MY NASA DATA E-note (Number 23)
June 2008

Greetings MY NASA DATA Alumni and Newslist members!

The monthly E-note is sent to anyone who is interested in learning more about or keeping up to date with the MY NASA DATA project. 
If you know someone who is interested in this information, the sign-up can be found at:
http://eosweb.larc.nasa.gov/HPDOCS/email_registration.html

1) New data added to the LAS
2) Lesson H1: Hurricanes as Heat Engines (Inquiry Version)
3) Time-at-a-glance table has been updated
4) Be a cloud observer for the summer!
5) New educational module from the Lunar and Planetary Institute

1) New data added to the LAS

Now the Live Access Server can provide Chlorophyll-a Concentration data from the SeaWIFS project (http://oceancolor.gsfc.nasa.gov/SeaWiFS). 
This parameter is the monthly average concentration of chlorophyll-a derived by satellite measurements of ocean color. 
Subtle changes in ocean color result from changes in the concentrations of marine phytoplankton. 
The more phytoplankton present, the greater the concentration of plant pigments and the greener the water. 
Note this parameter is available in LAS Armstrong only.

2) Lesson H1: Hurricanes as Heat Engines (Inquiry Version)
We have added another lesson to our Team Lesson page that is an "Inquiry Version" of our original hurricane lesson. 
The lesson procedure is "open-ended", as opposed to a stepped procedure through LAS, more appropriate for 
upper grade levels or advanced science research classes. The lesson starts with a "mystery observation" of reduced 
sea surface temperature after a hurricane passage, and the students have to figure out the physical meaning and causes.

3) Time-at-a-glance table has been updated
The ‘Time Coverage at a Glance’ page (http://mynasadata.larc.nasa.gov/ParmTime.html) has been updated to include Chlorophyll-a. 
Other parameters, such as Sea Surface Temperature and Aerosol Optical Depth timelines, were updated to show that additional data is now available.

4) Be a cloud observer for the summer!
What are your plans for the summer? Traveling? Teaching summer or year-round classes? 
Here is an opportunity to become a cloud observer for the NASA CERES S’COOL project, the sister project of 
MY NASA DATA in the NASA Langley Science Directorate. While you are engaged in summer activities, 
you may observe from any location! Check out the newly designed Rover pages on the S’COOL website, 
at http://asd-www.larc.nasa.gov/SCOOL/Rover/. Because this is a new feature on the S’COOL website, 
please consider sending your feedback to help the S’COOL team improve the Rover pages.

5)New educational module from the Lunar and Planetary Institute
The Lunar and Planetary Institute has released a new educational module “Explore Ice Worlds: On Earth and Beyond”, 
(http://www.lpi.usra.edu/education/explore/ice/activities/).
Teachers are invited to participate in three free Web casts to learn about current polar research from NASA scientists, 
to get answers to questions, and to explore hands-on activities designed for out-of-school-time programs.
To register for the Web casts, or for more information, please contact Katy Buckaloo at buckaloo@lpi.usra.edu, or 281-486-2109.