This animation displays one year of Outgoing Long-wave Radiation (OLR) Terra-CERES data (March 1, 2000 to May 25, 2001) with a 14-day boxcar average. Endpoints have the average re-weighted for the smaller amount of data. The data are 2.5 degree resolution.

This animation displays one year of Reflected Solar Radiation (RSR) Terra-CERES data (March 1, 2000 to May 25, 2001) with a 14-day boxcar average. Endpoints have the average re-weighted for the smaller amount of data. The data are 2.5 degree resolution.

ASTERs ability to sense fine-scale heated surfaces is providing never-before seen views of active volcanic eruptions. These observations provide a detailed look into the eruptive history. Lava flows, hot mud-flows, and other details of eruption activity that cannot be seen using other techniques are revealed. Michael Ramsey of the University of Pittsburgh will present initial observations of the recent phases of two ongoing eruptions in the Caribbean (Montserrat) and Russia (Bezymianny).

ASTERs ability to sense fine-scale heated surfaces is providing never-before seen views of active volcanic eruptions. These observations provide a detailed look into the eruptive history. Lava flows, hot mud-flows, and other details of eruption activity that cannot be seen using other techniques are revealed. Michael Ramsey of the University of Pittsburgh will present initial observations of the recent phases of two ongoing eruptions in the Caribbean (Montserrat) and Russia (Bezymianny).

The course treats the following topics: - Relevant physical oceanography - Elements of marine geology (seafloor topography, acoustical properties of sediments and rocks) - Underwater sound propagation (ray acoustics, ocean noise) - Interaction of sound with the seafloor (reflection, scattering) - Principles of sonar (beamforming) - Underwater acoustic mapping systems (single beam echo sounding, multi-beam echo sounding, sidescan sonar) - Data analysis (refraction corrections, digital terrain modelling) - Applications (hydrographic survey planning and navigation, coastal engineering) - Current and future developments.

This exercise is intended to connect students to geology and to remind them of the diverse ways in which people, including geoscientists, relate to rocks. Groups of students are asked to examine rock samples from specific perspectives such as sculptors, landowners or geologists, and then present relevant observations and questions. Next, individuals write one-minute papers summarizing what they have learned and evaluating the activity. On this Starting Point page, users can access information about the exercise's learning goals, context for use, teaching notes and tips, teaching materials, assessment ideas, references and topics covered.

In this lab, each student or small student group "adopts" a different outcrop or road cut, describing and interpreting both the outcrop scale features and hand specimens. This website provides a context for the use of this lab, and describes learning goals, teaching notes and assessment. It also includes downloadable handouts and other teaching materials.

Interactive animation showing the changes occurring to an ice-shelf in relation to the temperature of the surrounding water.
The animation has been created on the basis of the most recent models created by the modelling team of the antarctic research called ANDRILL.

In this web-based, interactive story, Tutangiaq (Too-tang-geye-ack - nicknamed 2T), a Canada Goose, flies across Alaska looking for his family. As he flies, he tells children about the fascinating 49th state. Children learn how Alaska was purchased from the Russians, and other facts about the state. They can also compare the size of Alaska to other states. 2T takes a flight across the volcanic chain in Alaska and helps the students to interactively explore how scientists monitor volcanoes from satellite images in near-real time. At the coast, the bird also meets his Walrus friend who shows him how the sea ice edge has receded and gives an example of an adverse effect on marine life. Finally, 2T arrives in Fairbanks where children use satellite imagery to help 2T find and unite with his family.

These PDF files are Illustrated Lectures from his Earth history class (entitled introductory biology). The PDF files contain a lot of projection-ready graphics that may be useful in introductory Earth Science lectures. Lecture topics include the nature of science, cosmological evolution, biological evolution, life as a chemical function, The Hadean, Archean, Proterozoic, Paleozoic, Mesozoic and Cenozoic Eons, life and energy and biology and society.

