GLOBE News
December 2015 News Brief Top
December 2015 GLOBE News Brief
Image of the Week
The 20th GLOBE Annual Partner Meeting and Student Research Experience will be held in Estes Park, Colorado, USA, from 17-22 July 2016.
Join the annual gathering of partners, scientists, sponsors, and student researchers - and experience the beauty of the Rocky Mountains in summer. The town of Estes Park is located at the entrance to Rocky Mountain National Park, which is one of America's most popular national preserves, with majestic mountains, clean mountain air, and plenty of animal and plant diversity.
Put the dates on your calendar - 17-22 July 2016 - and plan to join us! More information will be coming soon. (Requests for personalized invitation letters to be used for visa and travel purposes can be sent to lackey@ucar.edu.)
News
GLOBE Recognizes Top Schools for GLOBE/SMAP Data Collection
16 October through 1 November 2015
The GLOBE Program would like to salute the 18 schools from around the world that submitted data during the two-week period of 16 October through 1 November, with a total of 63 measurements.
The Top Three Schools for this two-week data collection period are:
- Bowling Green State University, Ohio, USA, with 10 data counts
- Ramey School, Puerto Rico, with 7 data counts (tie)
- Alfred State College, New York, USA, with 7 data counts (tie)
- Shumate Middle School, Michigan, USA, with 5 data counts
Click here to view the spreadsheet for this two-week period, showing all of the top schools, as well as every school that was participating in the campaign for this period using the SMAP Block Pattern Soil Moisture Protocol.
1 November through 15 November 2015
The GLOBE Program would like to salute the 17 schools from around the world that submitted data during the two-week period of 1 November through 15 November, with a total of 66 measurements.
The Top Three Schools for this two-week data collection period are:
- Bowling Green State University, Ohio, USA, with 20 data counts
- Shumate Middle School, Michigan, USA, with 10 data counts
- Pomperaug High School, Connecticut, USA, with 8 data counts.
Click here to view the spreadsheet for this two-week period, showing all of the top schools, as well as every school that was participating in the campaign for this period using the SMAP Block Pattern Soil Moisture Protocol.
2016 GLOBE International Virtual Science Fair
Entries for the 2016 GLOBE International Virtual Science Fair are due on 11 March 2016. In order to help you prepare, the GLOBE Implementation Office has two items to call to your attention:
- WEBINAR: A webinar, "Preparing for the 2016 GLOBE International Virtual Science Fair: An Overview of Resources and Rubrics," will be presented on 16 December at 20:00 UTC (1 p.m. MST/3 p.m. EST). The webinar will be hosted by Dr. Julie Malmberg (Education, Outreach, and Technology Specialist at the GLOBE Implementation Office) and Matt Silberglitt (Senior Research Associate in the STEM Program at WestEd). The webinar will provide an overview of available resources for teachers and students, and will cover the details of the scoring rubrics. There will be time for community questions and a recording will be provided after the webinar. Register here!
- MENTOR LIST: Teachers - are your students looking for a research mentor? GLOBE has compiled a list of GISN scientists who are interested in working with students.
One scientist, Peder Nelson, is interested in working with students about land cover. Check out his profile and introduction video here.
More videos from scientists will be coming soon!
Opportunities for Students
How Do Scientists Use the SMAP Satellite Data? Read NASA's Latest Blog
In January 2015, NASA launched the Soil Moisture Active Passive (SMAP) observatory. SMAP is the first Earth satellite designed to collect global observations of the soil moisture content. SMAP is now on its three-year mission to "scratch" below Earth's surface to expand our understanding of a key component of the Earth system that links the water, energy and carbon cycles driving our living planet.
A recent guest blog, "How Do NASA Scientists Use the SMAP Satellite Data?" written by NASA SMAP scientists Dr. Erika Podest and Dr. Narendra Das of the NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California, USA is now available on the GLOBE website - along with other recent blogs.
The NASA SMAP Soil Moisture Field Campaign began 1 October 2015 and will run through 30 April 2016. A SMAP Block Pattern Soil Moisture Protocol has been created so that GLOBE students can collect soil moisture measurements just like the SMAP satellite. With this campaign, GLOBE will offer webinars and blogs, as well ongoing interactions with NASA scientists. Please join us in this exciting campaign!
