Do you love making art and using your imagination? So do we! Every NASA mission starts with a creative idea about how to explore something in a new way.
The art challenge:
In this new activity, we’d like to challenge young explorers to think about and draw a space-related situation each month. And after the month is over, we’ll select a few imaginative drawings to be featured on the NASA Space Place website!
So, get ready to exercise that creative brain of yours! Here’s what you’ll need:
- Paper
- Art supplies (pencils, markers, crayons, paints – whatever you like to use)
- A grownup helper with a camera or scanner and access to email
Space Place art challenge prompt:
Earth is made up of three main layers: a crust on the outside, a mantle underneath that, and a core at the very center. What is the very center of Earth made up of? Scientists have been able to figure it out by studying Earth’s gravity and other characteristics. But because Earth’s core is an area of high heat and pressure, we can’t travel there to collect a sample.
So, if we can’t collect a sample from Earth’s very center, can we learn how Earth formed? NASA is sending a new mission, to an asteroid called Psyche that may help unlock the mystery!
The new mission, which will launch in 2022, is called Psyche, just like the asteroid it will be visiting. The asteroid Psyche might be the partial core of a planetesimal – a small world that is the first building block of a planet. If it is, asteroid Psyche can offer a close look at the inside of planets like Earth that are normally hidden beneath layers of mantle and crust.
The art challenge: If you could create a game based on NASA’s Psyche mission, what would it be? What is the goal of the game and how does it work? Show us with pictures!
Here are a few facts about Psyche to inspire your game:
- The asteroid Psyche orbits the Sun between Mars and Jupiter. It’s between 235 million to 309 million miles (378 million to 497 million kilometers) away from the Sun.
- It will take more than 3 years for Psyche the spacecraft to travel to Psyche the asteroid.
- Psyche is named after the Greek goddess of the soul.
- The Psyche mission will use instruments to collect information about the asteroid. This information will help scientists to determine if it appears to be part of a planetesimal.
- Most asteroids are made of rock and ice, but Psyche appears to be made largely of metal. We hope to know for sure once we get there!
Submit your drawings between 5/18/22 and 6/30/22. Selected art submissions will appear on the website during the first week of July!
How to submit your art:
Once you’ve gotten your ideas on the page, have a grownup take a photo or scan of the drawing and email the following to NASAKidsArt@jpl.nasa.gov:
- Picture of drawing
- First name of artist
- Age of artist
- Completed release form (download here)*
That’s it! Have fun creating and we can’t wait to see your drawings!
This Month's Art Challenge Selections
Show how you want Earth to look different and be different 50+ years from now!
Anika, 7
Aura, 5
Ayenwi, 11
Brevin, 12
Charlotte, 10
Emma, 12
Ethan, 7
Isabella, 10
Isabella, 12
James, 10
Karthik Keshav Raj, 7
Khyati, 8
Lisa, 10
Muhammad, 10
Nicolas
Sahana, 7
Zoe, 11
* AUTHORIZATION AND RELEASE FOR PHOTOS, AUDIO AND/OR VIDEO RECORDINGS OF, AND/OR ARTWORK FROM A MINOR CHILD
I hereby grant to the California Institute of Technology (Institute) and its Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) the right to make, use, create derivative works and/or display:
- photos, video and/or audio tape recordings of, my Child and/or
- artwork (in any media, including drawings, photos, music and video creations) created by my Child and submitted to JPL and/or
in any manner or form, and for any lawful purpose at any time. I also grant the Institute to use my Child’s name associated with such photos, recordings of my Child or with his/her artwork. I understand that my Child may be photographed and/or video or audio taped verbatim and that the Institute may allow persons external to the Institute to view the pictures or recordings in part or in their entirety. I also understand that any artwork submitted by my Child to the Institute for the Project may be edited, reproduced or displayed publicly at the Institute’s discretion. I am fully aware and agree that such use of my Child’s image or artwork and name may include posting on publicly available internet sites, including JPL sites and other publicly viewable social media sites. I waive any right that I may have to review or approve of any finished products, or the uses to which such products may be applied. I release and discharge the Institute, its employees, sponsors, and subcontractors from any liability to me by virtue of any representation that may occur in the creation, editing or use of said photos and/or video or audio tape recordings or the editing or use of my Child’s artwork.
