20 Nov Black Swift partnership with NASA engages students to collect atmospheric data
About the Programs:
GLOBE, the Global Learning and Observations to benefit the Environment Program, is a worldwide program that brings together students, teachers, scientists and citizens to promote science and learning about the environment. Through a hands-on approach to inquiry, participants are encouraged to engage in local investigations that cover five core fields: atmosphere, biosphere, hydrosphere, soil (pedosphere), and Earth as a system. Observations made locally are submitted to the GLOBE data and information system, and can be accessed freely online. These measurements are combined with readings at automated stations to create a worldwide resource for conducting scientific inquiry; some measurements serve as ground truth for NASA satellite data products (e.g., clouds, soil moisture). The GLOBE data and information system contains over 130 million measurements from more than 10 million students in 113 countries around the world since its operation begun in 1995.
The AEROKATS and ROVER Education Network (AREN) is a NASA program that helps GLOBE members collect data through low-cost kite-based crafts (AEROKATS) and remotely controlled aquatic and land vehicles (ROVERs). It introduces educators and students to NASA technologies and practices — including in-situ and remotely sensed Earth observations — in authentic, experiential learning environments. AREN technologies promote necessary science literacy skills. Data capture and visualization tools — designed to integrate with The GLOBE Program — enable the expansion of GLOBE study sites with transects and vertical profiles.