Punith

ELECTRONICS & WHY THEY ARE A NECESSITY FOR A SPACE MISSION TO MARS
Though electronic devices may seem like a general topic, there are many important pieces that need to be put together in order for the device to function. For example, an electronic device needs either an analog signal or a digital signal. Analog signals are signals that vary smoothly in time. An example of this is the analog clock. An analog clock contains three hands that move smoothly in time. Meanwhile, digital signals are signals that do not vary smoothly, but changes in steps or jumps. An example of this is the digital clock which instead of moving smoothly, jumps from minute to minute. Semi-conductors are components that are also very useful in an electronic device. Semi-conductors are elements that are better conductors of heat and electricity than non-metals but are poorer conductors of heat and electricity than metals. A useful characteristic for semi-conductors that metals and non-metals lack is that their electrical conductivity can be altered by adding impurities such as gallium and arsenic. By adding impurities, you can change whether or not the device conducts more or less electricity. Along with signals and semi-conductors, diodes, transistors, and integrated circuits are vital components to a device. Diodes are used in a circuit to allow electric current to only flow one way. This helps convert alternating current (current that changes direction) into direct current (current that stays in one direction). Transistors are useful to a circuit because it can amplify signals and be used as a switch. This is because, transistors can either be used to allow current to pass through or block current altogether. Finally, integrated circuits are used to still contain millions of components, but in a small space. Many integrated circuits are used in computers because of this significant difference in size. Overall, there are many key components that make up even a single circuit for an electric device.

Electronic devices are important in a space mission to search for life on Mars. These are vital because without electronics, space missions would have to rely on humans. Therefore, the mission itself would be practically impossible and would take an extremely long time. In addition, if there is an increase in time and pressure on humans, there is more of a possibility of error. Significant electronic necessities include radio transmission signals from Earth to Mars, navigational systems on and off Mars, and computers in the space rovers. Furthermore, without electric devices on Mars, there would be no way of communicating, so the trip would be totally useless. To conclude, without electronic devices, a trip to Mars would be hopeless.

Because of their various advantages, a space mission to Mars intended to search for life would be hazardous and unreasonable WITHOUT ELECTRONICS. 

//Ms. Mc: Great overview of electronics and ideas of how we would use electronic devices on our mission! 10/10 //

THE HISTORY OF ROCKETS
The Hero Engine was one of the first inventions to represent the basics of a rocket. This creation, designed by Hero of Alexandria in 100 B.C. contained a sphere fixed above a water kettle. Attached to the sphere were two L-shaped pipes. The fire, located below the kettle, transformed the water into steam, which traveled through pipes to the sphere. Then, the steam would be let out by the L-shaped tubes. This also gave a thrust to the sphere which allowed it to rotate.

The Chinese employed rocketry in numerous ways in their early years. One of the first ways was actually an accident! At religious festivals, with saltpeter, sulfur, and charcoal dust, the Chinese made simple gunpowder. Then, they filled this mixture into bamboo tubes. By mistake, some did not explode and instead burst out of the fire, propelled by the gases from the gunpowder. Another form of rocketry from China is the attachment of bamboo tubes (with gunpowder) to arrows. At first, the Chinese shot the arrows from bows. Then, they found out that it did not need the extra thrust. This is believed to be the true beginning of rockets. This rocket’s first use was for war. Though it did not do as much physical destruction, it could destroy soldiers physiologically. After the war between the Mongols and the Chinese, the Mongols made their own rockets and were the main reason for the spread of rocketry throughout Europe. Roger Bacon (England) increased the range of rockets, while Jean Froissart (France) found a way to increase accuracy.

A Russian schoolteacher named Konstantin Tsiolkovsky was a great contribution to rocket history. He created an idea to use rocketry for space exploration. Along with Roger Bacon, Tsiolkovsky developed an idea to increase greater range of rockets. His idea was to use liquid propellants to thrust the rocket up wards and that the speed and range of a rocket vary only by the exhaust velocity of escaping gases. For his many contributive ideas, he was nicknamed the “Father of Modern Astronautics.”

On March 16, 1926, American Robert H. Goddard took a giant step towards a space exploration. He created many practical experiments and with many studies, he believed that rockets would be propelled better with liquid fuel. In mid-March, he accomplished the first liquid-propellant rocket in history. Though it would be unimpressive compared to today’s rocket flights, it was the beginning of a whole new rocketry era. Goddard didn't stop there. He created bigger and better rockets and new systems for flight control and instrument recoveries. For this, he was nicknamed the “Father of Modern Rocketry.”

