Space Junk...
Space junk is, well, junk in space. And evidently it’s a growing problem. Planet Earth has so many telecom satellites, leftover rocket boosters, lost tools from astronaut walks, and other junk orbiting high in the sky, that things are starting to crash into each other.
Two colliding chunks can split into thousands of tiny, dangerous pieces: at 27,000 kilometres an hour, even a flake of paint is like a bullet!
Two colliding chunks can split into thousands of tiny, dangerous pieces: at 27,000 kilometres an hour, even a flake of paint is like a bullet!
Questions
Wee ones: If you have 4 spaceships in orbit, and you launch 1 more, how many spaceships are up there?
Little kids: If you have 7 spaceships in orbit, and you launch 8 more, how many spaceships are up there? Bonus: If you have 24 spaceships in orbit, and you launch 26 more, how many spaceships are up there?
Big kids: If you launch 9 rockets, and each one splits into 3 pieces, how many total chunks are now floating around? Bonus: If you launch 10 rockets, and each one splits into 3 pieces—and then each chunk splits into four more pieces. How many bits now?
Little kids: If you have 7 spaceships in orbit, and you launch 8 more, how many spaceships are up there? Bonus: If you have 24 spaceships in orbit, and you launch 26 more, how many spaceships are up there?
Big kids: If you launch 9 rockets, and each one splits into 3 pieces, how many total chunks are now floating around? Bonus: If you launch 10 rockets, and each one splits into 3 pieces—and then each chunk splits into four more pieces. How many bits now?
Answers:
Wee ones: 5 spaceships.
Little kids: 15 spaceships. Bonus: 50
Big kids: 27 pieces of space junk. Bonus: 120
Little kids: 15 spaceships. Bonus: 50
Big kids: 27 pieces of space junk. Bonus: 120