Students will watch a short video that explains albedo and how it plays an important role in Earth’s Energy Budget. Applying what they learned from the video, students will analyze a bar graph that lists the albedos of common surfaces found on Earth to answer critical thinking questions.

In this activity, students will model  the geometry of solar eclipses by plotting a few points on a piece of graph paper, and using quarters and a nickel to represent the Sun and Moon (not to scale). 

Examine (daytime) surface temperature and solar radiation received at locations found near similar latitudes using NASA Data.

Students analyze surface air temperature anomalies to identify change with respect to different latitudes across the world.

In this activity, students will model the geometry of solar eclipses using quarters to represent the Sun and Moon (not to scale).

Students interpret a double bar/column chart comparing the number of tropical cyclones in different locations.

Use the Earth System Data Explorer to analyze data and make a claim about which 2018 eruption was larger, Kilauea, HI or Ambae Island, Vanuatu.

Students explore albedo, sea ice, and the relationship between changing albedo and changing sea ice using data visualizations. 

Learners will analyze and interpret a box plot and evaluate the spread of the data. Learners will compare it with a different visualization of the data to see how the two compare, discuss the limitations of the two types of data displays and formulate questions.

Students consider the impact of changing conditions on the remote island of Little Diomede, Alaska after they investigate the relationship between seasonal trends in sea ice extent with shortwave and longwave radiation flux described in Earth’s energy budget.