Daily Planet in the Classroom

Gr 9 Up—Presented in magazine format with nine "stories," this program covers the technologies being developed to support space exploration for a return to the moon and then on to Mars and beyond. Topics include the exploration of Earth's deepest sinkhole, with technology that could be adapted to explore the ocean under Europa's (one of Jupiter's moons) thick ice covering; a contest to build a space elevator; abort vehicle testing; Martian rovers and robots; space junk and the damage it can cause to astronauts and to space vehicles and equipment; and keeping humans safe during long treks on the moon or Mars. At least three of the stories are from as early as 2007 and describe launches that were to take place in 2008, but have not occurred as of 2012. Video and audio quality is quite variable, and some of the stories look dated. However, many of the segments would be useful in science or technology classes discussing creative ways to solve problems or the use of the scientific method to test hypotheses.—Ann Brownson, Eastern Illinois University, Charleston