High school students, as scientists, will apply middle school ideas about forces and gravity to ask questions about the anchoring phenomenon: DART successfully impacted its asteroid target (Dimorphos) on the evening of September 26, 2022. This impact changed the path of Dimorphos. Students generate a driving question similar to: Why did the path of Dimorphos change when DART collided with it? The lesson begins with students watching a video showing a meteor that made impact in Russia, sharing related experiences, and considering how to prevent similar events in the future. Next, students listen to a podcast about a simulation NASA ran to practice the response to an asteroid on track to hit Earth, and they consider what information would be helpful for this work. Next, students watch videos introducing the anchoring phenomenon. Students track their observations and initial questions. Students share related phenomena to consider how to change the path of an object in motion. Then, students create initial models to explain how and why Dimorphos’s path changed after the collision with DART. They develop additional questions and create a Driving Question Board (DQB). Finally, students brainstorm investigations that could answer their questions.

This is Lesson 1 of the Asteroids Orbit Unit. 

Click the Download PDF button above for the complete Lesson Plan.

Student Materials

Per Student

• ExGen HS Unit L1 Student Guide
• ExGen HS Unit L1 Transcript: Meteor Strikes Russia, Over 1,000 Believed Injured
• ExGen HS Unit L1 Transcript: Asteroid headed toward Earth? NASA simulation explores how the nation might respond 
• ExGen HS Unit L1 Transcript: Defending the Planet: NASA’s DART Mission 

Teacher Materials

• ExGen HS Unit L1 slides
• Teacher Reference - Example Initial Consensus Model    
• Asteroid Orbits Front Matter
• Asteroid Orbits Storyline Outline
• Asteroid Orbits Model Tracker

Optional Teacher Resources

• Asteroid Orbits Additional Resources