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The Influence of Asphalt on Surrounding Short-Grass Surface Temperature

Organization(s):Roswell Kent Middle School
Country:United States of America
Student(s):Olivia Sendelbach
Grade Level:Secondary School (grades 9-12, ages 14-18)
GLOBE Teacher:Steven Frantz
Contributors:
Report Type(s):
Protocols:Soil Temperature
Language(s):
Date Submitted:05/03/2013
When my science teacher told our class that we have to come up with a science fair project I got to thinking. But I didn't know what to do! So I thought and thought. Then it hit me! I'm going to do something involved with worms. I decided to talk to my Globe teacher first. He asked me what I was going to do with the worms. I looked straight at him and said I really don't know. Then he told me to find a project I would enjoy and want to do. So I thought again and again. The next day I still didn't have a project idea. Later that day I was sitting in the parking lot waiting for my mom's meeting to be over. Then I got hot and bored so I went to sit in the grass thinking of a project. It was so much cooler in the grass anyway. That night I knew exactly what I was going to do! I told my Globe teacher about what happened and how I realized the grass was cooler than the asphalt. We talked it over and came up with a project I really enjoyed. This is how I came up with my science fair project. Studying the Influence Asphalt has on Surrounding Short–Grass Surface Temperature.


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Comments

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Lin Chambers
10 Years Ago
I assume that you did your project during the day. What do you think would happen if you did the same type of experiment at night?
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Sarah Tessendorf
10 Years Ago
What a valuable project, and I really appreciate your ideas for trying to help the Florida orange growing industry based on the results you found. I would like to know more about what time of day you took your measurements (was it the same time every day?) and what other factors you think may have caused so much variability in your data. In particular, I noticed that while the farther grassy site from the parking lot (site 6 I believe) did typically have the coolest temperature, there was not always a direct relationship of increasing temperature the closer you got to the parking lot in the 3 grassy sites. I think saw that site 5 (the middle grassy site) was the hottest grassy site on some days in fact. What do you think may have caused that?
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Dixon Matlock Butler
10 Years Ago
Nice work. You hint at some follow-up research. For example, is the contrast in temperature between the asphalt and the grass larger on sunny days? Why?
Could you suggest a follow-on research project that would interest you, and how would you go about doing the investigation?
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Julie Malmberg
10 Years Ago
Olivia - I enjoyed learning more about your project! Do you think you could relate surface temperatures to worms somehow? This might be an interesting project for future research, particularly if you are already interested in worms.