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GISN & STEM Professional's Blog

The GLOBE International STEM Network (GISN) and STEM Professional's Blog is an online collaborative effort where scientists associated with GLOBE post their thoughts, comments, and philosophies about a variety of science topics.

GLOBE strongly encourages positive and productive discussions to further advance the scientific understanding of all involved with The GLOBE Program.
 


 

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NASA GLOBE Clouds: Spring Cloud Observations Data Challenge Audience : Students and teachers all grade levels, informal educators, and the general public Dates : March 15, 2018 - April 15, 2018 The NASA GLOBE Clouds team at NASA Langley Research Center in Hampton, VA is excited to announce the NASA GLOBE Clouds: Spring Cloud Observations Data Challenge . Participants are invited to enter up to 10 cloud observations per day from March 15, 2018 to April 15, 2018 using the GLOBE Program’s data entry options or using GLOBE Observer app . GLOBE and ...


Posted in: Curriculum: STEM EDUCATION RESEARCH SCIENCE AND MATH TECHNOLOGY   Event Topics: OTHER COMPETITIONS   GLOBE Science Topics: SCIENTIST SKILLS GLOBE PROTOCOLS GENERAL SCIENCE BACKYARD SCIENCE   Investigation Areas: ATMOSPHERE CLOUDS   News Topics: COMPETITIONS   Primary Audience: TRAINERS TEACHERS STUDENTS PARTNERS ALUMNI COUNTRY COORDINATORS   Teacher's Guide: GRADE LEVELS


The GLOBE Clouds team at NASA Langley Research Center in Hampton, VA would like to highlight the top observers for the month of January! Thank you to all observers for submitting your observations and using the satellite matching of data.   Top 10 cloud observers for January 2018   Observer School Country Total Observations Ebtisam Nahhas 19th Secondary Girls School at Al-Madinah Al-Monawarah Saudi Arabia 121 Helio Cabral ...


Posted in: GLOBE Science Topics: GENERAL SCIENCE BACKYARD SCIENCE GLOBE PROTOCOLS   News Topics: COMPETITIONS   Primary Audience: TRAINERS TEACHERS STUDENTS PARTNERS SCIENTISTS COUNTRY COORDINATORS ALUMNI


Friday, February 2nd is Groundhog Day and some of us will be waiting to see if Punxsutawney Phil saw a shadow or not! Punxsutawney Phil and other groundhogs have been predicting the arrival of Spring for many years and has intrigued us all.   NASA Education Specialist Dr. Anne Weiss NASA Education specialist at NASA Langley Research Center, Dr. Anne Weiss, was gathering cloud and temperature data while visiting her nephews (3rd, 5th, and 8th grade) when they got talking about Punxsutawney Phil. Her nephews were questioning if Punxsutawney Phil’s forecast would affect ...


Posted in: Curriculum: EDUCATION RESEARCH SCIENCE AND MATH   GLOBE Science Topics: GENERAL SCIENCE SCIENTIST SKILLS BACKYARD SCIENCE GLOBE PROTOCOLS   Investigation Areas: CLOUDS   Learning Activities: ESTIMATING CLOUD COVER   Primary Audience: TRAINERS TEACHERS STUDENTS


Satellites can detect and collect a lot of observations in very short amount of time. It is simple to think that anything that is white in an image is a cloud. Well, not always.  Look at these beautiful images taken by the GOES 16 satellite of the recent "Winter Weather Bomb" that left a blanket of snow from South Georgia to New England on January 4, 2018. Click here and watch a loop of images from the GOES 16 satellite for January 4, 2018. GOES 16 Image taken on January 4, 2018 at 171720Z GOES 16 Image taken on January 4, 2018 at 201720Z   ...


