Goals

By the end of this workshop, participants will:

• Create a syllabus for an undergraduate course in planetary geology
• Access and use resources for teaching planetary geology
• Develop strategies for keeping course content updated and relevant
• Become part of a network of educators interested in developing and sharing resources for teaching planetary science

Program

All times provided below are EDT:

3:00 Welcome and introductions (Name, home institution, and major "take away" you'd like from this session)

3:10 Syllabus construction (Where would course fit into your curriculum? Course objectives? Example syllabi)

4:10 Break

4:20 An overview of available resources and teaching activities (including how to access them and examples/ideas for using them)

5:20 Wrap-up and workshop evaluation

5:30 Adjourn

Sample Syllabi

Here are some example syllabi from planetary courses we have taught; a quick internet search will provide other examples. There are two end members of how courses are approached: 1) a target-based perspective (e.g., Mars, Moon, etc...) that weaves in geologic processes and 2) a process-based approach that weaves in information about rocky bodies throughout the semester. The syllabi here emphasize a target-based approach.

JL_Planetary_Geoscience_Syllabus_Spring_2021.pdf (Acrobat (PDF) 52kB Jul7 21)

JL_Planetary_Geoscience_Schedule_Spring_2021 .pdf (Acrobat (PDF) 20kB Jul7 21)

Semester long course: terrestrial_planets_syllabus_spring_2014b.pdf (Acrobat (PDF) 92kB Jul9 21)

Four week course: terrestrial_planets_syllabus_jterm_2014b.pdf (Acrobat (PDF) 63kB Jul9 21)

Sample Exercises

Research project on terrestrial analog example:

JL_Extended_Abstract_Project_Part_I.pdf (Acrobat (PDF) 165kB Jul7 21)

JL_Extended_Abstract_Project_Part_II.pdf (Acrobat (PDF) 200kB Jul7 21)

JL_Extended_Abstract_Project_Part_III.pdf (Acrobat (PDF) 286kB Jul7 21)

JL_Extended_Abstracts_Project_Samples.pdf (Acrobat (PDF) 1.3MB Jul7 21)

JL_Extended_Abstract_Project_Rubric.pdf (Acrobat (PDF) 35kB Jul7 21)

Model rocketry lab project example:

rocketry_part_3.pdf (Acrobat (PDF) 132kB Jul9 21)

rocketry_part_2.pdf (Acrobat (PDF) 135kB Jul9 21)

rocketry_part_1.pdf (Acrobat (PDF) 130kB Jul9 21)

rocketry_rubric.pdf (Acrobat (PDF) 155kB Jul9 21)

rocketry_part_4.pdf (Acrobat (PDF) 129kB Jul9 21)

Just for fun, here are some videos of students launching their rockets for this activity:

ross_sam_launch.MOV (Quicktime Video 13.9MB Jul9 21)

good_estes_launch.MOV (Quicktime Video 15.7MB Jul9 21)

ponderosa_launch.MOV (Quicktime Video 14.3MB Jul9 21)

kyle_steph_malko_launch.MOV (Quicktime Video 10.1MB Jul9 21)

Here are several other activity examples. Several of these were created by other geoscience educators who have shared these via SERC.

Solar system geography: solar_system_geography.pdf (Acrobat (PDF) 107kB Jul9 21)

Relative dating and geologic mapping:Venus venus_corona_observation.pdf (Acrobat (PDF) 2.1MB Jul9 21); Mars relative_dating_mapping_arsia_mars.pdf (Acrobat (PDF) 128kB Jul9 21)

Impact cratering: impact_cratering_exercise.pdf (Acrobat (PDF) 263kB Jul9 21)

Volcanism: volcanism_exercise.pdf (Acrobat (PDF) 72kB Jul9 21)

Water-related processes: Discharge on Mars mars_rain.pdf (Acrobat (PDF) 3.7MB Jul9 21); Rain on Mars discharge_exercise.pdf (Acrobat (PDF) 6.9MB Jul9 21); Ridges on Mars argyre_ridges_exercise.pdf (Acrobat (PDF) 4.7MB Jul9 21)

Landing site selection on Mars:grosfils_landing_site_lab.pdf (Acrobat (PDF) 75kB Jul9 21)

Sample Learning Objectives

Learning objectives for planetary courses typically have the following themes in common:

• Motivations and methodologies for exploring other solar system bodies
• Oral and written communication
• Scientific literacy (including evaluating information accuracy)
• Processes that operate (and have operated) in our solar system
• Solar System geography and evolution

Please see the provided syllabi for specific learning objectives.

Resources

JMARS (geospatial program for Mars and other planetary bodies): https://jmars.asu.edu/

NASA STEM Engagement: https://www.nasa.gov/stem/highereducation/index.html

USGS Astrogeology page: https://www.usgs.gov/centers/astrogeology-science-center

Map a Planet (acquire planetary datasets; will need to register for an account): https://astrocloud.wr.usgs.gov/index.php?view=map2

PDS Node (datasets from NASA missions): https://pds-geosciences.wustl.edu/

GSA's Planetary Geology Division website: https://community.geosociety.org/pgd/home

NASA's Solar System exploration page: https://solarsystem.nasa.gov/solar-system/our-solar-system/overview/

Citizen science (NASA page): https://science.nasa.gov/citizenscience

Erupt computer program (volcanism on other planets): https://www.lanl.gov/orgs/ees/geodynamics/Wohletz/KWare/Index.htm

NASA lab manual (numerous activities included): NASA_lab_module.pdf (Acrobat (PDF) 7.8MB Jul9 21)

NASA samples for educational use: https://curator.jsc.nasa.gov/education/

Solar System treks (explore the different bodies of the Solar System): https://trek.nasa.gov/

Exoplanet exploration: https://exoplanets.nasa.gov/