January 2020 News Brief

January 2020 GLOBE News Brief

Trees Around the GLOBE Student Research Campaign January Intensive Observation Period Is On!

Focus on Land Cover

Trees Around the GLOBE January 2020 IOP Shareable

The Trees Around the GLOBE Student Research Campaign is hosting an Intensive Observation Period (IOP) throughout the month of January. The focus of this IOP is on land cover.

IOPs are focused periods of time where participants are encouraged to collect large amounts of data and enter it in the GLOBE database. Data that is collected during an IOP will provide other GLOBE students, scientists, researchers, and educators with large amounts of concentrated data over a short period of time. This ground-based "data density" serves as way to help validate data coming from satellites and airborne instruments.

Each IOP participant will receive a Virtual Land Cover IOP Badge. The GLOBE school with the most collected land cover data and additional protocol data will receive a virtual one-on-one Q&A session with a NASA scientist, researcher, or engineer; and a Virtual Land Cover IOP Winner Badge. The major goal here is to have students compare their measurements seasonally and with other GLOBE school measurements from around the world.

To learn more about the January IOP, click here .

To learn more about the Trees Around the GLOBE campaign, click here .

News

Registration for GLOBE’s 25th Anniversary Annual Meeting Is Now Open!

Registration for GLOBE’s 25th Anniversary Annual Meeting, which will be held from 12-16 July 2020, in Washington, D.C., USA, is now open! The theme of the meeting is: “Reflecting on the Past, Looking to the Future.”

The “early bird” adult registration price is $435.00 USD, and ends on 13 May at 11:59 p.m. EST. The “standard” adult registration price is $535.00 USD, and begins on 14 May at 12:00 a.m. EST. (All participants and students must be 10 years of age or older.) The deadline to register is 26 June. Space is limited so please register as soon as possible.

Annual Meeting Overview

Strand 1: A Welcoming GLOBE – This strand will continue on GLOBE Diversity and Inclusion Task Force work happening early in 2020, as well as how the GLOBE community welcomes diverse participants from around the world.
Strand 2: Collaborations Around the World – In this strand, participants will be encouraged to share their experiences collaborating with schools in other countries. Speakers will be asked to share how they overcome challenges as well as successes along the way.
Strand 3: 25 Years of GLOBE – In this strand, participants will be asked to share early experiences with GLOBE and how it has changed. Participants will also be given the opportunity to share, and learn about, favorite protocols, learning activities, and experiences over the past 25 years.
Strand 4: The Next 25 Years – In this strand, presenters will be asked to share their vision for the future of GLOBE from local to global scales.

Due to limited capacity, student registrations for the meeting will only be available for students selected via the GLOBE International Virtual Science Symposium (IVSS) drawings (39 students) and the U.S. Student Research Symposia (18 students).

To keep up with meeting information, including hotel and area information, the agenda, speakers,

and the student experience, click here .

If you have questions about the meeting, please contact: meetings@globe.gov .

GLOBE Congratulates Top November 2019

Trees Around the GLOBE Campaign Measurement Champions

Graphic of fireworks that reads, "Congratulations"

GLOBE would like to congratulate the top most active Trees Around the GLOBE Student Research Campaign participants taking at least 10 measurements for tree height, greenings, and land cover measurements for the campaign in November.

Tree Height (883 Total Measurements/Observations from 388 locations):

M. Parashar, India (82 measurements)
Sanja Ćulić, Croatia (21 measurements)
Y. Kimm, Republic of Korea (13 measurements)
Prieto, Argentina (10 measurements)
Y. Lee, Taiwan Partnership (10 measurements)

Land Cover (564 Total Measurements/Observations from 391 locations):

Kaui, Kenya (36 measurements)
M. Balažinec, Croatia (26 measurements)

Greenings (331 Total Measurements/Observations from 63 locations):

Bielecki, Poland (27 measurements)
L. Tivanovac, Croatia (20 measurements)
V. Badai, Ukraine (18 measurements)
Mihaljević, Croatia (17 measurements)
M. Dobrzycka, Poland (14 measurements)
Veseljic, Croatia (13 measurements)
S. Tokar, Ukraine (13 measurements)
Kruzicevic, Croatia (12 measurements)
S. Ćulić, Croatia (12 measurements)
Žnidarić, Croatia (11 measurements)
S. Marković-Zoraja, Croatia (10 measurements)

