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ERIC Number: EJ1063991
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2013-May
Pages: 2
Abstractor: ERIC
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0013-1377
EISSN: N/A
Borrow the Moon: The STFC Lunar Samples and Meteorites Loan Scheme
Swift, Nick
Education in Science, n252 p12-13 May 2013
The Apollo missions brought back 382kg of Moon rock. The financial cost of getting these rocks was historically eye-watering so, understandably, NASA is choosy about who gets to play with them. Many go to scientists for laboratory investigation, but some have been set aside for loan to schools and the public. Luckily, the UK was allowed some, which are kept in the care of the Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC) for loan to schools, museums and outreach programmes. In addition, the Natural History Museum has lent meteorites to supplement the UK loan scheme. There is a fascination in holding Moon rocks and meteorites in one's hand and finding out how they got to be here on Earth. In this article, Nick Swift explains that any school can borrow the kits in the loan scheme and incorporate them into a series of lessons or they can be used as part of a special event for the public. In order to "borrow the Moon" there are certain security requirements that must be met and there is a waiting period of several months, however, according to Swift, it is well worth it. The kit contains three large meteorite fragments that can be handled (Henbury, Imillac and Parnallee), three mounted meteorites (Nakhla, Murchison and Camel Donga) and the NASA disc of Moon samples (anorthosite, breccia, basalt, orange soil, highland soil and mare soil). To help see the samples, especially with a large group, a USB microscope and ten geological magnifiers are also included in each kit. The article closes with suggested activities and resources to explore before the kits arrive.
Association for Science Education. College Lane Hatfield, Herts, AL10 9AA, UK. Tel: +44-1-707-283000; Fax: +44-1-707-266532; e-mail: info@ase.org.uk; Web site: http://www.ase.org.uk
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Descriptive
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: United Kingdom
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A