Exploitation of weather satellite imagery in the K–12 classroom

Since 1992, the EXPLORES! program at Florida State University has been providing services to the K-12 community in Florida relating to the processing of direct readout weather satellite imagery from NOAA and other weather satellites. In 1999-2000, the program expanded to over 200 Florida schools, and included the delivery of the first high-resolution (1.1 km) directly to schools. Comparisons of direct-readout imagery to network-delivered imagery will be discussed, and relationships to state and national standards will be described. The EXPLORES! program is available to any school internationally with the creation of a curriculum guide, and through support offered through the program WWW site at http://www.met.fsu.edu/explores/.

The program is also working with the GLOBE program to create a web-based visible weather satellite server, to assist those schools desiring a local solar noon image to help teachers and students making their atmosphere measurements as part of the GLOBE program.

The paper will outline our new (Fall 2000) curriculum and use of polar-orbiting and geostationary weather satellite imagery, particularly for the study in K-12 schools of tropical weather phenomena, such as hurricanes, which are of particular interest to Florida teachers. Modules created are appropriate for any teacher who is teaching about these storm systems, however.