This Classroom Connectors lesson plan teaches students how clouds are formed through the condensation of water vapor. This includes learning about climate types and how they change, the greenhouse effect, how clouds affect weather and climate, and condensation. The site provides goals, objectives, an outline, time required, materials, activities, and closure ideas for the lesson. The Classroom Connectors ... Full description.

Ocean basins are filled with loose sediments, which are the products of erosion. This sediment originates inland and is fed into oceans by rivers. Debris from cliffs and other coastal landforms provides additional sediment volume, as do skeletons, shells, teeth of marine organisms, ash from volcanoes, and even asteroids. This interactive feature shows how these different parent materials influence ... Full description.

The stories included in this annual publication primarily focus on research and recent success stories of how NASA's Earth Observing System data are being used to benefit society. Each article features data that are processed, managed, archived and distributed through NASA's Distributed Active Archive Centers and cooperating data centers. It is written for the scientifically interested public. Full description.

This page describes how quickly an earthquake-triggered lahar happened and the losses that occurred. Some losses may have occurred because people did not know they should flee to high ground after an earthquake. Within minutes of the 1994 magnitude 6.4 earthquake beneath the south-southwest flank of Nevado del Huila volcano in Colombia, dozens of landslides swept down from the steep valleys above ... Full description.

For this activity students read the newspaper on a daily basis, listen to news on the radio, or watch television, to acquire material related to the earth sciences. They will look for natural hazards (earthquakes, volcanoes, landslides, hurricanes, etc.), human-made hazards (urbanization, compromised engineering projects, etc.), environmental issues, or resource extraction issues which all appear ... Full description.

This portal provides links to selected United States Geological Survey (USGS) educational resources that may be useful to undergraduate educators. Many of these resources can be used directly in the classroom, as preparation for lessons or demonstrations, or as resources for teacher education and curriculum development. The resources are also searchable by state or region with the use of an interactive ... Full description.

This site provides information on the geology in and around the national parks. Sections of the web site are devoted to programs about disturbed lands restoration, mineral and resource management, and geology and soils. A collection of educational activities and teacher resources encourage teaching science using the national parks as examples. The web site also includes a park geology tour that allows ... Full description.

This teacher's guide provides directions for building three-dimensional models from foam blocks to demonstrate plate tectonic principles, plate boundary interactions and the geometry and relative motions of faulting of geologic layers. References are included. Full description.

This two-part radio broadcast first focuses on how scientists are re-evaluating their theories on how the Earth was formed, then on exploration for new life forms found in the sediments of ocean floors. By looking at volcanic hotspots, geologists can sample gases from deep inside the mantle of the Earth. These dissolved gases include particles from the solar wind and impacting asteroids. This broadcast ... Full description.

This site provides information about the effects of carbon dioxide and sulfur dioxide volcanic emissions on global climate. Helpful diagrams depict the chemical processes involved in atmospheric cooling and historical examples are cited. The 1991 eruption of Mt. Pinatubo in used as a case study. The site also provides links to references cited and additional resources. Full description.