Clear vs Cloudy: NASA Hands-On Activities Relating Student Cloud Observations to Earth's Energy Budget

Cloud observations, including cloud height and opacity, are important for scientists to understand Earth’s Energy Budget. NASA and the Global Learning and Observations to Benefit the Environment (GLOBE) program are collecting cloud observations from students and citizen scientists around the world to compare with satellite observations. Participants will explore the new GLOBE Observer app as a simple way to submit cloud observations from all age groups. Participants will engage in two simple NASA hands-on activities that help students understand the importance of collecting cloud percentages, height, and opacity, and how these variables affect Earth’s Energy Budget. The first activity, perfect for elementary students, models cloud coverage using fractions, copy paper, and construction paper. The second activity, recommended for middle and high school students, creates a physical model of the atmosphere using 2-L bottles or plastic containers. Students see how cloud types lead to a warming or cooling of the atmosphere by adding a desk lamp as the sun and different amounts of cotton or other materials to mimic cloud types.