Current Events

  • 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

    x

    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.
  • Massive Tornado Outbreak on Tornado Alley
    The week of May 19 brings dozens of tornadoes to Tornado Alley in the states of Oklahoma, Kansas, Io...Read more

    x

    Massive Tornado Outbreak on Tornado Alley

    The week of May 19 brings dozens of tornadoes to Tornado Alley in the states of Oklahoma, Kansas, Iowa, Illinois and Missouri. On May 20th, a massive tornado struck Moore, Oklahoma, devastating communities - destroying over 100 homes and hitting two elementary schools and a hospital - with many casualties and deaths. Our thoughts are with our friends and colleagues suffering from these storms. For more on the May 20th storms, see the NOAA Storm Prediction Center Storm Report.
  • Kansas Legislator Proposes Bill to Outlaw Sustainability Education
    A bill has been introduced in the Kansas legislature this week that would prohibit the promotion of ...Read more

    x

    Kansas Legislator Proposes Bill to Outlaw Sustainability Education

    A bill has been introduced in the Kansas legislature this week that would prohibit the promotion of sustainability. Here is a link to the one-page bill: http://www.kslegislature.org/li/b2013_14/measures/documents/hb2366_00_0000.pdf. See report on Bloomberg News.
The Ulysses spacecraft studies the Sun.
NASA

How Scientists Study Space Weather

Scientists use different ways to study space weather. They use instruments in space like satellites and orbiting telescopes. Scientists also use instruments on Earth to study space weather. They use these instruments to study the Sun, the magnetic field out in space (IMF) and the Earth.

Once scientists get readings from their instruments, they use models to make sense of all of the readings. Space weather models are complex and are often done on super fast computers.

Last modified August 12, 2008 by Randy Russell.

Shop Windows to the Universe Science Store!

Learn about Earth and space science, and have fun while doing it! The games section of our online store includes a climate change card game and the Traveling Nitrogen game!

Windows to the Universe Community

News

Opportunities

You might also be interested in:

Instruments & Techniques for Space Weather Measurements

Even though the Sun is very far away, it has a big effect on Earth. It gives us warmth and light. Storms on the Sun can also bring about what scientists call space weather on Earth or near Earth (just...more

How do Satellites & Spacecraft Monitor Space Weather?

Satellites in space help us measure space weather. They collect info about the Sun, Earth's magnetosphere, Earth's atmosphere, and space weather. Spacecraft that Watch the Sun Some spacecraft watch the...more

What is a Telescope?

Have you ever looked up and wished that you could take a closer look at the Moon or see the rings of Saturn?  You have probably seen photographs of distant galaxies, exploding stars, and glowing nebulas. ...more

IMF

The Sun acts like it has a big magnet in the middle of it. We call this the Sun's magnetic field. The Sun's magnetic field has a fancier name, the Interplanetary Magnetic Field (IMF). This just means that...more

How Scientists Study Space Weather

Scientists use different ways to study space weather. They use instruments in space like satellites and orbiting telescopes. Scientists also use instruments on Earth to study space weather. They use these...more

How does Space Weather affect Life on Earth?

Earth's magnetic field is a shield that keeps most of space weather's effects where they belong; safely out in space! But space weather does effect life on Earth. Outside of the Earth's magnetic field,...more

Space Weather Mysteries & Unanswered Questions

Space weather is a new science. It hasn't been studied for thousands of years. So space weather has many questions that still need to be answered. And it has a lot of unsolved mysteries which is exciting!...more

The Sun and the Solar Atmosphere

Scientists have named the parts of the Sun. The "surface" of the Sun is called the photosphere. The three areas inside the Sun are called the core, the radiation zone, and the convection zone....more

Shop Windows to the Universe

The Winter 2010 issue of The Earth Scientist includes a variety of educational resources, ranging from astronomy to glaciers. Check out the other publications and classroom materials in our online store.

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