Posted in: Curriculum: STEM EDUCATION RESEARCH   Event Topics: OTHER   GLOBE Science Topics: SCIENTIST SKILLS GLOBE PROTOCOLS GENERAL SCIENCE BACKYARD SCIENCE CLIMATE   Investigation Areas: CLOUDS   Learning Activities: ATMOSPHERE AND CLIMATE   Primary Audience: TRAINERS TEACHERS STUDENTS PARTNERS SCIENTISTS


Here at NASA Langley we've started the year with snow, and lots of it! Has all this snow and weather gotten you hooked on the weather? Do you like to watch the weather reports on TV or on your phone? Dr. Yolanda Shea, a scientist at NASA Langley Research Center, used to do just that when she was younger. See what inspired her and how she became a NASA scientist! Comment and share how this video inspires you! Also, with all this snow on the ground, be sure to submit your cloud reports! Enter your data through GLOBE or use the  GLOBE Observer app and follow ...


Posted in: Curriculum: STEM   GLOBE Science Topics: GENERAL SCIENCE SCIENTIST SKILLS BACKYARD SCIENCE   Primary Audience: TRAINERS TEACHERS STUDENTS COUNTRY COORDINATORS PARTNERS


We are in the middle of our December observations for the Urban Heat Island Effect/Surface Temperature Field Campaign. 69 schools have entered 1323 observations. As developer of the surface temperature protocol I wanted to thank everyone who has taken observations . It is your data that will allow other students to create interesting research projects as well as providing a database for me and my students to conduct research. We have schools all over the world taking surface temperature observations to contribute to the campaign. I want to talk about problems some schools are having ...


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The GLOBE Clouds team loves coming up with ways to help students and teachers identify clouds. I've been blessed to visit a number of 4th grade full inclusion classrooms and want to share my quick cloud ID and data collection activity outline! Anchor question: Do all clouds look the same, even from space? Goal: Students identify, collect and submit cloud observations by using their own notes and clues for each possible cloud type. Objectives:  Students will, (A) Recognize that clouds are part of the water cycle. (B) Investigate cloud types ...


Posted in: Curriculum: STEM   GLOBE Science Topics: SCIENTIST SKILLS GLOBE PROTOCOLS   Learning Activities: ATMOSPHERE AND CLIMATE   Primary Audience: TRAINERS TEACHERS   Teacher's Guide: UPPER PRIMARY: 3-5 RESOURCES


The GLOBE Clouds team at NASA Langley Research Center in Hampton, VA would like to highlight the top observers of 2017! Thank you to all observers for submitting your observations and using the satellite matching of data.   Top 10 cloud observers for 2017   Observer School Country Total Observations Valentina Langiene Zemynos pro-gimnazium Lithuania 1201 Ahmad Alhefzi As-Siddiq Secondary School at ...


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By Olawale Oluwafemi (Femi), (Nigerian Space Agency) and DeStaerke Danielle (CNES) The primary objective of every research project is not only about what you discover but also how do you communicate your discoveries to the interested audience. Delivering either a poster or oral presentation at a scientific meeting is not an easy task, but my passionate friend Danielle and I will present tips that will assist GLOBE Students and Teachers to deliver good scientific presentations.  Plate 1: Femi delivering poster presentation during GLOBE Annual Meeting at Estes Park, ...


Posted in: Curriculum: STEM EDUCATION RESEARCH   Event Topics: GLOBE LEARNING EXPEDITIONS SCIENCE SYMPOSIA AND FAIRS COMPETITIONS   GLOBE Science Topics: MEETINGS/CONFERENCES   GLOBE Working Groups: SCIENCE WORKING GROUP EDUCATION WORKING GROUP   News Topics: VIRTUAL SCIENCE FAIR MEETINGS   Primary Audience: TRAINERS TEACHERS STUDENTS SCIENTISTS


Learning science involves learning important concepts, conducting experiments to see first-hand how researchers discovered and confirmed some elements of science concepts, and learning how to think scientifically. With this complete approach to learning science, students are well-prepared to deal with the natural world around them and to make wise decisions when confronted with various choices. The ability to think scientifically is a valuable skill in almost all aspects of life and doing science teaches scientific habits of mind. Students can do science through research projects ...


