The projects listed and described below have been developed as integrated math and science units within the context of a course of study in Comparative Planetology. These were designed and produced as part of an online graduate level course, by the same name, taught through the Burns Telecommunications Center's National Teachers Enhancement Network (NTEN), based at Montana State University, Bozeman, Montana. Because this is an ongoing curricular projects page for my astronomy students, it will be updated periodically, as new projects are developed. I hope these units prove useful as online astronomy resources for whomever wishes to use them.

Project Europa
This unit project is a ~ 10-hour study of cryovolcanism and ice-flow tectonics on the Jovian moon, Europa. Its surface is considered to be the smoothest, yet most chaotic, of all the terrestrial moons in our solar system. Underneath its global, icy crust lies a layer of icy slush, or possibly liquid water. The internal heat generated by tidal-flexing of Europa, by Jupiter and the other Galilean moons - Io, Ganymede, and Callisto, helps to maintain this liquid/slushy ice ocean, which by volume is larger than Earth's oceans. Students will learn about cryovolcanism and compare/contrast Europa's surface features and tectonic processes to those of Earth-based volcanism and plate tectonics. Comparisons will also be made to surface features on Ganymede, the largest moon in the solar system.

Alien Message Board
This team project involves decoding and analyzing a fragmented message sent in graphic format from another solar system in our galactic neighborhood. Students will use pattern recognition and puzzle-solving techniques to decipher the contents of the message and locate its origin.

return to AU Astronomy page.