ancient legends of Cadmus), statues coming to life (Pygmalion and the statue of Galatea), and mechanical handmaidens (mythology of the Greek god Hephaestus/Roman god Vulcan). Legends such as clay golems (Jewish legend), animated clay giants (Norse legend), and human-like automatons (Chinese legend).

Remote-controlled systems and remotely operated vehicles came to play in the late 19th century in the form of several types of torpedoes. These torpedoes were used in the early 1870s; designed and created by John Ericsson, John Louis Lay, and Victor von Scheliha. The term “robot” was first introduced in the 1921 play R.U.R., written by the Czech playwright Karel Čapek. The first humanoid robots were put on display at the annual exhibition of the Model Engineer’s Society in London. W.H. Richard built a robot with a frame consisting of aluminum armor with elven electromagnets and one motor. It was powered by a twelve-volt power source, could move its hands and head, and was controlled through a remote control or voice control.



In April 2001, the Canadarm2 was launched into orbit and attached to the International Space Station. Also in April 2001, an unmanned aerial vehicle, Global Hawk, made the first autonomous non-stop flight over the Pacific ocean. The Roomba, a popular robot vacuum cleaner, was first released in 2002 by the company iRobot. In 2004, Cornell University revealed a robot that was capable of self-replication. On the 3rd and 24th of January, the Mars rovers Spirit and Opportunity landed of the surface of Mars. The two rovers, originally launched in 2003, would end up traveling many times the distance originally expected. Looking back upon the previous advances we have made in robotics, we might wonder “what is to be expected for the future of robotics?”


 * Programming Robots**

Robotics has evolved over the years and programs (such as Lego Mindstorms™) that enable students in a classroom to program their own robots. The vast majority of robots use electric motors. There are AC (alternate current) motors and DC (direct current) motors. Many power supplies produce a direct current while the electricity in wall outlets (such as the ones in your home) produces an alternate current. It has been argued that the acronym name of a popular rock band, AC/DC, stands for alternate current and direct current. The motors on robots can be programmed to able the robot to be mobile. For example, in Mindstorms™ (a Lego programming software), we would drag and drop different commands. To go forward, a command that resembles two gears would be dragged onto the platform. You can then customize different parts of the command (rotations, speed, direction, etc.) to alter the motion.



There are four different sensors we will attach to our robot. The first one is the sound sensor; a small, orange microphone that moves forward if the sound sensed is quiet. If the sound is loud, it will move backwards. The second sensor is the ultrasonic sensor. The ultrasonic sensor, also known as a transceiver or a transducer, uses high-frequency sound waves and echolocation to sense how far or near an object is. Animals such as bats and dolphins also use echolocation. The third sensor we will attach to our robot is the light sensor. Also known s photosensors or photodetectors, this sensor can sense light or other electromagnetic energy. The last sensor is the touch sensor. This is a sensor that, hence the name, needs to be touched to activate (much like a switch on a wall or a lamp). This is a tactile sensor.




 * Geology on Mars**

There are many mineral identification tests. These tests include cleavage, fracture, color, hardness, magnetism, acid, streak, fluorescence, and radioactivity. Cleavage is a test that determines the breakage of a mineral along planes of weakness in the crystal structure. Fracture, unlike cleavage, determines the breakage of a mineral not along the planes of weakness in the crystal structure. Color is a test of the visible light spectrum that is reflected from a mineral. Hardness is a test determining resistance to scratching or abrasion. To determine the hardness of a mineral, you can use the Mohs chart. Magnetism is the attraction to magnets and the acid test is for the reaction to hydrochloric acid and calcium carbonate (CaCO3). To perform the fluorescence test you would need a UV lamp. Lastly, to perform the radioactivity test you would need a Geiger counter.



 Curiosity, the Mars rover, was launched at 7:02 am PST, November 26, 2011. It is the size of a small SUV (10 feet long, 9 feet wide, 7 feet tall) and weighs about 2 tons. Curiosity landed at 10:32 p.m. PDT, August 5, 2012. MSL (Mars Science Laboratory) was designed to determine different things about Mars, one of these being the makeup of mars. The rover can drill into rocks, collect powder from these rocks, and uniquely determine the mineralogy of the rocks. It also is able to capture remarkable photos of Mar's surface