The V-2 rocket was developed by Germany. Its main purpose was for warfare when battling Russia in World War II. By burning the mixture of liquid oxygen and alcohol, it achieved great thrust. As a weapon, the V-2 could destroy whole city blocks! Fortunately for the Allied forces, the V-2 came in too late and with Germany gone, the Allies took advantage of the V-2 rockets.

NASA stands for National Aeronautics and Space Administration. The purpose for NASA is to peacefully explore space for the benefit of humankind. NASA was created after Russia sent the first items into space (a satellite named Sputnik I) and the U.S. army then sent up their first entry into space. The satellite was called Explorer I.

//*COLORS IN BLUE OR RED SIGNIFY ROCKETRY IN AMERICA// //Ms. Mc: Excellent summary of rocketry and creative use of color! Your drawings also were well done. Don't forget to refer to them in your text (i.e., "as seen in Figure 1 . . . ). What has happened with rocketry since Explorer I? Good work. 14.5/15//

**SCRATCH ROCKET SIMULATION**
media type="custom" key="8957938"

INSTRUCTIONS:

//1. Click on the red stop sign to stop the simulation.// //2. Turn your sound up on the computer.// //2. Click on the green flag in the top right corner to start the simulation.// //3. If you want to stop the simulation again, click on the red stop sign in the top right corner (NOTE: If you click on this button, you will need to restart the entire simulation when you click the green flag. There is no pause or play button. Sorry for the inconvenience).// //4. Enjoy!//

ROCKET PARTS
 <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">﻿ <span style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 110%;">﻿ Figure 1: Labeled Parts on Rocket

The nose cone, because of its shape, makes the rocket aerodynamic. It is at the top of the rocket, so it guides the airflow around the rocket. The body tube is main part of the rocket and is detached from the nose cone at ejection. The recovery system is the device that pulls out of the rocket at ejection. It contains a parachute so that the rocket can descend safely. The recovery wadding is placed between the motor and recovery system because it is used to protect the parachute from the hot ignition charge gases of the rocket. It is very important because if it was not there, the ignition gas would burn the parachute and the rocket would not descend slowly. The launch lug is a small tube guides the rocket straight off the launch pad. The thin and tall pole is slid through the launch lug. The fins of the rocket keep the rocket flying straight so the rocket doesn't spiral crazily through the year. The motor mount is the object that holds the motor in place so it doesn't fall out or move around. The rocket motor creates the initial burst of the rocket, causing it to fly up rapidly. It obtains thrust in accordance to Newton's 3rd Law (for every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction) and allows the rocket to overcome the force of gravity. Overall, each part of the rocket is vital to the rocket's successful flight.

//Ms. Mc: Excellent labels and explanation! 20/20//

<span style="color: #ff00ff; font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">ROCKET LAUNCH ANALYSIS
<span style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">﻿ <span style="color: #000000; font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">**<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">INTRODUCTION **

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 0in;">The purpose of the experiment was to determine if the mass of the rocket affects the height of the flight of the rocket. From the beginning of the flight to the end, there were many forces that acted on the rocket. At ignition, the force of gravity acted on the rocket by pulling it down while the force of the launch pad pulled the rocket up. The rocket remained still because the amount of force acted on it is the same both directions. At lift-off, the force of thrust was greater than the force of gravity and air resistance combined. This was why the rocket flies up instead of remaining on the ground. The forces acted on the rocket in powered flight were similar to when it was at lift-off. The force of thrust overcame the force of gravity and air resistance to travel upwards. When the rocket was coasting, the force of gravity and air resistance pulled the rocket downwards. There is no force acting the other way, but inertia caused the rocket to remain flying. Inertia is Newton’s First Law of Motion, stating that an object in motion wants to remain in motion. When the rocket was landing, the force of gravity and air resistance pulled the rocket down. These were the forces that acted on the rocket during flight. It was hypothesized that the lower the mass of the rocket, the higher it will fly because of Newton’s Second Law. This law states that the force is equal to the mass multiplied by the acceleration. If the acceleration remains the same and the mass is lesser, the force of gravity therefore lessens. Therefore, there was less force pulling the rocket downwards, and the rocket would travel higher.