Opportunities for Teachers
U.S. and Canada GLOBE Teacher P.D. Webinar "Writing Research Questions" - 9 December 2015
The GLOBE Program will be hosting a teacher professional development webinar entitled, "Writing Research Questions" on 09 December (4 p.m. EST/2 p.m. MST). During this webinar, Dr. Kevin Czajkowski will help participants develop grade-appropriate research questions and discuss ways to incorporate narrower, but more frequent, field investigations throughout the school year. Registration Link: https://cc.readytalk.com/r/bpgrgsqs7m5a&eom
Free NASA STEM Educator Webinars
The NASA STEM Educator Professional Development Collaborative (EPDC) is presenting a series of webinars open to all educators. All pre-service, K-12, and informal educators, as well as university faculty, are invited to join NASA education specialists to learn about NASA missions, activities, lesson plans, educator guides, and online resources that integrate NASA and STEM into the classroom.
An upcoming webinar, "ISS - Off the Earth for the Earth: Brain in Space" is geared toward educators in grade levels 9 through 12. Through this webinar, which is presented by John Weis, (at 6:30 p.m. EST on 14 December 2015), participants will will get an overview of resources related to the study of the effects of microgravity on the human brain.
GPM Precipitation Education Website
NASA is offering a unique GPM-related website, presented by the GPM mission, that provides students and educators with resources to learn about Earth's water cycle, weather and climate, and the technology and societal applications of studying them.
Connect With Us
The GLOBE Program depends on you to let us know what is happening in your regions, countries, communities and classrooms. Send us news you would like to share with the GLOBE Community and we'll include it in next month's News Brief. Be sure to include photos, too.
Send your message to communications@globe.gov
Be sure to follow us on social media! Just click on the icons below.
The Surface Temperature Field Campaign Has Begun! Read Dr. C's Latest Blog
The 2015 Surface Temperature Field Campaign has begun! Sixteen schools have been reporting data since 1 December 2015. Since 1 November, schools in 8 countries and in 5 U.S. states have reported data.
To keep up on the latest information on this campaign, read Dr. Kevin Czajkowski's latest blog: "First Week of Surface Temperature Field Campaign and El Nino."
GISN Scientists: Two Volunteer Opportunities Available for 2016 GLOBE International Virtual Science Fair
There are two volunteer opportunities for GISN scientists to be involved with the 2016 GLOBE International Virtual Science Fair.
First, you can volunteer to work as a research mentor for student groups. Second, you can volunteer to help judge the student projects in 2016. Student projects are due on 11 March 2016 and judging will take place 3-16 April 2016.
Complete the GISN Interest Form today!
United States Regional Science Fairs
Thanks to a grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF), students from across the United States have the opportunity to come together at one of six onsite regional science fairs to share the results of field investigations using GLOBE Program protocols. The competition grade spans are: grades 5-8 and grades 9-12.
Applications for 2016 GLOBE Distinguished Educator Fellowship Due 15 December 2015
Applications for the 2016 GLOBE Distinguished Educator Fellowship are due on 15 December 2015. The fellowship harnesses the GLOBE community expertise in the development of new educational resources that can benefit the whole community.
For the 2016 GLOBE Distinguished Educator Fellowship, there will be a total of three fellowships: one for the United States and two for GLOBE countries other than the US. All GLOBE educators, both formal and informal, are encouraged to apply. A stipend of $650 USD will be paid to both the educator and the partnering scientist.
New Educational GPM Anime Comic Booklet Now Available
NASA's Global Precipitation Measurement (GPM) mission is proud to present a new educational comic, "Raindrop Tales: GPM Meets Mizu-Chan." In 2013, the GPM mission hosted the GPM Anime Challenge, which was a contest for artists around the world to develop an anime-themed comic book character to teach students about the mission. Data gathered as part of the GPM mission, which launched on 27 February 2014, will advance our understanding of water and energy cycle.
Upcoming 2015 GLOBE Teacher Training Workshops
Upcoming GLOBE teacher training workshops include:
- Okinawa, Japan (Kadena High School): 05 December - 09 January 2016 (open to all teachers)
- Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, USA (Gettysburg College): 16 December (potential restricted attendance)
- Cologne, Germany (University of Cologne): 19 December (potential restricted attendance)
- Chiang Rai, Thailand (Mae Fah Luang University): 17-23 January 2016 (open to all teachers)
Anniversaries
Congratulations to the 10 GLOBE countries celebrating anniversaries of successful GLOBE implementation during the month of December:
Guatemala - 18 years
05 December 1997
Germany - 20 years
08 December 1995
Maldives - 12 years
08 December 2003
Oman - 6 years
08 December 2009
El Salvador - 20 years
11 December 1995
Greece - 20 years
12 December 1995
Russia - 21 years
16 December 1994
Burkina Faso - 17 years
18 December 1998
Sri Lanka - 16 years
20 December 1999
Suriname - 18 years
23 December 1997
News Brief Archive
All past issues of the GLOBE News Brief are available in the online archive.
News Topics: News Briefs type: globe-news
News origin: GLOBE Implementation Office