My experience at McMurdo Station involved the study of neutrons caused by cosmic radiation from the sun. The sun can be very active. Changes in the sun's active surface can result in the ejection of high energy particles (from solar flares, coronal mass ejections, or related phenomena). Some of these particles can get sent toward the earth
Presentation prepared for the Rochester Community Schools Board of Education related to the PolarTREC 2017 Neutron Monitors for Solar Study expedition.
Students will examine sunspots and track them at different latitudes on the Sun.
This activity is adapted from the Tracking Sunspots activity on NASA’s Solar and Heliocentric Observatory (SOHO) website (2009): https://soho.nascom.nasa.gov/classroom/for_students.html.
Objectives:
Students begin to familiarize themselves with solar activity by tracking sunspots at different latitudes on the Sun.
This activity is designed to get students thinking about
When radioactive elements decay they emit high-speed particles. These can be detected by use of a cloud chamber. The cloud chamber was invented by Charles Thomson Rees Wilson in 1911. The chamber works by saturating the air inside with alcohol vapor. Cooling the chamber with dry ice supersaturates the air. The energetic particles produced by the radioactive decay ionize
This is a suite of labs created by Michigan State University and the Joint Institute for Nuclear Astrophysics (JINA). It provides a number of lessons and activities in nuclear physics. It can be used to demonstrate the types of reactions typical in cosmic ray interactions and the interactions that the CosRay neutron monitors depend on.
Teacher Nell Kemp and researcher Rebecca Hewitt discuss field work and research on the Deep Roots project. The research team is studying the matrix of soils, roots and fungal hyphae that may play a critical role in the trajectory of future climate change. This project is based out of Toolik Field Station and Healy, Alaska.
In this investigation, students will measure production of CO2 from surface water and consider the role of surface waters in the global carbon cycle and climate change. They will gather data on using Vernier CO2 sensors. This lesson presents a wonderful opportunity for student-designed experiments.
This is a good lesson to get students thinking about the complexity of the systems involved in providing our society with energy, the consequences of energy use and efficiency. Students are encouraged to explore the data sets on their own, ask their own questions about energy use and present their findings to each other.