+ Visit NASA.gov + Visit the ASDC Home Page Trouble in the Troposphere - A Lesson on Tropospheric Ozone Image courtesy EPA Purpose: Using data sets from MY NASA DATA, students will produce graphs comparing monthly and yearly ozone averages of several U.S. cities. Grade Level: 6 - 8 Estimated Time for Completing Activity: One 90-minute block or two 50-minute class periods Learning Outcomes: Students will create graphs using NASA data Students will compare ozone levels of several U.S. cities Students will analyze and evaluate the data and predict trends based on the data Students will discuss and describe how human activities have modified Earth's air quality National Standards: Science Content: D Earth and Space Science Science Content: E Science and Technology Geography: The World in Spatial Terms Geography: Environment and Society Geography: The Uses of Geography Virginia Standards of Learning: ES.1b: The student will plan and conduct investigations in which technologies, including computers, probeware, and global positioning systems (GPS), are used to collect, analyze, and report data and to demonstrate concepts and simulate experimental conditions. ES.2a: The student will demonstrate scientific reasoning and logic by analyzing how science explains and predicts the interactions and dynamics of complex Earth systems. ES.2c: The student will demonstrate scientific reasoning and logic by comparing different scientific explanations for a set of observations about the Earth. ES.3: The student will investigate and understand how to read and interpret maps, globes, models, charts, and imagery. ES.12: The student will investigate and understand the origin and evolution of the atmosphere and the interrelationship of geologic processes, biologic processes, and human activities on its composition and dynamics. ES.13: The student will investigate and understand that energy transfer between the sun and the Earth and its atmosphere drives weather and climate on Earth. Prerequisite: Familiarity with accessing websites on the Internet Ozone Background Information GLOBE Ozone Activities (Ex. Collecting Ozone Data and Constructing a Model of ppbv of Surface Ozone) Tools: Computers with Internet access Printer Vocabulary: dobson unit ozone stratosphere troposphere Lesson Links: EPA's AirNow website EPA Air Quality Index U.S. Gazetteer NASA Ozone PowerPoint Presentation Background: For excellent background information on Ozone and air quality, please visit EPA's AirNow website listed in the attached Links. Additional information can be found in the PowerPoint created by Jack Creilson during the 2005 MY NASA DATA workshop, also listed in the Lesson Links. Ozone is an almost colorless, gaseous form of oxygen. It is a relatively unstable compound of three oxygen atoms. Ozone in the stratosphere is found in a layer from approximately 15 km to 50 km above the earth's surface. This 'good' ozone protects the earth from harmful ultraviolet radiation from the sun. Though the stratospheric ozone is helpful, ozone found in the troposphere can actually cause damage to plants and animals, including humans. Even at relatively low levels, ozone may cause inflammation and irritation of the respiratory tract. 'Bad' ozone, or tropospheric ozone, is a by-product of photochemical processes associated with air pollution. Ozone levels can reach unhealthy levels when the weather is hot and sunny with relatively light winds. Ozone levels are measured in a variety of ways. Levels can be measured in ppbs (parts per billion) or in Dobson Units (DU). One DU is 2.7 x 10E16 ozone molecules per square centimeter. One DU refers to a layer of ozone that would be 0.001 cm thick under conditions of standard temperature (0 degrees Celsius) and pressure (the average at the surface of the earth). The EPA uses a 0-300 scale Air Quality Index which rates air quality in six categories from Good to Very Unhealthy. Procedure: Part I: Expert Groups Students will be grouped in 'Expert Groups' of three to four students. Each expert group will be assigned a U.S. city and be given that city's latitude and longitude. See Lesson Links for the website 'U.S. Gazetteer' to find coordinates for major U.S. cities. Using NASA Data, students will collect and graph their city's tropospheric ozone residual monthly climate for a one-year period. Students need to print a completed graph for each member of the Expert Group. To access data: 1. Access MY NASA DATA website 2. Go to Live Access to Data 3. Go to Live Access to Server 4. Go to Atmosphere 5. Go to Air Quality 6. Go to Monthly Tropospheric Ozone Residual Climatology (TOR) 7. Click Next To create graph, select the following : 1. Select View: Time Series 2. Select Output: Line Plot 3. Select Region: North America 4. Either type in your latitude and longitude or move the indicator on top of the city. 5. Select Range: Begin-January Average, End-December Average 6. Click Next 7. Print one copy of the Tropospheric Ozone Residual Monthly Climatology graph for each member of the expert group. Part II: Jigsaw Groups Students will be regrouped using a cooperative jigsaw method. New groups will be formed containing one member from each of the Expert Groups. These 'Jigsaw' groups will meet to compile and compare data using the graphs that each member will bring from their former Expert Group. Experts from each area will discuss their group data. Using the graphs that each member of the group brings, compare the data of ozone averages from the represented cities. The Jigsaw groups will use member graphs, maps, and EPA guidelines provided by the teacher (see Teacher Notes) to answer the questions listed below. Questions: 1. How do your city's seasonal ozone changes compare to the other cities in your Jigsaw group? 2. What climate, geographic, or population variations could be causing the differences? 3. During the solstices and equinoxes, what chance does each of the cities have of reaching dangerous ozone levels according to EPA's AQI? 4. How many ozone action days does your city have each year? How does that compare to the other cities in your Jigsaw group? 5. Look at global wind patterns. From where does your city's ozone travel? Extensions: 1. Print graphs or maps for a given month for the last three decades. Have ozone amounts changed? Have they deviated from the average? How? 2. Have the entire class come back together for a Global Conference on Tropospheric Ozone. In the Global Conference, discuss what global citizens can do to protect themselves from harmful ozone levels and what citizens can do to decrease ozone levels. Discuss why there needs to be global cooperation in our attempt to lower tropospheric ozone levels. Lesson plan contributed by Debbie Murphy, Tom Bean, TX Click here for Teachers Notes + Freedom of Information Act + The President's Management Agenda + Privacy Policy and Important Notices NASA Official: Lin H. Chambers Last Updated: January 24, 2007 + Contact Us + Interested in our Monthly E-note?