This site presents a collection of scientific learning resources for educators, parents, kids, after-school coordinators, informal learning center staff, and anyone else interested in teaching or learning about science. The site provides a searchable database of resource materials, including activities (computer based and otherwise), curriculum materials, articles, evidence and analytical tools and procedures, exhibition materials, reference lists, and special collections of resources organized around a particular theme. Users can browse resources by topic, sub-topic, grade level, or resource type. Each resource is displayed with a concise description that includes the title, resource type, grade level, and key concepts. Clicking the icon next to the title displays the full resource description. If available, other icons link to the resource in print format, Web format, or both.

This Flash animation illustrates continental growth. It shows a convergent boundary where a terrane on a subducting plate is fused to the edge of a continent. Users can stop, play, fast forward and rewind the animation at any time. This visualization is one of several animations in a series developed as a component of Exploring Earth, a website that supports the textbook Earth Science.

This Flash animation illustrates aeolian processes that form terrestrial arches. Erosion exploits tectonic fractures and results in thin sandstone walls that can be penetrated by near ground windblown sand grains. Over time, weathering and gravity causes arches to fall. Users can stop, play, fast forward and rewind the animation at any time. This visualization is one of several animations in a series developed as a component of Exploring Earth, a website that supports the textbook Earth Science.

This 11-slide PowerPoint presentation presents a short succession of schematic diagrams illustrating the structural evolution of anorthosites. The slides discuss the relative abundance of rare earth elements, describe six types of anorthosite occurrence, and contain pictures showing anorthositic texture. This resource is part of the Teaching Petrology collection. http://serc.carleton.edu/NAGTWorkshops/petrology03/index.html

This USGS site explains what an aquifer is and defines the different types of aquifers based on six principal lithologies; sandstone, carbonate, sandstone-carbonate, igneous and metamorphic, sand and gravel, and other rock types. The site features maps and descriptions of the major aquifers in the United States as well as general information about groundwater occurrence and quality. The site also provides links to additional maps and data about specific aquifers across the nation.

The Araona Crater (also known as the Iturralde Structure) is a suspected crater from an impactor which struck northern Bolivia approximately 20,000 years ago. The feature is believed to have been caused by a short period comet striking at 70 kilometers per second and splattering into the muddy alluvial flood plain in the Lower Amazon jungle. The impact created a circular depression which is now roughly 8 kilometers across and 3 meters deep. The structure was discovered in 1988 Landsat data, but was not visited successfully until 1998 because the region is inaccessible. Future expeditions hope to finally settle if the feature truly is the impact crater it appears to be, and if so, determine the nature of the impactor. The full Landsat scene of Northern Bolivia includes the Rio Bene running northward through the image (North is up), with the Rio Madidi running across the image from southwest towards the northeast before joining the Rio Bene. The image was constructed from Landsat Thematic Mapper bands 7, 5, and 3 displayed as red, green, and blue respectively. The green tone of the image distinguishes between different types of vegetation with low scrubland in the alluvial flood plain appears as a light green and dense tropical jungle coverage appearing dark green. The close-up of the impact crater uses the same Landsat data, but passed through a sharpening image filter which emphasizes high spatial frequency features and tends to enhance color contrast.

This site provides information about the distribution of arsenic in ground water of the United States. The site features links to publications such as fact sheets, research and reports, as well as numerical data collected from over 20,000 wells. The site also provides maps that show where and to what extent arsenic occurs in ground water across the country. Links to additional resources related to arsenic and drinking water are also included.

This Web site, created to complement the Hall of Meteorites, looks at these fallen rocks and what they tell scientists about the formation of stars and planets.

Through a higher-order integration of concepts and observations, students can combine information from several field labs, all discussed in the Starting Point collection, to construct an overall geologic history of the local region. This site details the learning goals, teaching notes and materials, method of assessment, and context of use of this lab. It also provides links to additional references and resources.