This lesson is designed to help students gain knowledge in accessing current weather data and in using the MY NASA DATA Live Access Server (LAS) to specify and download historical satellite data.
This brochure gives a brief description of the science research that is being done with data from the CERES instrument flying onboard NASA's Terra satellite. It also contains information about some of the data products and technical specifications.
Cloud cover over Borneo for March 1, 1998 superimposed over a topographic image
The purpose of this activity is to observe the type and cover of clouds including contrails. Students observe which of ten types of clouds and how many of three types of contrails are visible and how much of the sky is covered by clouds (other than contrails) and how much is covered by contrails. Intended outcomes are that students learn how to make estimates from observations and how to categorize specific clouds following general descriptions for the categories. They will learn the meteorological concepts of cloud heights, types, and cloud cover and learn the ten basic cloud types. Supporting background materials for both student and teacher are included.
Corals feed on algae that thrive in the sunlit water surrounding a reef. However, when water temperatures get too warm, the algae food source dies and corals turn a whitish color. Through scientific observation, it has been determined that coral bleaching is the cause. Students will use authentic satellite data to determine when the sea surface temperature meets the criteria to induce coral bleaching.
The Digital Earth Workbench is an interactive application that runs on a SGI Onyx Infinite Reality system and is controlled by an Immersive Workbench, tracked stereo glasses, and a tracked wand. The application allows an unprecedented freedom to roam georeferenced datasets at multiple resolutions and timescales. This animation is one of a series of direct screen captures of the application in operation. The occasional menu appearance denotes direct intervention by the operator to add or delete data or to activate a new control option.
Scientists have studied the physical properties of clouds and have developed instruments onboard satellites to characterize the types of clouds they see below. Some satellites have instruments that allow them to measure rainfall as well. For this lesson, students will use satellite data to compare precipitation (rainfall) to cloud type
The ability to see Earth from space has forever changed our view of the planet. We are now able to look at the Earth as a whole, and observe how its atmosphere, oceans, land masses, and life interact as global systems. Earths atmosphere, hydrosphere, geosphere, and biosphere are dynamic, changing on timescales of days, minutes, or even seconds. Monitoring the Earth in near real time allows us to get an up to date picture of conditions on our planet. More SVS visualizations for the Earth Today exhibit can be found in animation ids 328 and 1401.
The ability to see Earth from space has forever changed our view of the planet. We are now able to look at the Earth as a whole, and observe how its atmosphere, oceans, land masses, and life interact as global systems. Earths atmosphere, hydrosphere, geosphere, and biosphere are dynamic, changing on timescales of days, minutes, or even seconds. Monitoring the Earth in near real time allows us to get an up to date picture of conditions on our planet. More SVS visualizations for the Earth Today exhibit are in animation ids 1401 and 1402.
The ability to see Earth from space has forever changed our view of the planet. We are now able to look at the Earth as a whole, and observe how its atmosphere, oceans, land masses, and life interact as global systems. Earths atmosphere, hydrosphere, geosphere, and biosphere are dynamic, changing on timescales of days, minutes, or even seconds. Monitoring the Earth in near real time allows us to get an up to date picture of conditions on our planet. More SVS visualizations for the Earth Today exhibit can be found in animation ids 328 and 1402.
The purpose of this activity is to help students better understand percent cloud cover and to take more accurate cloud cover observations. Working in pairs or small groups, students use construction paper to simulate cloud cover. They estimate the percentage of cloud cover represented by torn pieces of paper on a contrasting background and assign a cloud cover classification to the simulations created by their classmates. Intended outcomes are that students will understand the difficulties of visually estimating the percentage of cloud cover and gain experience estimating cloud cover, evaluating the accuracy of estimates, and using fractions and percentages.
This animation is a mosaic of cloud cover data taken by several different satellites in the infrared band. One of the most prominent cloud features during this time was Hurricane Erin near the Atlantic coast of the United States.
These animations were produced for the Smithsonian Institution's HoloGlobe Exhibit which opened to the public on August 10, 1996 at the Museum of Natural History in Washington, DC. The various data sets show progressive global change mapped onto a rotating globe and projected into space to create a holographic image of the Earth. The exhibit shows that Earth's atmosphere, hydrosphere, geosphere, and biosphere are dynamic, changing on timescales of days, minutes, or even seconds. The exhibit has since been relocated to the west coast. This is a revised version from Animation #116 [The Hologlobe Project (version 2)].
This animation is a mosaic of cloud cover data taken by several different satellites in the infrared band. Instead of showing a global composite, it is cropped to highlight the Atlantic Ocean. One of the most prominent cloud features during this time was Hurricane Erin.
Simulation of cloud cover over Antarctica and South America during the 1997-1998 El Nino.
Simulation of cloud cover over Antarctica and South America during February 2002.
Simulation of cloud cover over Antarctica and South America during the 1998 La Nina.
One of the most studied and important ocean currents of the world lies along the eastern coast of the United States and is called the Gulf Stream. It derives its name from its source region of warm water in the Gulf of Mexico. In this lesson, students will use authentic satellite data to explore the seasonal changes in sea surface temperature of the Gulf Stream.