Posted in: Curriculum: STEM SCIENCE AND MATH   GLOBE Science Topics: SCIENTIST SKILLS GENERAL SCIENCE BACKYARD SCIENCE   GLOBE Working Groups: SCIENCE WORKING GROUP   Investigation Areas: ATMOSPHERE EARTH AS A SYSTEM HYDROSPHERE PEDOSPHERE (SOIL) BIOSPHERE   News Topics: VIRTUAL SCIENCE FAIR COMPETITIONS   Primary Audience: TEACHERS STUDENTS PARTNERS COUNTRY COORDINATORS


Gathering data Once you have determined what protocols to use for your project, you will need to develop a plan for gathering the data. It might consist of using automated data collection or making your own measurements. Also, it may include finding data taken by others, such as when you compare your observations with those of another GLOBE school. Automated Data Collection If you are using an automated data collection device or devices, verify that the data are being recorded properly before your official testing timeframe. You will want to monitor that the data are being ...


Posted in: Curriculum: STEM EDUCATION RESEARCH SCIENCE AND MATH TECHNOLOGY   Event Topics: SCIENCE SYMPOSIA AND FAIRS   GLOBE Science Topics: SCIENTIST SKILLS MEETINGS/CONFERENCES   GLOBE Working Groups: SCIENCE WORKING GROUP EDUCATION WORKING GROUP   News Topics: VIRTUAL SCIENCE FAIR   Primary Audience: TEACHERS STUDENTS   Teacher's Guide: SECONDARY: 9-12 MIDDLE: 6-8


Exciting new VR and AR applications of Geovisualizations are be developed at the Institute for Earth Observations at Palmyra Cove. You can check a quick demo on our Partnership's website www.palmyracove.org or take a look at the Mission Earth webinar @ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nCgntUpqcFg


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The Urban Heat Island field campaign October version turned out to be a great success. Many schools took observations and entered them onto the GLOBE website. Remember, we are looking at the urban heat island in the seasons, October, December and March. Forty-three schools entered data in the month of October. If you haven't entered your data yet, please do soon. You can see on the map below that there were observations taken across the world. The size of the dot represents the total number of observations taken at  the site. There has been great participation from Saudi Arabia, ...


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Having students collaborate on projects has been a great potential of the GLOBE Program. Through GLOBE Mission EARTH, students in Detroit, Michigan and Shageluk, Alaska interacted over the Internet. Their teachers worked together with GLOBE Mission EARTH to plan the exchange. Students from Randy Smith Middle School, Fairbanks, Alaska, Carol Scott. Thirkell Elementary School 5th grade, Detroit Michigan - Teacher Connie Atkisson Students were asked to generate questions to ask each other before the web meeting. They found that their houses were very similar. The ...


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Authors: Claudia Caro and Olawale Oluwafemi (Femi) Our participation in the International Virtual Science Symposium (IVSS) as judges has allowed us  to learn more about  the scientific experiences of students involved in the GLOBE Program. As members of the GLOBE Science Working Group with backgrounds in Geography and Biology, we would like to share our findings about the importance of the IVSS in the GLOBE community and give you some advice to empower your participation in this extraordinary yearly event. Why an International Virtual Science Symposium? Knowledge ...


Posted in: Curriculum: STEM SCIENCE AND MATH TECHNOLOGY   Event Topics: SCIENCE SYMPOSIA AND FAIRS   GLOBE Working Groups: SCIENCE WORKING GROUP EDUCATION WORKING GROUP   Primary Audience: TEACHERS STUDENTS COUNTRY COORDINATORS   Teacher's Guide: SECONDARY: 9-12 MIDDLE: 6-8 GRADE LEVELS


When you start writing your GLOBE report for IVSS, it might be difficult because you might not sure where to start. We tend to start writing the Methods section first because it is something you did it yourselves and it should be relatively easy and straight forward to write. Second, you should write the Results section, do graphs, tables and texts (think of a best way to present your cool data to the whole world). Third, you should start writing the Introduction stating your hypotheses and predictions. The next step would be the Discussion section. It is funny to say but as scientists, ...


