This is an activity about how the Sun can affect the Earth's atmosphere, specifically the ionosphere. Learners will use real data from a Sudden Ionosphere Disturbance Monitor, or SID Monitor, to identify the signatures in the graphed data that can... (View More) be used to determine the times of sunrise and sunset. Although the SID monitors are designed to detect SIDs caused by solar flares, they also detect the normal influence of solar X-rays and UV light during the day as well as cosmic rays at nighttime. There is a distinct shape to a 24-hour SID data graph, with unique shapes, or signatures, of the graph appearing at sunrise and sunset.This activity is part of the Research with Space Weather Monitor Data educators guide. Use of and access to a Stanford Solar Center SID monitor and the internet is encouraged but not required. Locations without a SID monitor can use sample data provided in the educators guide. (View Less)

This is an activity about the properties and characteristics of Earth’s magnetic field as shown through magnetometer data and its 3D vector nature. This resource builds understanding of conceptual tools such as the addition of vectors and... (View More) interpreting contour maps displaying magnetic signature data. Learners will make several paper 3D vector addition models, watch podcasts on how to analyze magnetometer data, and employ 3D vector plots to create a model of the 3D magnetic field in the location of the magnetometer closest to their town. This is a multi-step activity with corresponding worksheets for each step. The activity uses data from the THEMIS (Time History of Events and Macroscale Interactions during Substorms) GEONS magnetometer, and requires the use of a computer with internet access and speakers, 2-inch polystyrene balls and bamboo skewers. This is activity 16 from Exploring Magnetism: Earth's Magnetic Personality. (View Less)

This is an activity about changes in the Earth's magnetic field during magnetic storms. Learners will construct a soda bottle magnetometer, collect data, and analyze the results to detect magnetic storm events. The operation of the student-created... (View More) instrument can be directly related to THEMIS (Time History of Events and Macroscale Interactions during Substorms) display measurements. In this activity, learners should ideally collect data over the course of an entire month. This is activity 17 in Exploring Magnetism: Earth's Magnetic Personality. (View Less)

This is an activity about using spectrogram plots as an indicator of magnetic activity on Earth. Learners will analyze spectrogram data and compare it to local Kp indices in an attempt to determine global magnetic storminess. This activity uses real... (View More) data from the THEMIS (Time History of Events and Macroscale Interactions during Substorms) Magnetometer, and requires a computer with Internet access. This is activity 20 in the Exploring Magnetism: Earth's Magnetic Personality teachers guide. (View Less)

This is a lesson plan for an activity that explores time zone math. Learners will translate their local time to times in other zones around the world and work with the concept of Universal Time, specifically in reference to the reporting,... (View More) description and analysis of solar flares and coronal mass ejections. This is activity 10 from Exploring Magnetism Guide 3: Magnetic Mysteries of the Aurora educator guide. (View Less)