**<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">RESULTS SUMMARY **

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 0in;">The rocket’s mass did not affect the apogee of the rocket. As seen in Graph 1 below, the rocket mass of the rockets ranged from 42.8 grams and 48.7 grams. This was a 5.9 gram difference, which wasn’t a big difference. Furthermore, as seen in Graph 1, the apogee of the rockets ranged from 71 meters to 135 meters, which was a large difference. There was no relationship between the apogee and mass of the rocket. This was because the information was scattered on the graph and the mass did not necessarily affect the apogee of the rocket. For example, even though one rocket had a mass of 42.9 grams, one of the lowest masses, it traveled the lowest of the rockets.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 0in;">It was confirmed that the hypothesis was incorrect. The hypothesis stated that the lower the mass of the rocket, the higher the rocket would travel. In other words, the hypothesis stated that the graph would show an inverse relationship. The experiment confirmed that the rocket mass did not affect the apogee at all. The graph showed that there was no relationship between the mass and the apogee of the rocket. As seen in Graph 1, the heaviest rocket did not travel the lowest, but a light rocket did travel the lowest. Error could have entered the experiment in many ways. One example is the angle gun measurements. Since various people measured the apogee, the measurements could have easily been incorrect. A way to correct this would be to have one person measure all apogees. Another example is the wind. On one day, there were gusty winds, but on another, there were calm winds. A way to correct this would be to fly all rockets on the same day. The last example is the small sample size. There were only seven rockets that flew in the class, and this is not an accurate measurement. It is necessary to have at least twenty rockets fly to confirm the experiment.

<span style="color: #008080; font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">From Tiny Quarks To Gigantic Galaxies
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 0in;">Quarks are sub-atomic particles that make a proton and neutron of an atom. There are six different types of quarks. They are up, down, charm, strange, top, and bottom. But, the up and down quarks are the most common found in the Universe because of their low mass and stable structure. Refer to Table 1 for more information on the types of quarks. Quarks can be characterized by their electric charge, color charge, spin, and mass. As seen in Figure 1, in a proton, there are two up quarks and one down quark. The up quark is equal to +2/3 and the down quark is equal two -1/3. This means that the quarks ad up to be positive, +2/3 + 2/3 – 1/3 = +1. Furthermore, a neutron has two down quarks and one up quark. So, the quarks add up to be neutral, -1/3 + -1/3 + 2/3 = 0. Quarks are also the only standard model of particle physics to experience all four fundamental forces (gravity, electromagnetism, strong and weak nuclear force).

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif;"> <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 12pt;">﻿ <span style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">**<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">Figure 1: Two Up Quarks & One Down Quarks Make Up a Proton **

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 0px; margin-bottom: 0in; overflow-x: hidden; overflow-y: hidden;"> **<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">Table 1: The Type, Symbol, Flavor, Charge & Mass of Each Quark **

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 0in;">A galaxy is a system that contains millions of stars, together with gas and dust, and held together by the gravitational pull. As seen in Figure 2, the solar system is located in the Milky Way Galaxy. As seen in Figure 3, a galaxy is classified by its shape: elliptical, spiral or irregular. If galaxies collide with each other, they merge. Though this occurred often billions of years ago, this does not happen often now because galaxies are more far apart. Also, mergers of galaxies cause spiral arms. Galaxies are hypothesized to form after the Big Bang. Dark matter and matter combined into globs and gravity pulled it together to create a galaxy.

**<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">Figure 2: The Milky Way Galaxy **

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 0in;"> **<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">Figure 3: Different Types of Galaxies: Elliptical, Spiral & Irregular **

Ms. Mc: Excellent answers and figures/table! 10/10

<span style="color: #0000ff; font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">On the Edge Program Explanation
<span style="color: green; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 21px;">"On the Edge" is a robot challenge that was completed in class. The goal of the challenge was for the robot to stop at the edge of the table without falling. The robot was supposed to stop until it heard "go" and then move forwards for an unlimited amount of time until the light sensor detected the blue tape and stop. Then, it would say "watch out," and the program would end. This related to a rover on Mars because the rover could detect a crater or hole ahead of it. This program could prevent the rover from falling in the crater.



Block 1 - Wait for sound block that tells the robot to wait until a sound greater than 50 is sensed or heard by activating the sound sensor which is connected to port 1. The robot waited until somebody said "go."

Block 2 - Movement block that tells the robot to move forward at 75% power for an unlimited amount of time by activating the B and C servomotors. The robot moves forward infinitely more powerful than usual but not as powerful as it can be.

Block 3 - Wait for light block that tells the robot to wait until a surface darker than 27 is detected by activating the light sensor which is connected to port 3. The robot moves forward until it detects the blue tape.

Block 4 - Movement block that tells the robot to suddenly stop after the previous step or block by stopping the B and C motors. The robot stops.

Block 5 - Sound block that tells the robot to play a sound from the file, called "Watch Out," at 75 volume and wait for the completion of the sound. The robot says "Watch Out."