What this event is about
A space-science test covering planets, moons, small bodies, solar structure, and related calculations/diagrams from the rules.
Study plan
Setup (team of 2, ~50 min; two double-sided 8.5×11 sheets; no calculators)
- Build sheets around the listed objects and missions — exams should focus on listed Solar System objects more than extrasolar systems; skip unlisted bodies.
- Solar System objects to know in depth: Venus, Mars, Ganymede, Europa, Enceladus, Titan, Makemake, 101955 Bennu, 67P/Churyumov–Gerasimenko — surface/atmosphere features, processes (e.g., cryovolcanism), properties tied to habitability.
- Extrasolar systems (lighter emphasis): TRAPPIST-1, Kepler-452, LHS 1140.
- Habitability conditions: temperature, atmosphere composition/retention, stable liquids (surface/subsurface), tidal heating, chemical disequilibrium.
- Geologic/chemical evidence: liquid-water morphology, spectral composition, delivery of water/organics from small bodies.
- Biology/chemistry basics: proteins/nucleic acids/lipids/carbs; water phases (liquid, amorphous/crystalline ice, brines, clathrates); extremophiles (chemolithoautotrophs, tardigrades).
- Exoplanet detection only: transits, radial velocity, microlensing, direct imaging.
- Missions/instruments (only these): Venus Express, DAVINCI, VERITAS, Perseverance, MRO, MAVEN, Galileo, Europa Clipper, JUICE, Cassini-Huygens, Dragonfly, OSIRIS-REx, Rosetta, Kepler, JWST, Roman — science goals, engineering tradeoffs.
- No-calculator math practice: Doppler, flux, inverse-square, albedo, Stefan–Boltzmann, Wien, equilibrium T; gravity/orbits/tides (KE/PE, Newton, Kepler, escape, tides); ideal gas, Arrhenius, chemical (dis)equilibrium. Interpret maps/graphs/images under time.
Tips
Make a habitability comparison table for the listed objects — liquids, atmosphere, energy sources, and key missions.