Posted in: Curriculum: STEM EDUCATION RESEARCH SCIENCE AND MATH TECHNOLOGY   Event Topics: MEETINGS SCIENCE SYMPOSIA AND FAIRS   GLOBE Science Topics: SCIENTIST SKILLS MEETINGS/CONFERENCES   GLOBE Working Groups: SCIENCE WORKING GROUP EDUCATION WORKING GROUP   News Topics: VIRTUAL SCIENCE FAIR   Primary Audience: TEACHERS STUDENTS   Teacher's Guide: GRADE LEVELS SECONDARY: 9-12 MIDDLE: 6-8


https://earthengine.google.com/timelapse/#v=52.02687,-9.54373,10.654,latLng&t=3.20  


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Observations of daily precipitation have been a part of GLOBE from the beginning. At the start, GLOBE’s participation model was that schools would take measurement following all of the original 17 protocols. Atmosphere temperature, precipitation, cloud, and soil moisture measurements were to be collected daily at a site easily accessible to the school. A permanent installation of an instrument shelter containing a max/min thermometer mounted to a post along with a rain gauge was the expected norm with other measurements taken nearby. Daily temperature and precipitation measurements were ...


Posted in: Field Campaigns: EL NIÑO GPM   GLOBE Science Topics: GLOBE PROTOCOLS   GLOBE Working Groups: SCIENCE WORKING GROUP EDUCATION WORKING GROUP   Investigation Areas: ATMOSPHERE   Primary Audience: TRAINERS TEACHERS STUDENTS PARTNERS COUNTRY COORDINATORS   Teacher's Guide: DOCUMENT TYPES


From the start, the measurement of daily maximum and minimum air temperature within one hour of local solar noon has been a key GLOBE protocol. The low cost approach was to use a U-tube thermometer housed in a wooden instrument shelter facing away from the equator. The U-shaped tube contained mercury with pins on either side of the mercury. As the air temperature warmed the pin on one side would move while the other pin stayed in place; when the air cooled, the pin on the other side would be pushed up. The pins were held in place by magnetized strips behind the thermometer tube so that ...


Posted in: Curriculum: STEM TECHNOLOGY   GLOBE Science Topics: EARTH AS A SYSTEM EARTH SYSTEM SCIENCE GLOBE PROTOCOLS CLIMATE CHANGE CLIMATE   GLOBE Working Groups: SCIENCE WORKING GROUP   Investigation Areas: ATMOSPHERE   Primary Audience: TEACHERS TRAINERS STUDENTS PARTNERS SCIENTISTS ALUMNI COUNTRY COORDINATORS


As Earth science has a single uncontrolled object of study, the first rule is to take today’s data today. While ice and sediment cores and fossils can reveal past conditions, the observations that can be made right now cannot be replaced by ones taken later. This goes well with the Native American adage, “You can’t step in the same river twice.” The environment is constantly changing and doing so on a wide range of time and space scales. In a recent video post, Neil deGrasse Tyson said, “One of the great things about science is that it is an entire exercise finding what is true. You ...


Posted in: Curriculum: SCIENCE AND MATH   Event Topics: CAMPAIGNS AND PROJECTS (IOPS, ETC) GLOBE LEARNING EXPEDITIONS SCIENCE SYMPOSIA AND FAIRS   Field Campaigns: EL NIÑO SMAP   GLOBE Science Topics: EARTH AS A SYSTEM EARTH SYSTEM SCIENCE GENERAL SCIENCE CLIMATE CHANGE CLIMATE   Investigation Areas: EARTH AS A SYSTEM   Primary Audience: TEACHERS STUDENTS ALUMNI