14 January: Trees Around the GLOBE Campaign Webinar “How Much Water Do Trees Use and Need?

NASA’s New ECOSTRESS Mission on the ISS”

Trees Around the GLOBE 14 January Webinar Shareable

The Trees Around the GLOBE Student Research Campaign webinar “How Much Water Do Trees Use and Need? NASA’s New ECOSTRESS Mission on the International Space Station,” will be held on Tuesday, 14 January, at 2:00 p.m. EST (7:00 p.m. UTC).

During the webinar, participants will hear Dr. Joshua Fisher (NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory; Pasadena, California, USA) talk about how the new ECOSTRESS Mission monitors trees. NASA launched the ECOSTRESS (ECOsystem Spaceborne Thermal Radiometer Experiment) Mission to the International Space Station (ISS) in 2018. ECOSTRESS measures the temperature of plants, and uses that temperature to determine how much water they are using – and losing – through evapotranspiration, as well as water stress and efficiency. The resolutions of ECOSTRESS enable it to see individual farms, as well as changes throughout the day.

To register for the webinar, click here .

To learn more about the Trees Around the GLOBE campaign, click here .

Miss the December Trees Around the GLOBE Student Research Campaign “Open Forum” Webinars? Read This Blog!

GLOBE community members engaged in the Trees Around the GLOBE campaign

Did you miss the Trees Around the GLOBE Student Research Campaign “Open Forum” webinars in December? The recent GLOBE Community Blog, written by Brian Campbell (NASA Senior Earth Science Education Specialist), will get you up to speed on this invaluable endeavor.

“There was a lot of interactive discussions between students, teachers, scientists, and NASA education personnel during the 03 December and 04 December Open Forums for the Trees Around the GLOBE Student Research Campaign,” Campbell said in the blog.

The blog provides a list of questions that were discussed as potential research projects related to trees. “Students are invited to use any of these questions, or their own, in developing student research projects,” Campbell said. The blog also provides links to online tools and programs meant to help students in analyzing and visualizing data for research projects.

To read the blog, click here .

Join the 09 January GLOBE Mission Mosquito Webinar:

“Welcome to Mission Mosquito’s 2020 Campaign”

GLOBE Mission Mosquito 09 January Webinar Shareable

On Thursday, 09 January, at 8:00 p.m. EST (1:00 a.m. UTC), GLOBE Mission Mosquito will be hosting a webinar, “Welcome to Mission Mosquito’s 2020 Campaign.”

During this webinar, participants will find out was learned about the 2019 mosquito season, and how to become involved in 2020 Mission Mosquito data discovery. The presenters will be Dorian Janney (Science Educator for NASA’s Global Precipitation Measurement Mission) and Dr. Rusty Low (GLOBE Mission Mosquito Science Lead). The GLOBE Observer Toolkit will be highlighted as a resource.

To register for the webinar, click here .

To learn more about GLOBE Mission Mosquito, click here .

2020 IVSS Update – Student Reports Accepted

Mid-January through 10 March

GLOBE is excited to host the 2020 GLOBE International Virtual Science Symposium (IVSS) – a way for primary through undergraduate students from all GLOBE countries to showcase their GLOBE-related research. Reports, which are being accepted in multiple languages, can be uploaded beginning in mid-January (be sure to check back for the exact date).

Judges Needed: GLOBE is looking for judges who can read in English, Croatian, Arabic, Spanish, or French. Volunteers are STEM professionals, teachers, graduate students, and other interested community members who will assess student research projects. Please forward this information to relevant listservs, colleagues, peers, and other people who may be interested! (A one-pager is available to help recruit judges.) To sign up to judge , click here .

Timeline/Important Dates:

Informational webinar: 30 October 2019 (To view the recorded webinar, click here.)
Reports accepted: mid-January – 10 March 2020
Judging webinar: 30 March (time TBD)
Judging period: 30 March – 06 April
Feedback and virtual badges shared: 22 April
Drawing for stipends: 22 April

For more information on the IVSS , click here .

