New Horizons: Bridge to the Beginning - to Pluto and Beyond
Abstract
Launched on Jan. 19, 2006, NASA’s New Horizons mission to Pluto and the Kuiper Belt will help us understand worlds at the edge of our solar system by making the first reconnaissance of Pluto and Charon - a "double planet" and the last planet in our solar system to be visited by spacecraft. However, New Horizons’ closest approach to Pluto will not occur until July 14, 2015, and the majority of the craft's time over the next 5 years will be spent in "hibernation." The Education and Public Outreach (EPO) team, however, will not be hibernating as we wait for New Horizons to reach its destination. With three distinct tools-- Educator Fellows, online learning modules and a planetarium program--the team seeks to excite and engage teachers, students and the public with information about the journey to Pluto and beyond. In the past year, the specially selected educators who participate as New Horizons Educator Fellows have trained more than 1,000 teachers across the U.S. on the New Horizons mission and the science behind it. Thousands more students, parents, educators, and citizens have learned about New Horizons from the mission's scientists, engineers and outreach professionals. New Horizons Fellows also distribute another EPO tool: online learning modules. These classroom-ready learning modules consist of educator guides, student handouts, detailed activities, and potential adaptations for students with special needs or disabilities. Some also offer online interactives to convey complex and dynamic concepts. The modules are web-accessible for both students and teachers, and are aligned with relevant national standards. The third tool is a highly visual way to engage the general public and supplement educational programs: a planetarium program that highlights the New Horizons mission from launch to destination Pluto. This program focuses on the engineering design of the spacecraft, with a focus on the concept of the electromagnetic spectrum. In the unique environment of the planetarium, users identify and view celestial objects at multiple wavelengths of light and discover how the instruments collect such data, which will help answer questions about Pluto, its moons, and the Kuiper Belt. The program is designed for educators and students at the middle school level and above.
- Publication:
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AGU Fall Meeting Abstracts
- Pub Date:
- December 2010
- Bibcode:
- 2010AGUFMED23A0703W
- Keywords:
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- 0805 EDUCATION / Elementary and secondary education;
- 0815 EDUCATION / Informal education;
- 0830 EDUCATION / Teacher training;
- 6270 PLANETARY SCIENCES: SOLAR SYSTEM OBJECTS / Pluto and satellites