"Explorers use creative tools and careful observations—like robots, maps, and experiments—to solve problems and learn about places humans can’t easily reach."
Ask the class before watching:
"If you had to explore a place people can’t safely go (deep ocean, outer space, inside a volcano), what tool or robot would you invent, and how would it help you find answers?"
To travel in a looping path around something, like a planet.
The spacecraft can orbit Mars and take pictures that help the rover figure out where it is.
The exact place where something is.
If the rover knows its location, it can drive faster and avoid getting lost among the rocks.
A pushing or squeezing force on something.
Deep in the ocean, the pressure is so strong that animals need special bodies to handle the squeeze.
A group of living things that are alike and can have babies like themselves.
When scientists discover a new species, it’s like adding a brand-new page to Earth’s nature book.
Have students answer these questions after watching the episode.