This lesson plan is part of the Center for Educational Resources (CERES), a series of web-based astronomy lessons created by a team of master teachers, university faculty, and NASA researchers. Students download NASA Hubble Space Telescope (HST) images of the Martian polar ice caps from different times to measure and compare the changing Martian and Earth poles. This lesson contains expected outcomes ... Full description.

The purpose of this resource is to understand what causes the Earth's seasons with a focus on the Earth's tilt and spherical shape. Students learn how sunlight spreads over the Earth at different times of the year, emphasizing the solstices and the equinoxes. Students investigate the effect of the Earth.s tilt on the spread of sunlight by modeling different tilts using a three-dimensional polyhedron ... Full description.

The purpose of this resource is to help students learn the skills and value of the translating complex interactions among Earth System components into a simplified diagram. Students visit a study site, where they observe and recall their existing knowledge of air, water, soil, and living things to make a list of interconnections among the four Earth system components. They make predictions about the ... Full description.

The purpose of this activity is to measure the total precipitable water vapor (column water vapor) in the atmosphere above an observer's site. Students point a GLOBE/GIFTS water vapor instrument at the sun and record the voltage readings from a digital voltmeter. They observe sky conditions near the Sun and perform the Cloud Protocols. Intended outcomes are that students understand the concept that ... Full description.

The purpose of this activity is to measure the aerosol optical thickness of the atmosphere (how much of the sun's light is scattered or absorbed by particles suspended in the air). Students point a GLOBE sun photometer at the sun and record the largest voltage reading they obtain on a digital voltmeter connected to the photometer. Students observe sky conditions near the sun, perform the Cloud, Optional ... Full description.

These three lessons focus on the effect of fluctuations of temperature on aquatic life. Topics include effects on the growth and survival rate of aquatic plants, how the metabolic rate of clams is affected by a change in temperature, and the optimal temperature for the hatching and development of brine shrimp eggs. Full description.

These resources include sections on the latest quakes, science project ideas, puzzles and games, online activities, a glossary, and cool earthquake facts. In addition, there is an Ask A Geologist section, and earthquake FAQs. One link leads to a teacher page with grade level topics and educational materials. Full description.

The purpose of this resource is to have students use GLOBE data and graphing tools to compare the influence of latitude, elevation, and geography on seasonal patterns. Students analyze the graph of the past year's maximum and minimum temperatures at their site. They compare this graph to similar graphs for two other sites and list which factors that might cause the patterns to be different and investigate ... Full description.

The purpose of this resource is to have students use GLOBE visualizations to display student data on maps and to learn about seasonal changes in regional and global temperature patterns. Students learn how sunlight spreads over the Earth at different times of the year, emphasizing the solstices and the equinoxes. Students investigate the effect of the Earth.s tilt on the spread of sunlight by modeling ... Full description.

The purpose of this activity is to discover why an instrument shelter is built the way it is. Students construct shelters that have varying properties and place them in the same location or place similar shelters in different locations and compare temperature data taken in each shelter. Students should predict what will happen for each of the different shelter designs or placements and perform the ... Full description.