Survive on Mars

In this hands-on learning activity, students work together to build a base on Mars. They must solve life-threatening challenges related to three key themes: oxygen, energy, and food – and build robotic systems that make survival possible on the red planet.

Each theme – oxygen, energy, and food – is introduced through short Flipped Learning videos that the students watch before their visit. These videos prepare them for the scientific content and challenges, so they’re ready to jump straight into developing prototypes for their Mars base.

The activity is based on engineering didactics. Each student takes on a specific engineering role, helping structure the process of designing, building, and programming the robotic systems. 

At the end, the students present their prototypes, explain the challenges they attempted to solve, and show how their robots were programmed.

As part of the visit, students will also watch a space-themed film in the Planetarium Dome.

Schedule
09:30 Arrival at the Planetarium
09:35–09:45 Welcome and introduction
09:45–10:30 Introduction to LEGO Mindstorms
10:30–10:40 Break
10:40–11:40 Build a prototype for the Mars base
11:40–12:00 Lunch break
12:00–12:20 Continue building the prototype
12:20–12:50 Presentation of prototypes
12:50–13:00 Wrap-up and evaluation
13:30–14:20 Film screening in the Planetarium Dome*
14:20 Thank you for today – and time to explore the exhibitions

*Monday: Ocean to Orbit 
*Tuesday–Friday: Touch the stars