Audience
Educators
Grade Levels
Grades K-4, Grades 5-8, Grades 9-12
Subject
Physical Science, Chemistry, Forces and Motion, Matter and Its Properties
Type
Lesson Plans / Activities, Videos
Ever wonder what happens when chemistry meets microgravity? Astronauts conduct a variety of chemistry-related experiments aboard the International Space Station. In the Chemistry in Space STEMonstration, NASA astronaut Tracy Dyson and “Hip-Hop MD” Maynard Okereke describe chemical reactions happening on Earth as well as on the Space Station. NASA astronaut Matt Dominick demonstrates a chemical reaction using an effervescent tablet to clean his retainer while living aboard the Space Station. In the corresponding Classroom Connection, students will learn more about chemical reactions and use an effervescent tablet to create a chemical reaction to launch a model rocket.
STEMonstrations are short, 3-5-minute educational videos filmed by the crew aboard the International Space Station. The crew uses the unique microgravity environment on-station to demonstrate popular K-12 STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) topics.
Classroom Connection: Chemistry in Space
Grade Levels: 3-12
Time Required: 40-45 minutes
Next Generation Science Standards:
5-PS1-4: Conduct an investigation to determine whether the mixing of two or more substances results in new substances.
MS-PS1-2: Analyze and interpret data surrounding the properties of substances before and after the substances interact to determine if a chemical reaction has occurred.
HS-PS2-1: Analyze data to support the claim that Newton’s Second Law of Motion describes the mathematical relationship among the net force on a macroscopic object, its mass, and its acceleration.