Students compare real-time Earth and Mars measurements for temperature, wind speed, humidity and atmospheric pressure by accessing Internet-data resources from NASA.

Atmosphere Applet: This program lets you study how the properties of the atmosphere change with altitude. You can study the atmosphere of either the Earth or Mars. The equations used in this program are taken from the ICAO standard day model for the Earth and from some curve fits of the Martian atmosphere gathered by the Global Surveyor spacecraft. Using the airplane graphic you can select an altitude, or you can type an altitude into the input box.

The program instantly outputs a selected property and displays the local temperature and pressure on gauges You can output the temperature, pressure, density, local speed of sound, Mach number for specified velocity, or the ratio of aircraft lift to the lift on Earth at sea level. Input and output can be given in either English or metric units.

Students will learn about digital images and how satellites orbiting Earth send information and pictures to Earth over the Internet.

EngineSim was developed at the NASA Glenn Research Center in an effort to foster hands-on, inquiry-based learning in science and math. EngineSim is a simulator that models the design and testing of jet engines. The program works in two modes: Design Mode or Tunnel Test Mode. In the Design Mode, you can change design variables including the flight conditions, the engine size, the inlet performance, the turbo machinery compressor and turbine performance, the combustors or burner performance, or the nozzle performance. For a turbofan engine design you can also vary the fan performance and the bypass ratio. When you have a design that you like, you can switch to the Tunnel Test Mode, where you can vary only the flight conditions (airspeed, altitude, and throttle setting).

RangeGames uses jet engines to present a variety of math and physics problems. RangeGames includes a "Play Mode," in which nothing is recorded; a "Learn Mode," in which you will get several tries at determining the correct answer; and an "Exam Mode," where you get one chance and your answer is recorded for your teacher.

Rate and force problems of different levels of difficulty are included. These are targeted for the high school student. The rate problems deal with how far and how long an airplane can fly on a given amount of fuel. The force problems deal with Newton's laws of motion on takeoff. Graphical feedback is given for each answer choice.

These activities are designed to create a sense of disequilibrium in the visual perception of students to make them aware of different ways to to view a picture. The students will view the images, decide what they see in each, record their ideas, and write a story based upon these findings.

This activity is designed to help students gain a deeper understanding of cosmology. Students develop authentic models and gather evidence supporting the Big Bang theory. This lesson uses observation, interactive media, and scientific models.

FoilSim II computes the theoretical lift of a variety of airfoil shapes. The user can control the shape, size, and inclination of the airfoil and the atmospheric conditions in which the airfoil is flying. The program includes a stall model for the airfoil, a model of the Martian atmosphere, and the ability to specify a variety of fluids for lift comparisons. The program has graphical and numerical output, including an interactive probe which you can use to investigate the details of flow around an airfoil.
Using the CurveBall applet, students learn more about aerodynamics by controlling conditions of a big league baseball pitch, including altitude(location), speed of pitch, and spin of pitch. The latest version has the ability to specify atmospheric conditions for the baseball game.

In this inquiry activity, students view NASA images of galaxies and develop a galaxy classification scheme. Students then compare and contrast their classification scheme with that developed by Edwin Hubble.

This is a series of computer animations which demonstrate all the possible combinations of the ideal gas law or equation of state. Gases have various properties which we can observe with our senses, including the gas pressure, temperature, mass, and the volume which contains the gas. Careful, scientific observation has determined that these variables are related to one another and the values of these properties determine the state of the gas. In a scientific manner, we can fix any two of the four primary properties and study the nature of the relationship between the other two by varying one and observing the variation of the other. The variations are demonstrated using computer graphics in the animated gas lab.

Students in the middle level solar system activity will study the effects of gravity on the planets of the Solar System. They will view movies from the lunar Apollo missions, calculate their own weight on other planets, and propose what they might weigh on newly discovered planets around other stars.

KiteModeler was developed in an effort to foster hands-on, inquiry-based learning in science and math. KiteModeler is a simulator that models the design, trimming, and flight of a kite. The program works in three modes: Design Mode, Trim Mode, or Flight Mode. In the Design Mode (shown below), you pick from five basic types of kite designs. You can then change design variables including the length and width of various sections of the kite. You can also select different materials for each component. When you have a design that you like, you switch to the Trim Mode where you set the length of the bridle string and tail and the location of the knot attaching the bridle to the control line. Based on your inputs, the program computes the center of gravity and pressure, the magnitude of the aerodynamic forces and the weight, and determines the stability of your kite. With a stable kite design, you are ready for Flight Mode. In Flight Mode you set the wind speed and the length of control line. The program then computes the sag of the line caused by the weight of the string and the height and distance that your kite would fly. Using all three modes, you can investigate how a kite flies, and the factors that affect its performance.

Students in grades 9-12 analyze characteristics that indicate human life cycles, and then apply these observational principles to various NASA pictures of stars to synthesize patterns of stellar life cycles.

Students divide into five research teams to make recommendations for building a new observatory for NASA. Students will evaluate scientific and cultural data for five potential sites in Antarctica, Japan, Chile, and the United States and make presentations to a formal review panel.

RocketModeler was developed at the NASA Glenn Research Center in an effort to foster hands-on, inquiry-based learning in science and math. RocketModeler is a simulator that models the design and flight of a model rocket. The program works in two modes: Design Mode or Flight Mode. In the Design Mode, you can change design variables including the size of the rocket body, the fins, and the nose cone. You can also select different materials for each component. You can select from a variety of standard solid rocket engines. The program computes the center of gravity and pressure for your rocket and determines the stability. When you have a design that you like, you can switch to the Flight Mode (shown below), where you can launch your rocket and observe its flight trajectory. You can pause at any time to record data and then continue the flight through parachute deploy and recovery. This program has recently (Oct 8, 2004) been upgraded to support stomp rockets, bottle rockets, and ballistic shells in addition to solid model rockets. It also supports both English and metric units.

Students will download NASA Hubble Space Telescope views of star-forming regions in nebulae and look for evidence of planetary systems forming beyond our own solar system.