Mission Separation Entry Document
DATE: September 1, 2032
Mission: Voyager IV Deep Space Sampler Scientist Group
NASA Scientists:
Voyager IV Deep Space Sampler has just sent a sampler pod back to Earth containing a soil sample from the
newly discovered planet MIXITUP. This soil mixture has been analyzed by the astronaut on board and is known
to contain four different alien substances:
1.
2.
3.
4.
A black, metal flake
A brownish sand type substance
A white crystal
A round, black seed-like object, thought to be from a living plant.
Your Mission is Separation:
Your research team must develop a plan to separate all four substances in the mixture. These substances must
be separated by you before they can be studied by other scientists to see if they would be useful for things like
mining or farming. Your knowledge of physical properties of matter will help you. After planning, you will
separate the mixture to test the accuracy of your procedure! You many use any of the equipment provided by
your mission specialist.
Project Details:
Day 1: Intro to project, build teams, discover mission.
Day 2: You will write a plan to separate your mixture that must be approved by your mission specialist before
you begin your separation. Your specialist will give you a small sample if you need to “test out” any
hypothesis about how to separate the substance.
Day 3 & 4: Every team gets a 60g sample of soil containing 15g of each substance to purify. Separate your
sample based on your plan. Mass your results and calculate percentages. Write your “Mission Separation Lab
Report” and develop a presentation with your group.
Day: 5 Present your findings to the other scientists teams.
Name:
Team Item:
Your Job:
Team Members: