STEM Activities

Astro Cup: Designing Quieter Spaceships and Habitats

15 reviews

Summary

Active Time

45 minutes to 1 hour

Total Project Time

45 minutes to 1 hour

Credits

Science Buddies is committed to creating content authored by scientists and educators. Learn more about our process and how we use AI.

Image Credit: Blue Origin Club for the Future

Introduction

As more people start living and working in space, we have to design our crew capsules and space habitats to keep people comfortable. That doesn’t just mean comfy beds and space sweatpants but also includes what our work environments and new homes will sound like on the inside.

First, astronauts have to get to space using rockets, which generate a large amount of noise inside the crew capsule. Once they’re in space, astronauts are busy tending to many tasks. They perform daily tasks including science experiments, sleeping in temperature-controlled modules, navigating in near Earth orbit, preparing meals, and exercising. The equipment required to accomplish these tasks in the spacecraft can generate constant noise and high-pitched tones that need to be quieted down to keep passengers comfortable in a small space.

Your mission is to take on the role of an acoustic engineer and investigate different materials that will keep your crew capsule noise at a quiet, comfortable level.

This activity is not recommended for use as a science fair project. Good science fair projects have a stronger focus on controlling variables, taking accurate measurements, and analyzing data. To find a science fair project that is just right for you, browse our library of over 1,200 Science Fair Project Ideas or use the Topic Selection Wizard to get a personalized project recommendation.

Materials

2 cups (we suggest using a 12-16 oz. plastic or paper cup). One will be your control cup and the second will be your capsule-cup to test out materials.
3-6 different everyday household materials that will fit inside your crew capsule cup (e.g. paper, cotton, recycled cloth, tin foil, foam, bubble wrap—you decide).
Choose 2 space sounds:
- Space Sound Option 1: Access this link to hear NASA’s historic sound of the Saturn V launching.
- Space Sound Option 2: Access real ISS sounds with this link.
- Other options: Research your own space sound or have a friend make a sound for you, like singing a song. Make sure you can repeat the same sound over and over.
Data table provided below to track your results.

Prep Work

Research different types of materials scientists use to make sounds quieter and louder. Make notes of the materials you find. What sort of equipment or different methods are they using to research sound? How are they recording their research?

Procedure

Decorate your test cup to look like a crew capsule. You can use Blue Origin’s New Shepard crew capsule as inspiration. If you’re using a paper cup you can draw your design directly on your cup. If you’re using a plastic cup, draw it on a piece of paper, then cut it out and tape it on your cup to create a capsule-cup!

Without any material inside, place the mouth of your control cup over your ear and play your space sound at a medium level. You don’t want it so loud that you’ll hurt your ear. Remember the way it sounds.
Next, fill your capsule-cup with your first material. Make a note on your data table documenting which material you used.
Place the capsule-cup with the material inside over your ear and play the same sound again. You can use the control cup at any time to help with comparisons. Make a note on your data table if the material you used made it louder, the same, or quieter.
Repeat for different materials and fill out your data sheet with your findings.
Repeat the experiment for Space Sound 2, fill out your data sheet, and compare your results.

Swipe left to see more

**Table 1.** Data table
	Material	Louder	Same	Quieter
Sound 1
1
2
3
Sound 2
1
2
3

Digging Deeper

Which material made your capsule quieter. Was there a material that made it louder? If so, which one?
After listening to each sound, how did it make you feel? Do you think different noises can make people feel differently? Explain your answer.
What do you think would happen if you added a window to your capsule? Are there any tradeoffs to having a view, does the sound change?
Draw your vision for a rocket or space habitat that keeps sounds quiet. Label where you would put scientific equipment, the gym, and sleeping areas.

Further Exploration

Send your quiet rocket or space habitat design to space!

Digital Art

Design and send digital art to space from your device. Your digital art will journey to space and back aboard a Blue Origin rocket on a dedicated hard drive.

Once they have returned from space, you will receive an email with instructions on how to access your postcards.

Visit our website draw.clubforfuture.org to open the digital art platform.