High-Level Project Summary
We developed a board game based on NASA's current plans for a crewed return to the Moon and sending the first humans to Mars, seeking to gamify the architectures currently under discussion for the development of these missions. At the same time, players will educate themselves about the different stages of a deep space exploration program, while they learn to optimize the use of a limited budget and resources in order to achieve the desired objective of pushing the envelope of human knowledge.
Link to Project "Demo"
Link to Final Project
Detailed Project Description
Through gamification, our board game intends to introduce players to the world of space exploration over the next decades, while learning about the different subsystems needed to develop crewed missions to the Moon and Mars. We hope this inspires them to learn more about the work of space agencies like NASA.
From the start, the game was designed to have a runtime of around 40 minutes, thus allowing it to be used by teachers within their lessons.
The game mechanics were brainstormed using Google Jamboard, while the design of the game cards was created using Adobe Photoshop.
Space Agency Data
We informed the game mechanics design process through several official mission/project websites showcasing current space exploration efforts by NASA. We also accessed diverse media galleries from the agency, where we found the concept art needed to illustrate all the deck of cards for our game.
NASA's vast photographic archives inspired us to further promote space exploration images of great historical value, and to think about different ways to use those pictures in the creation of future board games and collectible cards.
Hackathon Journey
Our inspiration as a team comes from our passion to gamify and create games with all kinds of themes, especially educational ones, since we are also teachers.
Participating in the Space Apps Challenge was a very strenuous yet rewarding experience. Throughout these two days we learned a lot about the golden age of the space race, the years of the space shuttle, the construction of the ISS, and now the Artemis program that will take us back to the Moon, for the first time to Mars, and then to other bodies in our solar system. Through the NASA archives, we have come to appreciate the poignant beauty of space and the amazing history of its exploration.
Having participated in the Space Apps Challenge motivates us to keep creating games and other materials to promote the scientific and exploration activities carried out by NASA and the other space agencies participating in the event.
We want to especially thank Ricardo Tohmé, the local lead for Bahía Blanca, for his invaluable contribution, encouraging everyone to participate in the Challenge and advising us with technical and astronomical data throughout the entire hackathon.
References
https://www.nasa.gov/
https://archive.org/details/nasa
https://mars.nasa.gov/resources/6195/astronauts-unload-cargo/
https://www.nasa.gov/press-release/as-artemis-moves-forward-nasa-picks-spacex-to-land-next-americans-on-moon
https://www.nasa.gov/specials/artemis/
https://www.nasa.gov/exploration/systems/sls/index.html
https://www.nasa.gov/exploration/systems/sls/multimedia/gallery/SLS_Concepts.html
https://www.nasa.gov/press-release/nasa-selects-five-us-companies-to-mature-artemis-lander-concepts
https://www.flickr.com/photos/nasa2explore/albums/72157716027881092
https://www.nasa.gov/gateway/images
Tags
#board #game #boardgame #artemis #NASA #moon #mars #spaceexploration
Global Judging
This project has been submitted for consideration during the Judging process.