Current Events

  • Irish Chronicles Document Links Between Volcanoes and Weather
    A study of over 40,000 written entries in Irish Annals and ice core measurements shows a strong corr...Read more

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    Irish Chronicles Document Links Between Volcanoes and Weather

    A study of over 40,000 written entries in Irish Annals and ice core measurements shows a strong correlation between the occurrence of volcanic eruptions and extreme cold weather in Ireland over a 1200 year period. Data analyzed in this study cover the period from 431 to 1649, during which time up to 48 volcanic eruptions are identified in Greenland ice core records through deposition of volcanic sulfate in annual layers of ice. You can find the study (open access), published on 6 June 2013 in IOP Publishing's journal Environmental Research Letters, at http://iopscience.iop.org/1748-9326/8/2/024035/article. Find out more about how volcanoes can influence climate.
  • EF-5 Tornado in El Reno, Oklahoma Widest Ever Recorded in US
    The EF-5 tornado that hit El Reno, Oklahoma on May 31st was the widest ever recorded in the US, acco...Read more

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    EF-5 Tornado in El Reno, Oklahoma Widest Ever Recorded in US

    The EF-5 tornado that hit El Reno, Oklahoma on May 31st 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. For more information on the tornado, visit http://ow.ly/i/2hfDG.
  • Atmospheric CO2 Level Tops 400 ppm
    During the week of May 13th, the CO2 level at the Mauna Loa Observatory in Hawaii topped 400 ppm rep...Read more

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    Atmospheric CO2 Level Tops 400 ppm

    During the week of May 13th, the CO2 level at the Mauna Loa Observatory in Hawaii topped 400 ppm repeatedly. Daily levels of CO2 can vary due to weather, and there are seasonal trends as well. The level of atmospheric greenhouse gases continues to increase, now over 120 ppm since the Industrial Revolution began. For more on the Keeling Curve, see http://keelingcurve.ucsd.edu/. Find out more about greenhouse gases and warming.

ExploraTour: A Peek into the Lives of the Stars

(Click on the pictures to find out.)

What Happens to Stars About the Same Size as the Sun?

New Stars and Planets

Swells to Red Giant

Outer Layers Blow Off

White Dwarf Left

Cools to Black Dwarf

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Traveling Nitrogen Classroom Activity Kit

Check out our online store - minerals, fossils, books, activities, jewelry, and household items!...more

ExploraTour: A Peek into the Lives of the Stars

STAGE 1: Main Sequence A star's life begins when nuclear reactions start deep in the core. Hydrogen nuclei are fused to form a helium nucleus. Each helium nucleus has slightly less mass than the hydrogen...more

ExploraTour: A Peek into the Lives of the Stars

STAGE 2: Red Giant Phase When the star uses up its hydrogen fuel in the core, it can no longer hold up its outer layers. They fall inward. The center gets hotter. The hot temperatures cause the outer...more

ExploraTour: A Peek into the Lives of the Stars

STAGE 3: The Outer Layers Blow Off As the star expands,the outer layers blow off at an incredible rate. A star can lose more than half of its mass during this stage. The gas cloud surrounding the star...more

ExploraTour: A Peek into the Lives of the Stars

STAGE 4: White Dwarf When the fuel is used up, there is nothing to hold the star's layers up against gravity and the star begins to collapse. Gravity squeezes the star down into a very small size. As...more

ExploraTour: A Peek into the Lives of the Stars

STAGE 5: Black Dwarf White dwarfs are some of the hottest objects in the known universe with temperatures ranging from 30,000 K to 200,000 K. They continue to radiate their immense internal energy into...more

ExploraTour - Looking at the World in a Different Light

Even though the sleeping man is no longer on the bed, you can still see where he was lying down. The heat from his body warmed up the bed sheets which are now radiating infrared light toward your eyes....more

ExploraTour - Looking at the World in a Different Light

All warm objects (not just people) radiate in the infrared. Warmer objects give off more infrared radiation. Very hot objects radiate other types of light in addition to infrared. Click on the picture...more

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Learn about planets outside our solar system through Exoplanets and Alien Solar Systems by Tahir Yaqoob, Ph.D., a book in our online store book collection.

Windows to the Universe, a project of the National Earth Science Teachers Association, is sponsored in part by the National Science Foundation and NASA, our Founding Partners (the American Geophysical Union and American Geosciences Institute) as well as through Institutional, Contributing, and Affiliate Partners, individual memberships and generous donors. Thank you for your support! NASA AGU AGI NSF