STEM Network Blog Intro

STEM Professionals' Blog


The GLOBE International STEM professionals Network (GISN) 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.

Scientist Blogs Aggregator




This week we are very excited to highlight the work of Ms. Jillian Anderson and her high school students at the Lexington School for the Deaf, in Queens, NY. Ever since they joined the U.S. GLOBE Air Quality Student Research Campaign, they have been going outside to make observations of the atmosphere every day! The students have been submitting both Clouds and Aerosol Optical Thickness observations and we want to thank them for their valuable contribution to science.   We encourage them to keep up their great work and we invite other schools to continue submitting...


Posted in: Curriculum: STEM GLOBE Science Topics: Scientist Skills GLOBE Protocols GLOBE Working Groups: Science Working Group Investigation Areas: Atmosphere » Aerosols Primary Audience: Teachers Students Partners Scientists

Eight-grade students from Our Lady of Mount Carmel School have been very active during our GLOBE 2017-18 U.S. Air Quality Student Research Campaign. In fact, they recently submitted their team projects to the GLOBE 2018 International Virtual Science Symposium. All students have done remarkable work and one of the most important skills they have developed is collaboration. Among these students, one of them stood out for becoming a Calitoo expert user and for helping not only the members of her own team, but also the members of all other teams, with her accurate AOT measurements. This...


Posted in: Curriculum: STEM Science and Math Event Topics: Campaigns and Projects (IOPs, etc) GLOBE Science Topics: General Science Earth System Science GLOBE Protocols GLOBE Working Groups: Science Working Group Investigation Areas: Atmosphere » Aerosols Primary Audience: Teachers Students Partners

   Today we will get a closer at look at the values displayed on our Calitoo screen. When you first turn on your Calitoo, you will get a screen like the following: note the serial number of your instrument will be displayed.                After the initial screen, your instrument will display basic information as shown on the following picture (Source: http://www.calitoo.fr/uploads/documents/en/usermanual_2016_en.pdf) TIP: The temperature displayed by your Calitoo is actually the temperature inside the instrument. When you...


Posted in: Event Topics: Campaigns and Projects (IOPs, etc) Science Symposia and Fairs GLOBE Science Topics: Earth System Science GLOBE Protocols GLOBE Working Groups: Science Working Group Investigation Areas: Atmosphere » Aerosols News Topics: Virtual Science Fair Primary Audience: Trainers Teachers Students Partners

Today we start a series of posts devoted to providing information, tips, tricks and answers to frequently asked questions by Calitoo users! So, how do you measure Aerosol Optical Thickness (AOT) with a Calitoo? First and foremost: NEVER look directly at the sun! And…ONLY take measurements when the sun is not obstructed by clouds. TIP: Use your hand(s) to cover the sun; if you see any clouds on either side of your hand(s), do NOT take any measurements. Wait until the sun is not obstructed by clouds. Now, the Calitoo sun photometer measures AOT values at 465 nm, 540 nm and 619 nm. ...


Posted in: Curriculum: STEM Education Research Science and Math Event Topics: Campaigns and Projects (IOPs, etc) Science Symposia and Fairs GLOBE Science Topics: General Science GLOBE Protocols GLOBE Working Groups: Science Working Group Investigation Areas: Atmosphere » Aerosols News Topics: Virtual Science Fair Primary Audience: Students Teachers Partners

A fourth grade student from Public School 122 (Queens, NY), recently visited NASA Langley for a week. During his visit, he studied the GLOBE Aerosol Protocol. He went outside the Atmospheric Sciences building and collected aerosol data using a Calitoo sun photometer, which measures Aerosol Optical Thickness (AOT) at three wavelengths: 465nm (blue), 540nm (green) and 619nm (red). After downloading the data measured with the Calitoo to his laptop, the student learned how to access AERONET data. The AERONET (AErosol RObotic NETwork) project is a federation of ground-based remote sensing...


Posted in: Curriculum: STEM Education Research Science and Math Event Topics: Campaigns and Projects (IOPs, etc) Science Symposia and Fairs GLOBE Science Topics: GLOBE Protocols General Science GLOBE Working Groups: Science Working Group Investigation Areas: Atmosphere Atmosphere » Aerosols News Topics: Virtual Science Fair Primary Audience: Teachers Students Partners