For Teacher - Lessons

The Apollo Lunar missions were an important part of man's exploration of space. In the future the Moon may be a very important base for exploration into deep space. The lessons included in the "curriculum" section are intended to help students explore the Lunar Module, Apollo Missions, and the Moon.

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Lunar Landing Sites - Latitude and Longitude

Objective - Overview Students will review longitude and latitude coordinate use for the Earth and then for the Moon. Students will learn more about the 6 lunar landing sites of the manned Apollo Missions and learn more about why these sites were selected. Activity 1 Review the terms longitude and latitude. Talk about the way the use of these coordinates help to locate exact positions on the Earth. Longitude and latitude coordinates for the Moon start at a point near the crater Bruce. Locate this crater on a Moon map or globe. From this point (0 degrees latitude, 0 degrees longitude) locations toward the east side of the Moon (the direction in which the sun rise)are indicated with east longitude. Locations towards the west side (where the sun sets) have west longitude values. North latitude is measured towards the Moon's north pole. South latitude is measured towards the Moon's south pole. Provide students with a blank Moon map which has the longitude and latitude on it. Discuss how these designations were determined. Print out the landing chart which gives the longitude and latitude of the LM landings. Have students locate each of the 6 Apollo Missions on the Moon Map. The answer key can be use to check their work. Ask students: Were the lunar landing sites in similar terrains? Which crew was the first to work in a hilly terrain? Why do you think these 6 sites were selected? Activity 2 After each mission, the LMs were crashed into the Moon's surface so that scientists could study the seismic effects. Use the chart of impact locations and have students try to locate these places on their Moon maps. (Apollo - Current Locations)