If you have questions about the IVSS, please send an email to: ivss@globe.gov .

23 January: “GLOBE Data Fundamentals: Training 1”

No Prior GLOBE Experience Required

On Thursday, 23 January, Dr. Helen M. Amos (Science Systems and Applications, Inc., NASA Goddard Space Flight Center; Greenbelt, Maryland, USA) will host “GLOBE Data Fundamentals: Training 1” at 1:00 p.m. EST (6:00 p.m. UTC).

This virtual training will teach research scientists about GLOBE data and how to access it. The virtual training includes demonstrations of GLOBE’s free online data access and visualization tools. No prior knowledge or experience with GLOBE is required.

To register for the training , click here .

2020 U.S. Student Research Symposia Locations and Dates Announced – Funding Application for U.S. Teachers Due 01 February

U.S. community members engaged in a U.S. SRS

GLOBE is gearing up for the 2020 U.S. Regional Student Research Symposia (SRS). Students in 5th to 12th grade from across the country have the opportunity to come together at one of six face-to-face regional SRS events in order to share the results of field investigations using GLOBE protocols or data from the GLOBE database.

Funding Application

The Funding Application for the 2020 SRS is now open. U.S. teachers can use this form to apply for funding to cover travel and lodging for themselves and their students. The application is due 01 February 2020.

For more information on logistics and funding , click here .

2020 SRS Schedule.

The schedule for the 2020 SRS:

Northwest Region: 23-24 April (Fairbanks, Alaska)
Pacific Region: 01-02 May (Moss Landing, California)
Midwest Region: 01-03 May (Madison, Wisconsin)
Southeast Region: 07-09 May (Little Rock, Arkansas)
Northeast/Mid-Atlantic Region: 08-10 May (Avon, Connecticut)
Southwest: 15-17 May (Austin, Texas)

29 January: U.S. SRS Webinar “Retrieving Data from the

GLOBE Website”

On Wednesday, 29 January, at 4:00 p.m. EST, GLOBE will host a U.S. SRS webinar, “Retrieving Data from the GLOBE Website.”

During the webinar, participants will learn how to use the Advanced Data Access Tool (ADAT) in order to find and retrieve GLOBE data from the website.

To register for the webinar, click here .

22 January: U.S. SRS Teacher Watercooler Meetup

U.S. GLOBE Teachers: Join the GLOBE Professional Learning Community (PLC) and hear how other GLOBE teachers use GLOBE with their students during a Teacher Watercooler meet-up on Wednesday, 22 January, at 3:00 p.m. EST.

During the watercooler, Elodie Bourbon, a GLOBE teacher at Freeport High School in Freeport, New York, USA, will discuss her experience at the Northeast/Mid-Atlantic SRS: preparing students, challenges and solutions to attending, and highlights of the event.

NOTE: If you are a teacher and would like to write a blog post or present at a virtual watercooler (15-20 minute presentation) describing how you have helped students prepare for the SRS or have facilitated one particular step of the student research process, contact Haley Wicklein at mailto:hwicklein@hmail.com for more information.)

To register for the watercooler, click here .

Read Recent Community Blog: “Hiking with a Purpose Using the GLOBE Observer Mosquito Habitat Mapper and Land Cover Tools”

OLLI (Osher Lifelong Learning Institute) trekkers used the GLOBE Observer app to make observations

OLLI (Os sher Lifelong Learning Institute) trekkers used the GLOBE Observer app to make observations

“Thirty-one seniors armed with the GLOBE Observer mobile app hiked Kamanaumui Valley at the end of October,” Dr. Rusty Low (GLOBE Mission Mosquito Science Lead) said in a recent GLOBE Community Blog. “During the 3.3 mile trek, hikers made Land Cover and Mosquito Habitat observations, while passing verdant tropical vegetation, the ruins of a colonial manor, a biological restoration plot and ancient petroglyphs.”

“Making Land Cover observations in conjunction with Mosquito Habitat Mapper observations provides additional important information that helps us to better understand mosquito ecology. What have you noticed when making Mosquito Habitat Mapper and Land Cover observations at the same location? We would like to hear from you!”

To read the blog, click here .

To read other recent community blogs, click here .

