Alright so for my Exploring the Solar System final, we have to do something creative to demonstrate that we learned something. Some people paint stuff, others make movies, some make board games. Well I have a geocaching account, a half filled notebook, and a proclivity to procrastinate on doing my calculus, so I'm submitting this as my final project. Huzzah!
Alright so answer the questions and solve the puzzle and it will take you to the geocache. It's located along the Ashokan Reservoir.
A: Likely due to a collision with a planetesimal, this planet is tipped 90 degrees on its axis. Because of this, one side gets constant sunlight, and the other side gets none. This planet also appears blue due to its atmosphere's high methane composition. What number planet is this in order of distance from the Sun?
B: At 26 km tall, Olympus Mons is the highest volcano in our solar system and extends into the atmosphere of the planet it's on. Which planet is this, in order of distance from the Sun?
C: A common misconception is that Galileo invented telescopes: he didn't. But he was the first to use them to observe space. In his findings, he spotted the milky way galaxy, craters on the moon, sunspots, phases of Venus, and the rings of Saturn. He also saw a couple of moons near Jupiter that are named after him. How many Galilean moons are there?
D: Earth's seasons are not caused by proximity to the Sun; this is a common misconception. They are caused by Earth's tilt and intensity/duration of the Sunlight acting on a region. Mercury however, has a fairly eccentric orbit, meaning that at its closest point to the Sun, it is significantly closer and thus signficantly warmer than when it is further away. What is the eccentricty of Earth rounded to the hundreth? The hundreth digit is D
E: The force of gravity acting on the Sun is uhhh.... pretty high honestly. Despite this, it's still an average size main sequence star. In order to prevent the force of gravity from crushing it, the Sun must constantly be creating energy outwards in a process of nuclear fusion. This process converts 4 of one element into another. What are the sums of the protons found in each element? Ex) H2O==>1+8=9
F: The length between new moons is called a lunar month. How many days does this take, rounded to the nearest integer.
G: The Maunder minimum occurred nearly 400 years ago, but it helps us understand the magnetic field of the Sun. During this time, astronomers noticed fewer sunspots, and a lower temperature on Earth. What is the last digit in the date that this first began?
H) This planet is the most similar to Earth in size and density, but differs heavily in every other aspect. This planet has an atmosphere 100x more massive than Earth's. Because of this, the surface temperature reaches 900F, with little variation between night and day. "Why doesn't Earth behave like this planet Akiva?" Good question. Most of our CO2 is trapped in our carbonate rocks, which is regulated by the self-sustaining CO2 cycle. This planet has no liquid water, which prevents the CO2 cycle from occuring, which is why this planet would suck to live on, and Earth is pretty cool (provided you're not in New Jersey). Which planet is this in order of distance from the Sun?
Cache is located at:
N41.56.(A)(G-B)(B-C)
W74.12.(D+5)((F/(E+2))(H)
Alright, I hope y'all enjoy the cache. Definitely bring a bike, the reservoir is like 2.5 miles long and very enjoyable on a warm day or night. Yuh