• Site Map
• NCW Home
• ACS Home

National Chemistry Week: Resources

October 19-25, 2003

Earth's Atmosphere and Beyond!

Extraterrestrial Atmospheres -- Mars: Electronic Resources

This is a collection of electronic resources (websites, software, etc.) covering the Atmosphere of Mars. A separate collection of Print Resources is also available.

Key: E = Elementary (K-5), I = Intermediate (6-8), HS = High School (9-12), C = College, G = General Public

BrainPOP from BrainPOP, Inc. (E, I, HS)

BrainPOP is the leading producer of educational animated movies for K-12. Science movies include the atmosphere, weather, Mars plus many other topics. Webby Award Official Nominee 2003.
URL: http://www.brainpop.com/

ExploreMarsNow from NexTerra. (HS, C)

An interactive Mars habitat. The goal of the creators is to inspire learning about the space sciences and technology. In the Mars Facts, choose Weather for brief information. Go to Links, and then Weather to see more sites on the climate of Mars. Received the Scientific American Sci/Tech Web Award for 2003.
URL: http://www.exploremarsnow.org/

Interactive Atmosphere Simulator. from U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration. (E, I, HS)

This interactive simulation on the web lets you study how the properties of the atmosphere change with altitude. It uses mathematical models of the standard atmosphere of the Earth and Mars. From The Guided Tours of the BGA (Beginners Guide to Aeronautics) (http://www.lerc.nasa.gov/WWW/K-12/airplane/guided.html).
URL: http://www.lerc.nasa.gov/WWW/K-12/airplane/atmosi.html

Magic School Bus Lands on Mars (Software for Win95/Mac8.1) NY: Scholastic Inc, 2000. ISBN 0-7356-0162-3. (E)

The Magic School Bus Lands on Mars is easy to install and great fun for upper elementary students. Animation is augmented with photos and motion clips of Mars and its moons. A food unit lets the student compare the effect of Mars' atmosphere on food items with that of Earth. Students will enjoy exploding a watermelon and seeing what happens to a marshmallow, egg, or bottle of water at sea level, underwater, and on top of a high mountain. This software is educational and entertaining, with plenty of material to keep students ages 6-10 interested and challenged. Each activitym can be changed from easy to hard to accommodate students at various levels.
Source: NSTA recommends (http://www.nsta.org/recommends/product.asp?id=12048)

Mars Team Online: Questions and Answers About the Atmosphere on Mars from NASA Quest. (I, HS)

Brought to you by NASA Quest, allowing the public to share the excitement of NASA's authentic scientific and engineering pursuits.
URL: http://quest.arc.nasa.gov/mars/ask/atmosphere/

MarsToday.com: The Whole Mars Catalog from SpaceRef Interactive, Inc. (I, HS, C, G)

This is a directory to lots of sites about Mars. Check out the climate section to learn more about weather on Mars.
URL: http://www.marstoday.com/

NASA Explores from U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration. (E, I, HS)

This site contains resources for K-12 students and teachers. All lessons were developed to support national education standards. See Next Stop: Mars (http://www.nasaexplores.com/show2_articlea.php?id=03-025), a special article written for April 10, 2003. It has lessons and activities for grades K-4, 5-8, and 9-12.
URL: http://www.nasaexplores.com/

NASA's Mars Exploration Program from U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration. (E, I, HS, C, G)

This is an excellent site that contains information about the science, technology, and missions to Mars. There are specific sections for Kids, Students, and Educators. The Kids section has games, activities, and info to learn more about Mars. Mars for Students contains images of Mars as well as information about Mars in popular culture. Mars for Educators has classroom activities and resources plus Mars education programs.
URL: http://mars.jpl.nasa.gov/

Space Environment Center: The Official Source of Space Weather Alerts, Warnings and Forecasts from U. S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. (I, HS, C, G)

This website is the official government source of space weather alerts, warnings and forecasts.
URL: http://www.sec.noaa.gov/index.html

Space Explorers from Space Explorers. (E, I, HS)

Provides innovative K-12 Standards-based education programs, delivered via the Internet, that motivate children to learn using methods of discovery, inquiry and analysis.
URL: http://www.space-explorers.com/

The Space Science Education Resource Directory from U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration. (E, I, HS)

The Directory is a convenient way to find NASA space science products for use in classrooms, science museums, planetariums, and other settings. Search by grade level or topic.
URL: http://teachspacescience.stsci.edu/cgi-bin/ssrtop.plex

Weather, Climate & Life on Mars: Frequently Asked Questions . . . Answered from U. S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. (I, HS)

Answers eleven frequently asked questions about Mars. Also provides links to more in-depth information.
URL: http://humbabe.arc.nasa.gov/mgcm/faq/faq.html

Welcome to the Planets from Jet Propulsion Laboratory of the California Institute of Technology. (E, I, HS, C)

This web site consists of 190 selected images acquired over approximately 20 years of NASA planetary exploration. Each image is accompanied by information about Solar System bodies and various spacecraft that explored them. While younger viewers may not understand many of the terms, the images make this site worth the visit.
URL: http://pds.jpl.nasa.gov/planets/welcome.htm

Windows to the Universe from University Corporation for Atmospheric Research. (E, I, HS)

This Earth and space science website contains thousands of pages of science content that students can browse. Site also contains Kids' Space and Teacher Resource section with activities posted that can be done in the classroom.
URL: http://www.windows.ucar.edu/tour/link=/windows3.html

More resources

Copyright © 2003 American Chemical Society