Article Highlights GLOBE Observer App and Ability of Citizen Scientists to Help Track Global Environmental Change

Illustration of NASA’s Ice, Cloud, and land Elevation Satellite-2 (ICESat-2), a mission to measure the changing height of Earth’s ice. (Credit: NASA)

A recent article, “Photonics Tracks Global Environmental Change,” written by Patricia Daukantas and published in Optics and Photonics (November 2019), highlights the efforts of “optical scientists” and “citizen scientists” to take globe-spanning measurements of ice, water, gases, and the biosphere to help track global environmental change.

“Nearly every day brings news about climate change and its impacts, from wildfires in Greenland to melting ice on Antarctica to Europeans sweating through record-high summer temperatures,” Daukantas said in the article. “These stories, plus urgent warnings about rising sea levels and record amounts of greenhouse gases, can foster strong impulses to ‘do something.’”

In the article, the author discusses a variety of research projects that use optics and photonics to keep track of environmental change, including NASA’s ICESat-2 (Ice, Cloud, and Land Elevation Satellite 2). “Like its predecessor, ICESat-2 was designed to measure ice sheet elevation as well as sea ice volume. Much of the time, however, the spacecraft is passing over regions that lack ice. So the NASA team has devised ways to measure the mass of forest vegetation by using ICESat-2 measurements of treetop heights and the altitude of the forest floor,” Daukantas said in the article. “NASA even developed a “citizen science” tool for the GLOBE Observer smartphone app to capture local tree heights for comparison with ICESat-2 measurements.”

In May of 2019, NASA released the first set of ICESat-2 data products to the National Snow and Ice Data Center in Denver, Colorado, USA, which serves as the archive for this type of information. By mid-summer, more than 800 users had downloaded nearly half-a-million data sets, according to Tom Neumann, NASA project scientist for the ICESat-2.

To read the article , click here .

Have Questions About GLOBE?

Check Out These FAQs – Assistance Made Easy!

Graphic of a sign that reads, "How Can We Help You?"

Have questions about GLOBE? A great place to start your exploration of the program is the FAQ page, where you will find:

GLOBE Program Overview
GLOBE Accounts Information
GLOBE Schools Information
GLOBE Workshop Information
GLOBE Website Tutorials
GLOBE Protocols Information
Instrument Information
Data Entry Information

If you cannot find an answer to a question you have, you can reach the GLOBE Community Support Team (CST) via email ( help@globe.gov ) or via telephone (1-800-858-9947), Monday-Friday, from 7:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. Mountain Standard Time.

We are here to help!

Opportunities for Teachers

(U.S. opportunities are often highlighted in the News Brief simply because we are more aware of them through our local media; however, if there are opportunities for GLOBE students and/or teachers in your region that you would like us to highlight in the coming months, please send the information to: communications@globe.gov . Thank you!)

NASA STEM Educator Webinars

The NASA STEM Educator Professional Development Collaborative (EPDC) is presenting a series of webinars open to all educators. All pre-service, K-12, and informal educators, as well as university faculty, are invited to join NASA education specialists to learn about NASA missions, activities, lesson plans, educator guides, and online resources that integrate NASA and STEM into the classroom.

An upcoming webinar, “ STEM On Station: A Day in the Life Aboard the ISS ,” is geared toward educators in grades 4-12. On Monday, 13 January (5:00 p.m. EST), the NASA EPDC at Texas State University presents a one-hour webinar. Have you ever wondered what it would be like to live and work in space? Follow astronauts on the International Space Station in a series of videos as they explain their daily routines. Educators can use this series of videos and resources to enhance K-12 science, technology, engineering, and mathematics curricula.

U.S. Teachers/Partners: 2019-2020 Presidential Awards for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching Application Cycle Open

The Presidential Awards for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching (PAEMST) are the highest honors bestowed by the United States government specifically for K-12 science, technology, engineering, mathematics, and/or computer science teaching. Every year, PAEMST selects up to six finalists at the state level. Nominations close on 01 March; applications for teachers of grades K-6 are open through 01 May.

Awards are given to teachers from each of the 50 states, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the Department of Defense Education Activity schools, or the U.S. territories as a group (American Samoa, Guam, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, and U.S. Virgin Islands).

