David R. Brooks, PhD

President
Institute for Earth Science Research and Education
2686 Overhill Drive
Eagleville, Pennsylvania 19403 USA
Phone: 610-584-5619
E-mail: brooksdr@drexel.edu

Drexel University
Department of Mechanical Engineering and Mechanics
Much of the work described on this site has been made possible by support from the National Science Foundation, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, and the National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration.

NOTICE OF TEACHER PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT WORKSHOP
Workshop Title: "Here Comes the Sun – Teaching About Solar Science and Technology"
Audience: middle- and secondary-grade teachers
Location: The Schuylkill Center for Environmental Education, Phildelphia, PA
Dates: June 29 & 30 <---- NOTE NEW DATES!
Time: 8:45 AM—3:30 PM
      Participants will learn and experience through hands-on activities how to teach about our sun's role in the solar system, how we can measure and make use of the sun's energy, how solar panels work,and how students can build solar car kits in the classroom that will help them consolidate their knowledge about these topics. Workshop activities will include simulation games about the sun and solar energy, some alternative assessment strategies, and construction of both solar car kits and pyranometers, instruments for measuring amounts of insolation (available sun energy) in the schoolyard. Activities are based on PDE science standards.
      Attending teachers will receive a $50 stipend, 6 ACT 48 credit hours per day of attendance (for Pennsylvania teachers), a pyranometer, and a solar car kit
      For more information and registration, contact:
Leigh Ashbrook, Environmental Educator
The Schuylkill Center for Environmental Education
215-482-7300 x 124
lashbrook@schuylkillcenter.org


Pyranometer kit from the Institute for Earth Science Research and Education, for measuring solar radiation at Earth's surface. $20, including shipping in U.S.
Also, NEW two-channel (broadband-near IR) radiometer/reflectometer from IESRE.

Whitetail deer, Odocoileus virginianus
November, 2008. Whitetail deer are beautiful animals,
but where we live they are considered to be invasive pests
that destroy woodland ecosystems. Because their natural
predators have been eliminated, their population has surged
to much higher levels than would normally be the case. Despite
the fact that they regularly stroll across our property, near
our house, deer are skittish and not easy to photograph. They are
most likely to be found in the open near dawn or dusk, in very
poor lighting conditions. This large doe has spotted me and she
bolted just after I took this photo in mid-morning.

You can now use your PayPal account to purchase instruments from IESRE.
Notes from a Temperate Climate. A site dedicated to students, teachers, and my friends living in Thailand's tropical climate.


Links to some other useful and interesting sites:  

In light of recent controversy surrounding poor siting of many "official" weather stations around the country, this link to information about sites in Pennsylvania, with photos from 1983 and 2003, is very interesting: http://pasc.met.psu.edu/PA_Climatologist/cooptan/. Almost without exception, the quality of these sites is good and the surrounding environment has not changed significantly.



Insolation data from McMurdo Station, Antarctica.

These data were collected with an Institute for Earth Science Research and Education pyranometer taken to Antarctica by Ann Linsley, a teacher at Bellaire High School, Bellaire, Texas. It is not surprising that, under these extreme conditions, the pyranometer data do not agree perfectly with a clear-sky solar noon insolation model that assumes a much different atmosphere. Thanks, Ann!


Intute, a site maintained by a consortium of UK universities, is an excellent site for searching for information about science topics, among other things. It contains brief but helpful descriptions of each site referenced.
Presentations from the Asia-Pacific Regional GLOBE Learning Expedition, Hua Hin, Thailand, 13-18 November, 2007:
      Student Climate Change Research (3.9 MB Word document)
      Student Climate Change Research (10.1 MB PowerPoint document)
      Student Climate Change Research, 2008-09 version (9.4 MB PowerPoint document)
      Solar Car Activity (7.7 MB PowerPoint document)
Spreadsheet model for "designing" your own planet
Some Thoughts on Religious Extremism Here and Elsewhere
Our Fox Family, 2006
Calculate solar position and the time of solar noon at your coordinates.
Set your watch or clock accurately. Use the UTC "time zone" to display the internationally accepted time for reporting scientific data.
Link to current weather conditions in Pennsylvania (Get other states by changing "pa" to another two-letter state code.)
Link to weather during past 24 hours at Wings Field, Blue Bell, Montgomery County, PA
My local weather and forecasts
(Look here for weather during past 24 hours at other places.)
Historical weather data around the globe
More historical climate data around the globe
Link to satellite overpass predictor
The GLOBE Program, an international K-12 environmental education program
Link to DEP air quality monitoring information for Pennsylvania
Naval Research Lab's Navy Aerosol Analysis and Prediction System Global Aerosol Model (NAAPS)