Energy and power

A city on Mars runs on energy: to heat its rooms, grow its food, split water and run its machines. This topic starts with what makes things go and climbs to work, power, efficiency and the real choices for Mars: sunlight that is less than half as strong as at Earth, dust on the panels, batteries, and small nuclear reactors.

8 levels. The ages are only a rough guide for parents and teachers; anyone can start at any level.

Level	Rough age	What it covers
Level 1: What makes things go	5-6	Food, sunlight, batteries and wind; energy is used to do things
Level 2: Stored and moving	7-8	Stretched springs, raised weights, moving things; energy changes form
Level 3: Energy in, energy out	9-10	Nothing is lost, only changed; where wasted energy goes
Level 4: Joules and watts	11-12	Measuring energy and power, kilowatt-hours, the power a person uses
Level 5: Work and kinetic energy	12-13	W = Fd, ½mv², mgh, a dropped tool on Mars and on Earth
Level 6: Efficiency and the Sun	13-14	Efficiency, solar power per square metre at Mars (about 590 W/m², Earth's 1361), panels and dust
Level 7: Storing energy	15-16	Batteries, hydrogen, flywheels, pumped storage; getting through a dust storm
Level 8: Power for a city	17 and beyond	Nuclear fission and radioisotope power, a full energy budget for Arcadia City