Page 142 - The Ontario Curriculum, Grades 11 and 12: Science, 2008 (revised)

Grade 12, University Preparation
c1. analyse political, economic, and environmental issues related to the exploration and study of the solar system, and how technology used in space exploration can be used in other areas of endeavour;
c2. investigate features of and interactions between bodies in the solar system, and the impact of these features and interactions on the existence of life;
c3. demonstrateanunderstandingoftheinternal(geological)processesandexternal(cosmic)influences operating on bodies in the solar system.
C1. Relating Science to Technology, Society, and the Environment
C2. Developing Skills of Investigation and Communication
c. plAnetAry Science (Science of the SolAr SyStem)
OVERALL EXPECTATIONS
By the end of this course, students will:
THE ONTARIO CURRICULUM, GRADES 11 AND 12 | science
SPECIFIC EXPECTATIONS
By the end of this course, students will:
c1.1 analyse political considerations related to, and economic and environmental consequences (actual and/or potential) of, exploration of the solar system (e.g., political pressures underlying the original Space Race; the ability to monitor environmental conditions from space) [AI, C]
Sample issue: As we deplete Earth’s natural re- sources, researchers are studying the feasibility of supplementing those resources through space mining. Asteroids and other bodies in the solar system are potentially rich sources of min- erals and other valuable substances, but their exploitation raises a range of legal, economic, environmental, and technological questions.
Sample questions: What are some of the dangers to terrestrial life and to space travellers of the orbital debris from space travel and study? What types of factors affect government decisions about allocating funds for space exploration?
Is the investment made in space exploration money well spent? Why or why not?
c1.2 analyse, on the basis of research, a specific technology that is used in space exploration and that has applications in other areas of re- search or in the environmental sector (e.g., Canadian satellites and robotics, spacecraft technologies, ground base and orbital tele- scopes, devices to mitigate the effects of the
space environment on living organisms), and communicate their findings [IP, PR, AI, C]
Sample issue: The Canadarms were developed for space shuttle missions and the International Space Station. However, the robotic arms have other applications, including inspecting and cleaning up hazardous substances, servicing nuclear power plants, repairing pipelines on the ocean floor, mining in areas too inhospitable for humans, and conducting remote or microsurgery.
Sample questions: How are Landsat and radar from space shuttles used in archaeological research, costal studies, and the monitoring
of natural disasters? How can technologies developed for space travel be used in water purification and waste treatment on Earth? How is remote sensing used to monitor atmos- pheric changes, such as changes in the ozone layer? How is remote sensing used to monitor changes to ecosystems?
By the end of this course, students will:
c2.1 use appropriate terminology related to planet- ary science, including, but not limited to: solar system, geocentric, heliocentric, geodesy, geosynchronous, eccentricity, apogee, aphelion, perigee, and perihelion [C]
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