European Space Agency

European Space Agency

http://www.esa.int/esaCP/index.html

 

European Space Agency for Kids

http://www.esa.int/esaKIDSen/

 

SPACE:  NOT JUST FOR AMERICANS AND RUSSIANS

The European Space Agency

WEBQUEST

By Rebecca K. Fraker

For:  4th-10th grade

For decades, the United States and the USSR competed in a race into space.  The two countries were responsible for many firsts:  first satellite in space, first pictures of the far side of the moon, first man on the moon.

But starting in the early 1970s, European countries pooled their resources and founded the European Space Agency. 

Find out what the ESA is and what it does in this webquest.

 

 

         European Space Agency

European Space Agency

http://www.esa.int/esaCP/index.html

 

European Space Agency for Kids

http://www.esa.int/esaKIDSen/

 

BACKGROUND:  When the space race between the US and the USSR cooled down, the European Space Agency (formed in 1975) became a forerunner in space exploration.  It became a partner with NASA in launching the first high-orbit telescope, and by 1990 had launched deep-space and star-mapping missions.  The original members were Belgium, Germany, Denmark, France, the United Kingdom, Italy, the Netherlands, Sweden, Switzerland, and Spain.

       ESA has become the world leader in commercial space launches.  It cooperates not only with the United States, but the Russian Federation.

     ESA has ambitious space plans.  First, it will maintain its scientific and research projects, such as new propulsion systems.  Secondly, it will continue to find new ways to monitor conditions on earth and seek to use that information to solve problems such as desertification and pollution.  Thirdly, it continues to plan to go to Mars and return samples of the planet by 2030.

Additional countries who have joined or are associated with ESA:

 Hungary  Romania Poland

  Turkey  Estonia  Ukraine

  Slovenia  Lithuania

 

     ESA member countries

 

     ECS states

 

     signed Cooperation Agreement

         European Space Agency

European Space Agency

http://www.esa.int/esaCP/index.html

 

European Space Agency for Kids

http://www.esa.int/esaKIDSen/

 

 

The Sentinels:  The Global Monitoring for Environment and Security (GMES) program uses satellite data to provide information to better manage the environment, climate change, and civil security.  Besides Earth observation satellites like Envisat and ERS which are already in space, ESA is developing, building and launching a new series of Earth monitoring satellites called Sentinels.

The five families of Sentinels will monitor the land, forests, oceans, ice, and atmosphere for environmental change.  Then corrective measures can be taken on Earth itself.

Task 1:  The Sentinels are covering the following areas:

     Climate change                                 Natural Disasters

     Protecting Nature                               Water World    

Choose one of these areas and explore a minimum of six of the resources available on ESA Kids. Then summarize your findings and present to the class the reasons why you think  gathering this information is valuable or useless, and why this line of research should be minimized or abandoned.

Task 2:  Benefits from the Space Program

After research, choose a benefit of the ESA program and write an illustrated summary of it.

 

        European Space Agency

European Space Agency

http://www.esa.int/esaCP/index.html

 

European Space Agency for Kids

http://www.esa.int/esaKIDSen/

 

 

PROCESS:

Step 1: Video Background. As a group, or separately, view the following clips.  These clips can be watched online, or can be downloaded to the computer or flash drive.  Each clip is less than 5 minutes.

EDRAS

http://www.esa.int/esa-mmg/mmg.pl?b=b&type=V&single=y&start=3&size=b

GMES - Sentinels

http://www.esa.int/esa-mmg/mmg.pl?b=b&keyword=Sentinel&single=y&start=5&size=b

Observing Our Planet For a Safer World

http://www.esa.int/esa-mmg/mmg.pl?b=b&topic=Atmosphere&subtopic=Climate%20change&single=y&start=5&size=b

Food and Satellites

http://www.esa.int/esa-mmg/mmg.pl?b=b&type=V&collection=Observing%20the%20Earth&single=y&start=1&size=b

                                          

 

       European Space Agency

European Space Agency

http://www.esa.int/esaCP/index.html

 

European Space Agency for Kids

http://www.esa.int/esaKIDSen/

 

Step 2: Do Your Research

Click on the European Space Agency for Kids link or use a search engine to find it.

 It will look like this.  Now, click the “Earth” button in the upper right hand corner of the screen.

This will give you another screen with a choice of four topics on the picture and on the vertical bar on the left.

Choose one of the topics to explore, and click on its bar.

Climate change

Natural disasters

Protecting Nature

Water World

Explore each panel under your topic.  There will be four to six screens.  They may be video clips, pictures, information, or animations.

Upper grades:  Now go to the European Space Agency site, and further explore your topic under  ESA Multimedia Gallery. 

        European Space Agency

European Space Agency

http://www.esa.int/esaCP/index.html

 

European Space Agency for Kids

http://www.esa.int/esaKIDSen/

 

CONCLUSION :  Prepare Your Report

Your summary of your research may be a two-page, double-spaced paper, a powerpoint of at least ten slides, or a three minute song.  Remember to answer the “W” questions:  who, what, why, where, when. 

Also answer the questions:

Do you think that gathering the information on your topic from space is valuable or useless?

Should this line of research be minimized or abandoned?

Your summary must also include your opinion on whether you think that gathering this information is valuable or useless, and why this line of research should be minimized or abandoned.

Task 2:  Illustrate and Report on a Benefit of ESA’s Space Program

PROCESS: Enter the European Space Agency for Kids portal once more.  This time click on the “Useful Space” button. (It has a pair of shoes on it.)  Explore until you find a benefit that appeals to you.

CONCLUSION: Write a short (no more than two paragraph) summary of the benefit chosen and illustrate it somehow.  You may make something 3-D out of clay, a drawing, or use any media you are comfortable with.  You MAY NOT simply print a picture. 



 

     RUBRIC

 

Research Report : European Space Agency: Worth Keeping?

Teacher Name: Mrs. Fraker      Student Name:     ____________________

 

CATEGORY

4

3

2

1

Internet Use

Successfully uses suggested internet links to find information and navigates within these sites easily without assistance.

Usually able to use suggested internet links to find information and navigates within these sites easily without assistance.

Occasionally able to use suggested internet links to find information and navigates within these sites easily without assistance.

Needs assistance or supervision to use suggested internet links and/or to navigate within these sites.

Quality of Information

Information clearly relates to the main topic. It includes several supporting details and/or examples.

Information clearly relates to the main topic. It provides 1-2 supporting details and/or examples.

Information clearly relates to the main topic. No details and/or examples are given.

Information has little or nothing to do with the main topic.

Mechanics

No grammatical, spelling or punctuation errors.

Almost no grammatical, spelling or punctuation errors

A few grammatical spelling, or punctuation errors.

Many grammatical, spelling, or punctuation errors.