From Our Readers...

In our September 17 issue, we asked readers what part of space they’d like to explore. Mrs. Dami’s students, at Montgomery Elementary School, in Montgomery, New York, shared their thoughts. Read them below.

If you were a space explorer, where would you travel? What would you do there? Tell us at tfkeditors@time.com.

I want to explore black holes and come back successfully. I'll run experiments to see why light and people can’t escape and if there is a way to breach through a black hole. I would be nervous because I might not come back. And I’d be excited because if I do it I will be the first person to go into a black hole and come back out. —Alexander Carr, 9

I want to explore the universe so I can prove aliens are real. On the trip I will find a way to talk to the aliens. If I find them, I will learn from them. If I see them do things we can’t do, we can learn from them. I will be nervous and excited if they look creepy to us. We will be creepy to them so the being creepy is balanced. We are aliens. And if it backfires, we will still know we are not alone in the universe. —Jackson Cerdas, 9

I would love to go to Mars. I have watched and learned so many things about space and the planets. My summer camp had a space day. I dressed up like an astronaut with a NASA shirt, white leggings, white shorts, a costume astronaut head, and sunglasses. I would do an experiment about gravity. I would bring a rabbit to see how high it can jump. I would bring baking powder and soda and mix them together to see what it does. I also would squeeze a juice box and see what happens and if I can still drink it. —Jacklyn Grafer, 9

I would want to explore Saturn. It is really big and there's a lot to explore. Saturn is pretty cool because it has rings around it. If I were to run an experiment, I would run it on the surface of Saturn to see what type of land it is. I would experiment on any living things that are on Saturn. I would also do experiments with the air. What type of air does Saturn have? Nobody has ever been on Saturn. I wonder if it is different from Earth and what it would be like. —Andrew Carr, 9

I would want to explore Jupiter because I would want to collect information about what it looks like. What would the colors look like? Would there be any twisters in action? Would there be life on the planet and could astronauts explore it? I would experiment with what Jupiter is made of. Would it be made of rock or made of sand? Would it be made of anything else? I hope this mission will happen one day. —Elise Gaina, 10

I would like to explore Mars. I would travel with a space monkey because monkeys are cute and would be fun to fly around with in zero gravity. Two experiments I would like to attempt are setting off fireworks and hitting a golf ball. For the fireworks I would call on the help of the people that do Fourth of July fireworks in New York City because they put on an amazing show. I’m not sure how hitting a golf ball will go but I am looking forward to finding out. —Jackson Pagan, 9

If I went to space I would see how fast I am on the moon. I would use time lapse on a timer to do it. I think I would be about two miles per hour if I was running on the moon, but I would have to test it then review the results. Another thing I would want to test is if I can stand up straight with almost no gravity. I think it is physically impossible to stand up straight with almost no gravity, but I would have to try it. It would be so fun if I could go to the moon one day! —Bodhi Smith, 9

Letters are edited for length and clarity.