Learn about moon landings past and future!
Celebrate the anniversary of the final Apollo moon mission, discover what we learned during this mission, and get an introduction to Artemis, NASA's current lunar exploration project.
Jump to Section: Apollo 17 by the Numbers Story Time and Craft Activity Meet Team Artemis Lunar Rover Design Challenge Innovator Spotlight: Rita Rapp
1 - Number of scientists sent to the Moon during the Apollo program. During the Apollo 17 mission, geologist Harrison Schmitt, became the first scientist to visit and work on the Moon.
4.5 - Number of hours the Lunar Roving Vehicle (LRV) drove during Apollo 17. This was the longest total time any of the Apollo mission LRVs were used.
50 - Number of years since the last person, Gene Cernan, was on the Moon.
75 - Numbers of hours on the Moon. This was the longest time of any Apollo mission.
741 - Number of individual rock and soil samples collected during Apollo 17, the most collected during any Apollo mission.
Check these books out at your school or library to explore stories about Apollo moon missions, what it would be like on the Moon, and the important people who prepared astronauts for the Moon landing!
Picture book, for ages 3 to 8
Picture book, for ages 3 to 6
Picture book, for ages 5 to 8
Picture book, for ages 5 to 9
Pretend you are getting ready for a journey to the Moon by making your own astronaut helmet!
Materials needed:
Want to share with us your helmet creation? Snap a photo and send it to NASM-FamilyPrograms@si.edu!
With NASA's launch of its newest exploration mission to the Moon called Project Artemis, astronauts are preparing to land on the Moon and discover parts of it never before seen.
For this Design Challenge, help Project Artemis by updating the Apollo Lunar Roving Vehicle for new moon explorations!
Materials needed:
Astronaut Gene Cernan setting up a science experiment near the lunar roving vehicle during the Apollo 17 mission. Image: NASA
The Design Process is a series of steps that inventors, engineers, and designers go through when trying to create a solution to a problem.
Your task: Design a Lunar Rover that has:
Video 1: Watch this video to learn more about how engineers designed the Lunar Roving Vehicle used in Apollo missions 15, 16 and 17.
Tip: Watch with your grown-ups so they can help you with some of the more confusing ideas.
Vocabulary you may hear in the video:
Video 2: Watch this video to learn more about the area of the Moon your Lunar Roving Vehicle will need to travel on.
NASA began working on lunar vehicles in the early 1960s – but the project relied more on guesswork than engineering precision. After all, no one had any idea what being on the moon would be like.
NASA has announced the selection of 13 regions near the Moon's South Pole as candidate landing regions for Artemis III, the first crewed mission to the Moon's surface since 1972. The visuals here show the locations of all 13 regions.
How will you construct it to accomplish the tasks of having:
Draw what your lunar rover will look like.
What materials can you find at at home to help you make one? Take a walk around your home and make a list of what you'd like to use.
Test out your model and use this table to organize your test!
You just made a model, which is an important part of designing and testing new things. You can work on improving your design if you'd like. The design process is ongoing!
If you'd like to share your design with you, snap a picture and send it to NASM-FamilyPrograms@si.edu.
Innovator Spotlight
Rita Rapp and hear team transformed astronaut meals by developing new recipes and improving packaging.
Sign up for our mailing list to get notified when more activities like this become available, learn about upcoming family days, get reminders to sign up for other family-friendly programs like virtual planetarium shows and story times, and more.