Students move through a series of short activities to explore and evaluate global solar radiation data from NASA satellites.  In this process, students make qualitative and quantitative observations about seasonal variations in net energy input to the Earth System.

In this activity, you will use an inexpensive spectrophotometer* to test how light at different visible wavelengths (blue, green, red) is transmitted, or absorbed, through four different colored water samples.

Dr. Eric Brown de Colstoun is a Physical Scientist in the Biospheric Sciences Laboratory, NASA/GSFC, where he has been working for over 15 years. His expertise in the field of remote sensing is broad, having used data collected at various spatial scales, with a variety of instrumentation (laboratory, field, airborne, satellite). 

Reviewers for My NASA Data

Explore using units for calculations with Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI). NDVI is a ratio of different light wavelength reflectance which can be used to map the density of green vegetation.

GLOBE protocols and learning activities that complement exploration of Earth's Energy Budget are outlined.

Phytoplankton distribution background information.

The purpose of this activity is for students to create a desktop soil profile based on the biome region of the United States where your school is located.

Discover how GLOBE supports hands-on science for locally relevant learning which is also put into a global perspective.

Background on changing albedo values.