Resources

Topic(s): Atmospheric Circulation, Global Energy Balance, Aerosols

Grade Level: High School (9-12), College Lower (13-14)

Students use real satellite data to determine 1) where the greatest concentrations of aerosols are located during the course of a year in the tropical Atlantic region and 2) their source of origin. This is an inquiry-style lesson where students pull real aerosol data and attempt to identify trends among data sets.

Climate Wisconsin Adaptation-Mitigation

Topic(s): Heavy Precipitation/Floods, Heat Waves, Drought, Drought, Climate Impacts, Emissions Reduction, Mitigation Strategies, Retrofitting Infrastructure, New Infrastructure, Social Innovation, Adaptation Strategies, Human Responses to Climate

Grade Level: Middle (6-8), High School (9-12)

This short, animated video describes what is meant by climate, its characteristics, and the range of impacts due to climate change. The difference between mitigation and adaptation is also discussed.

Biofuels/Biomass Cellulose Lab

Topic(s): Process of Science, Other Alternatives, Energy Use

Grade Level: Middle (6-8), High School (9-12)

In this lab activity, students investigate how to prepare a biofuel source for conversion to a combustible product. The activity models how raw materials are refined to process liquid fuels.

Climate Wisconsin Ice Cover

Topic(s): Measurements and Observations, Melting Ice and Permafrost

Grade Level: Middle (6-8), High School (9-12), College Lower (13-14)

This is an interactive graph that involves records of ice cover in two Wisconsin lakes - Lake Mendota and Lake Monona - from 1855-2010.

State of the Climate 2009

Topic(s): Measurements and Observations, Heat Waves, Ocean Warming / Acidification, Climate Impacts

Grade Level: Intermediate (3-5), Middle (6-8), High School (9-12), College Lower (13-14)

This short video clip summarizes NOAA's annual State of the Climate Report for 2009. It presents a comprehensive summary of Earth's climate in 2009 and establishes the last decade as the warmest on record. Reduced extent of Arctic sea ice, glacier volume, and snow cover reflect the effects of rising global temperature.

Global Climate Dashboard: Climate Variability

Topic(s): Measurements and Observations, Climate Data

Grade Level: Middle (6-8), High School (9-12), College Lower (13-14)

This interactive displays how climate variables are changing over time (temperature, CO2, Arctic sea ice, sun's energy, sea level, etc.) in graphical form. Students can easily examine over 50+ years of archived data.

From Mud to Molecules: What Deep Sea Sediments Can Tell Us About Past Climates

Topic(s): Biogeochemical Processes, Carbon Cycle, Measurements and Observations, Proxy Data

Grade Level: High School (9-12), College Lower (13-14)

This video documents how scientists, using marine algae, can study climate change in the past to help understand potential effects of climate change in the future.

The Ocean's Green Machines

Topic(s): Ocean and Climate, Causes of Climate Change, Measurements and Observations, Measuring and Modeling Climate

Grade Level: Middle (6-8), High School (9-12)

This video introduces phytoplankton - the base of the marine food web, the source of half of the oxygen on Earth, and an important remover of CO2 from the atmosphere. The video also explains how satellites are used to monitor phytoplankton and how warming waters and acidification negatively affect phytoplankton.

Temperature Puzzle

Topic(s): Global Energy Balance, Albedo, Solar Radiation, Greenhouse Gases, Greenhouse Gas Emissions

Grade Level: Middle (6-8), High School (9-12)

This NASA video discusses the impacts of the sun's energy, Earth's reflectance, and greenhouse gases on the Earth System.

Global Warming: It's All About Carbon

Topic(s): Carbon Cycle, Greenhouse Gas Emissions, Mitigation Strategies

Grade Level: Middle (6-8), High School (9-12), Informal Education

A sequence of five short animated videos that explain the properties of carbon in relationship to global warming, narrated by Robert Krulwich from NPR.

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Climate Literacy Principles

Energy Literacy Principles

Resources