Explore More on the Moon

When you look up at the sky at night, what do you see? In the city, you might see a few stars or a planet or two, but you will definitely see The Moon. Because it is the closest object to Earth, at only a quarter of a million miles away, and because it seems to change and look different every night, the moon fascinates us all. Explore More! with the Summer Learning Challenge to find out why the moon changes, what it would be like to travel to the moon and if we could ever live there.

Each night The Moon Seems to Change, but does it actually change shape? Try this simple Moon Phases Experiment with a lamp, a styrofoam ball and a dark room to understand how the moon changes as it orbits the Earth. Then go outside and observe the moon. Keep track of how the moon changes over a week and draw what you see.

Apollo 11 was the first manned spacecraft to land on the moon, but it was not the first Mission to the Moon. Visit the Adler Planetarium's Mission Moon exhibit to learn all about The Apollo Program and the other missions that led up to man walking on the moon.

Could we ever build a Home on the Moon? Think about what you would need to live there, then build a habitat that would support human life. Or engineer a space tool you could use to help you breathe on the moon with this Curiosity Machine challenge.