Players are given a barren planet that cannot support life. By adding airmasses, changing the planet's rotation and axis tilt, and controlling temperature and humidity levels, players can eventually coax the planet into a life-supporting area with multiple biomes. Eventually, humans will make their home on the planet and will use technology that can be harmful or beneficial to the environment as a whole.
MS-ESS2-5, MS-ESS2-6, MS-ESS3-5
Weather and Climate; air mass, temperature, weather patterns, air mass density, precipitation, Coriolis effect, climate change, greenhouse effect
Students directly see the impact different factors have on a planet's climate and its ability to sustain life. These factors affect our daily life and the planet's health as well.
Adjust factors like tilt & rotation, and add air masses. Students can adjust the tilt (-70 to 70 degrees), rotation (4 hours/day to hundreds of hours in a day), and then add air masses that they customize. The simulation takes effect and begins to bring biomes to life as precipitation occurs over time.
Once your planet is fixed, you can begin placing human settlements! Humans require specific conditions to be kept happy, one of which is providing energy. Players build and unlock various types of technology to keep their human settlements growing and happy.
Use our suggested activities alongside the Weather & Climate Sandbox to give some structure to students' learning. Give them challenges like melting their north pole, making a temperature planet, or an extremely hot and cold planet. Have them use a Google Sheets template to track their GHG vs. global temperature over time, too!
