In this activity, students construct and use a Secchi dish to measure the relative amount of sediment within a water column. Although simple in design, the Secchi dish (along with its hi-tech equivalents) is used by many marine and freshwater scientists. As the dish sinks, its image becomes obscured. When the dish can no longer be seen, a measurement of the depth to which light penetrates is taken ... Full description.

This site presents information about the Global Positioning System (GPS), including basic information, images, and plentiful in-depth technical information about GPS. Topics covered include U.S. Department of Defense Satellite Navigation System, GPS Positioning Services Specified in the Federal Radionavigation Plan, GPS Satellite Signals, GPS Data, Position and Time from GPS, GPS Error Sources, Geometric ... Full description.

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. In this tutorial, students learn to use computer image processing techniques to measure the size of Earth's polar ice caps and analyze various phenomena visible on planetary images. This lesson contains expected ... Full description.

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 work as NASA scientists to make repeated observations of our Sun and the planets to determine their rotation rates. This lesson contains expected outcomes for students, materials, background information, ... Full description.

This interactive data set allows students to get a feel for why Antarctica is known as the windiest, coldest, and driest continent. It allows users to select and view weather reports (January 1 - September 30, 2000) for 22 Antarctic locations. A brief overview gives directions for how to view the Automatic Weather Station (AWS) reports. For each AWS, students can see monthly averages or select a specific ... Full description.

This interactive slide show explains deep sea vents. One frame shows the location of known vents and where other vents are expected to be found. Other frames have information about the methods and materials used to discover the vents. The final frame is a three-dimensional visualization that represents temperature data collected by scientists while surveying the Juan de Fuca ridge in the northern ... Full description.

This web-based activity discusses the many NASA satellite missions that are studying the Sun. The Reuven Ramaty High Energy Solar Spectroscopic Imager (RHESSI) is not the only strange acronym for a solar mission. There are many other missions. This lesson will give students a wider perspective on the different ways the sun is being studied. Students will work in small groups to research the other ... Full description.

This activity requires students to read an article about earthquakes and nuclear explosions and answer questions about it. They discover that both earthquakes and nuclear explosions generate seismic waves that can be detected thousands of kilometers away and from the 1960s to the 1990s about one underground nuclear explosion was carried out each week. Students learn that this was how nations tested ... Full description.

Randy Davis is a marine biologist who made a major contribution to the study of Weddell seals in Antarctica. Weddell seals spend about 90 percent of their time submerged, making them a tricky animal to study. Davis developed a special camera to study the seals. This in-depth profile takes a look at Weddell seals in Antarctica and of how scientists monitor them. In the question and answer profile Randy ... Full description.

This site provides plans and instructions for the construction of a handheld seismometer, which is designed to illustrate concepts of seismometry (sensing and recording the vibration or shaking of the ground generated by propagating seismic waves) and to be used for educational demonstrations and activities in seismology. It is designed to be as visual and inexpensive as possible to best meet these ... Full description.