The Principal Science Investigator for the Stardust-NExT mission is here at Cornell. Joe Veverka is a professor in the Department of Astronomy and has been participating in NASA solar system missions for the last 40 years. The Stardust spacecraft encountered Comet Tempel 1 on February 14, 2011.
Stay tuned to find out what we learned at Comet Tempel 1!

The Deep Impact spacecraft (EPOXI mission) encountered Comet Hartley 2 on Nov. 4

STARDUST-NExT RESOURCES FOR THE CLASSROOM AND INFORMAL EDUCATION SETTINGS

• STARDUST-NExT SITE

• STARDUST-NExT EDUCATION SITE
• TEACHER FACT SHEETS for background information
• COMET FUN FACT SHEET for students
• COMET CHRONICLE fun newsletter for students
• Lesson Plan for MODELING COMETS for grades 4-8 Alternate COMET MODELING lesson plan (4-8)
• MAKE A COMET MODEL and EAT IT! inquiry activity with the chemistry and thermodynamics of ice cream for older students - just make the ice cream with younger students!
• "SISTERS" COMET STORY with lesson for grades K-8
• EXTREME NAVIGATION activity for grades 5-8 - outdoor simulation in which students take on the roles of a navigation team, spacecraft, comet, Earth, and Sun to simulate how mission planners design a spacecraft/comet rendezvous. Role Cards
• SEEING IN 3-D creating 3-D images from 2-D images for grades 5-8
  Seeing in 3_D student activity sheets. Stereo Viewer

• COMET LINGO Students read the Comet Chronicle to learn about comets and then play a fun "bingo-like" game - for grades 7-12 Comet Lingo boards. Comet Lingo Clue Cards

COMET SPACE MATH (many more problems at Space Math @ NASA)
• COMET ENCOUNTER for grades 10-12
• COMET FLYBY for grades 9-12
• TEMPEL 1 for grades 6-8