Students will analyze and interpret graphs to compare the flow of (shortwave) energy from the Sun toward China over the course of a year on cloudy versus clear days. Students will draw a conclusion and support it with evidence.

In this activity, students investigate three different soil samples with varying moisture content. They use a soil moisture probe to determine the percentage (by volume) of water in each of the soil samples.

Students will examine air temperature data collected through The GLOBE Program during the 2017 US solar eclipse.

Students evaluate graphs and images of sea ice and relate them to changes in albedo. Students make a claim about the interaction of albedo and sea ice extent.

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). 

Background information on sea level change.

The world's surface air temperature is getting warmer. Whether the cause is human activity or natural changes in the Earth System—and the enormous body of evidence says it’s humans—thermometer readings all around the world have risen steadily since the beginning of the Industrial Revolution. 

Scientists and engineers use and develop models for representing ideas and explanations.

The extreme temperatures during July 2022 prompt students to investigate a model that displays historical heat wave frequency data to discover the importance of defining terms when interpreting data.