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STEMonstrations: Exercise (Bone Density and Muscle Stress in Microgravity)

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An astronaut walks up a wall in the International Space Station

Audience

Educators

Grade Levels

Grades 5-8

Subject

Life Science, Technology, Health and Nutrition, Living and Working in Space, Space Station

Type

Lesson Plans / Activities, Videos

Exercise is an integral part of the astronauts’ daily routine aboard the International Space Station. In this STEMonstration, Expedition 53/54 flight engineer Joe Acaba stresses the importance of exercising in orbit and dives into the science behind what happens to bones and muscles in microgravity.

Classroom Connection: Bone Density and Muscle Stress in Microgravity

Grade Level: 4-8

Time required: 60 minutes

Next Generation Science Standards:

4-LS1-1. Construct an argument that plants and animals have internal and external structures that function to support survival, growth, behavior and reproduction.

MS-LS1-1. Conduct an investigation to provide evidence that living things are made of cells: either one cell or many different numbers and types of cells.

MS-LS1-3. Use argument supported by evidence for how the body is a system of interacting subsystems composed of groups of cells.

Crosscutting Concepts: Cause and Effect

Science and Engineering Practices: Asking questions; planning and carrying out investigations; analyzing and interpreting data; constructing explanations