Managing waste has become a critical issue in Australia and around the world. Now we are facing another waste crisis, that of what to do with the rubbish in left in space and on the moon.

Space debris is also known as orbital debris, space junk, space waste, space trash, space litter or space garbage. More than 500,000 pieces of debris, or “space junk,” are tracked as they orbit the Earth. They all travel at speeds up to 17,500 mph, fast enough for a relatively small piece of orbital debris to damage a satellite or a spacecraft.

The rising amount of space debris increases the potential danger to space vehicles, but especially to the International Space Station, space shuttles and other spacecraft with humans aboard. NASA takes the threat of collisions with space debris seriously and has a long-standing set of guidelines on how to deal with each potential collision threat.

Note:

• Maximum number of students for this program is 50 per day

How do we resolve the issue of space junk?

Ideally, it would be great if students have a concept of what space junk, as students will be working in small groups on the day to design a scientific poster outlining a proposed solution to the issue of space junk.

In this program students will:

• Explore the concept of space junk as a waste issue
• Learn about the range of possible cleanup solutions to address the issue of space junk
• Learn how to use a scientific method approach to test the functionality of a spacesuit glove

Students will:

• Use the design thinking approach to design and make a spacesuit glove that can be used by astronauts on the international space station
• Participate in a group scenario moon mission activity
• Engage in a Virtual Reality (VR) space shuttle experience
• Research the issue of space junk and design a clean-up solution

Science – Science as a Human Endeavour

• Scientific knowledge changes over time, often resulting from collaboration or by building on the work of others, and leads to advances in science (VC2S6H01)
• Scientific knowledge, skills and data can be used by individuals and communities to identify problems, consider responses and make decisions (VC2S6H02)

Science – Science Inquiry

• Data and information can be organised and processed to show patterns, trends and relationships by constructing representations including tables, graphs and visual or physical models (VC2S6I04)
• Scientific ideas, findings, patterns, trends and relationships can be communicated for a specific purpose and audience, using various presentation formats, scientific vocabulary and digital tools as appropriate (VC2S6I06)