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Dig into Montana Before History: 11K Years of Hunter-Gatherers in the Rockies and Plains by D. H. MacDonald, Ph.D. See our online store book collection.
Anti-crepuscular rays are beams of sunlight that appear to converge on a point opposite the sun. They are similar to crepuscular rays, but are seen opposite the sun in the sky. Anti-crepuscular rays are most frequently visible near sunrise or sunset. This photo of anti-crepuscular rays was taken at sunset in Boulder, Colorado. Crepuscular rays are usually much brighter than anti-crepuscular rays.<p><small><em> Image Courtesy of Carlye Calvin</em></small></p>The <a href="http://www.windows2universe.org/earth/Atmosphere/tornado/fujita.html">EF-5</a> <a href="http://www.windows2universe.org/earth/Atmosphere/tornado.html">tornado</a> that hit El Reno, Oklahoma on May 31st, 2013 was the widest ever recorded in the US, according to the National Weather Service in Norman Oklahoma. The tornado, which remained on the ground for 40 minutes and reached 2.6 miles across (4.2 km), took the lives of 18 people including storm chasers Tim Samaras, Paul Samaras and Carl Young.<p><small><em>Image courtesy of National Weather Service, Norman Oklahoma</em></small></p>On November 7, 2013, Typhoon Haiyan (Yolanda in the Philippines) made landfall, with imated wind speeds of ~315 km/hr - the strongest <a href="/earth/Atmosphere/hurricane/intensity.html">tropical cyclone</a> to make landfall in recorded history. As Haiyan moved across the Philippines before reaching Vietnam and China, its <a href="/earth/Atmosphere/wind.html">winds</a> and <a href="/earth/Atmosphere/hurricane/surge.html">storm surge</a> left devastation in its wake, leading to massive loss of life, destruction of homes, and hundreds of thousands of displaced inhabitants. <a href="http://www.cnn.com/2013/11/09/world/iyw-how-to-help-typhoon-haiyan/index.html">How to Help</a><p><small><em>Image courtesy of COMS-1, SSEC, University of Wisconsin-Madison</em></small></p>According to <a href="http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/news.php?release=2013-277">NASA scientists</a>, the Voyager 1 spacecraft entered interstellar space in August 2012, becoming the first spacecraft to leave the <a href="/our_solar_system/solar_system.html">solar system</a>. The space probe is about 19 billion km from the <a href="/sun/sun.html">Sun</a>. <a href="/space_missions/voyager.html">Voyager 1 and 2</a> were launched in 1977 on a <a href="/space_missions/voyager.html">mission</a> that flew them both by <a href="/jupiter/jupiter.html">Jupiter</a> and <a href="/saturn/saturn.html">Saturn</a>, with Voyager 2 continuing to <a href="/uranus/uranus.html">Uranus</a> and <a href="/neptune/neptune.html">Neptune</a>. Voyager 2 is the longest continuously operated spacecraft. It is about 15 billion km away from the <a href="/sun/sun.html">Sun</a>.<p><small><em>Image courtesy of NASA</em></small></p>Does Earth science matter? The power outage experienced by residents in New York City on 10/30/2012 due to Hurricane Sandy demonstrates the interconnectedness of our society, and the power of the Earth system. Every person should have an understanding of how the Earth system works so they can live better lives, protect those they love, and make wise choices. Earth science education is critical!<p><small><em>Image courtesy of Hybirdd, licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.0 Generic license.</em></small></p>


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Caribbean Coral Reef Protection Efforts Miss the Mark

Efforts to protect corals in the Caribbean focus on areas that have high biodiversity, but scientists have learned that it's also important to protect reef edges ...Read more
Brought to you by NSF

Clouds in Art

Landscape painters have been representing clouds in their art for centuries. Different artists with different styles have painted clouds differently. Check out the Clouds in Art Interactive ...Read more
Brought to you by CMMAP

Physics of Space Weather

The science of physics plays a key role in many space weather phenomena. Charged particles, magnetic fields, forces and motion, and the electromagnetic spectrum are all part of space weather ...Read more
Brought to you by CISM

Marie Curie

Marie Curie was a physicist and chemist who lived between 1867-1934. She was a pioneer in the field of radioactivity and was the first woman to be awarded a Nobel Prize ...Read more

Stars

Stars are huge balls of gas and plasma that give off heat and light. Our Sun is an "average" star - some stars are much larger or smaller. Stars are powered by nuclear fusion in their cores ...Read more

Historical Events

8/1 Maria Mitchell, an American astronomer, was born on this date in 1818 Details
8/10 Robert Goddard, an American physicist, died on this date in 1945 Details
8/15 8.6 magnitude earthquake hits Assam - Tibet, 1950 Details

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Study of Glacial Earthquakes Shakes Up Idea of How Ice Streams Move

New research shows that a 7,000-square-mile region of the Whillians Ice Stream in West Antarctica moves...Read more


Windows to the Universe, a project of the National Earth Science Teachers Association, is sponsored in part is sponsored in part through grants from federal agencies (NASA and NOAA), and partnerships with affiliated organizations, including the American Geophysical Union, the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, the Earth System Information Partnership, the American Meteorological Society, the National Center for Science Education, and TERC. The American Geophysical Union and the American Geosciences Institute are Windows to the Universe Founding Partners. NESTA welcomes new Institutional Affiliates in support of our ongoing programs, as well as collaborations on new projects. Contact NESTA for more information. NASA ESIP NCSE HHMI AGU AGI AMS NOAA