Applicants must:

teach science, technology, engineering, mathematics, and/or computer science as part of their contracted teaching responsibilities at the K-6 grade level in a public (including charter) or private school;
hold at least a bachelor's degree from an accredited institution;
be full-time employees of the school or school district as determined by state and district policies, with responsibilities for teaching students no less than 50 percent of the school's allotted instructional time;
have at least five years of full-time employment as a K-12 teacher prior to the 2019-2020 academic school year during which science, technology, engineering, mathematics, and/or computer science has been a part of the applicant's teaching duties each of the five years;
teach in one of the 50 states, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the Department of Defense Education Activity schools, or the U.S. territories as a group (American Samoa, Guam, Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, and U.S. Virgin Islands);
be U.S. citizens or permanent residents; and
not have received the PAEMST award at the national level in any prior competition or category.

For more information, click here .

Opportunities for Students

U.S. Undergraduate/Grad Students: Applications for SOARS Summer Internship (Boulder, Colorado) in Atmosphere or Related Science Due 01 February

U.S. undergraduate/graduate students (U.S. citizens or green card holders): Applications for SOARS (Significant Opportunities in Atmospheric Research and Science) 2020 summer internship program are due 01 February.

SOARS is an undergraduate-to-graduate research internship program for students interested in the atmospheric and related sciences, based at the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) in Boulder, Colorado. It is dedicated to broadening participation in the atmospheric and related sciences and is built around genuine research experiences, mentoring by top scientists and engineers, and a supportive learning community. Students from many disciplines, including geology, atmospheric sciences, meteorology, geography, chemistry, physics, engineering, mathematics, geosciences, computing, and the social sciences are invited to apply their expertise to understanding the Earth’s Atmosphere and to use that understanding to improve life on Earth.

SOARS encourages applications from individuals who are members of a group that is historically under-represented in the atmospheric and related sciences, including students who are Black or African American, American Indian or Alaska Native, and Hispanic or Latina/o, female, first generation college students, veterans, and students with disabilities. SOARS welcomes lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender students; students who have experienced, and worked to overcome, educational or economic disadvantage and/or have personal or family circumstances that may complicate their continued progress in research careers.

For more information, click here .

U.S. NOAA Announces Scholarship Opportunities for U.S. Undergraduates –

Deadline 31 January 2020

The NOAA Educational Partnership Program with Minority Serving Institutions Undergraduate Scholarship Program Class of 2019 sit together outside NOAA headquarters in Silver Spring, Maryland, during scholarship orientation. Bottom, left to right: Nohemi Perales, Ayanna Butler, Jezella Peraza, Elyse Bonner, Kristyn Wilkerson Top, left to right: Sheldon Rosa, Darrielle Williams, JaNia Dunbar, Paola Santiago, Ashley Yates-Contreras, Koffi Apegnadjro (NOAA)

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) is pleased to announce the availability of scholarships for U.S. undergraduate students majoring in disciplines related to oceanic and atmospheric science, research, or technology – and supportive of the purposes of NOAA’s programs and mission. Over 100 students are selected each year for participation in the Ernest F. Hollings and Educational Partnership Program (EPP) scholarship programs. These scholarships include support for two years of undergraduate study and summer internship opportunities at NOAA facilities across the country.

For information on program benefits and how to apply, visit:

Educational Partnership Program at ww.noaa.gov/eppscholarship Application Deadline: 31 January 2020
Ernest F. Hollings Undergraduate Scholarship at: www.noaa.gov/hollings Application Deadline: 31 January 2020

For more information, including eligibility requirements,

contact the Office of Education Scholarship Programs at: StudentScholarshipPrograms@noaa.gov.

Upcoming 2019 GLOBE Teacher Training Workshops

Some of the upcoming GLOBE teacher training workshops include:

Watsonville, California, USA (GLOBE Workshop, Grades 6-12): 28-29 March (open to all)

No training workshops in your area? Check out GLOBE’s protocol eTraining . (In order to enter GLOBE data, GLOBE users must complete the necessary training either by attending a GLOBE workshop or by completing the required online eTraining modules. Once your training is complete, you will be ready to start entering your measurements – and will be joining a community of thousands of teachers around the world!)