Science

Professional Development, Conferences and Resources

2023-06-29T22:37:35-06:00

(The author standing in the flame-trench of Pad 39-B at the Kennedy Space Center. Directly behind me is the flame-deflector which diverts the exhaust from the SLS rocket's  four RS-25 engines and two solid-rocket boosters, equally to each side of the deflector. In the foreground on the left side of the image, stacked on the ground, are the steel panels that have been removed from the flame-deflector. These were damaged by the greater than anticipated energy from the November 2022 launch of Artemis 1. These will all be replaced with new and stronger panels before the launch of Artemis II, currently scheduled for the end [...]

Professional Development, Conferences and Resources2023-06-29T22:37:35-06:00

Bringing Space To Your Space

2023-05-31T15:12:23-06:00

(Patrons attending a NASA James Webb Space Telescope Community event in Hudson, WI. Photo by Christopher Mick)   It all started in 2014, with an idea to put together a STEM presentation for a local school that my son was attending at the time. The thinking was I would combine several interesting  STEM experiences I had had as a kid growing up in Northern California. I had been lucky enough to attend the United States Space Camp in Huntsville, Alabama (www.rocketcenter.com/SpaceCamp) during back to back Summers in the mid-eighties. My father was a retired pilot and gave me occasional flying lessons when [...]

Bringing Space To Your Space2023-05-31T15:12:23-06:00

American Library Association Annual Conference – STAR Net Activities

2022-07-08T15:55:35-06:00

By Jessica Santascoy  The American Library Association (ALA) Annual Conference was a lot of fun, and we were thrilled to see many of you in person.   We hope you got a lot out of the workshops, one-on-one conversations, and public presentations.  We’ve summarized our participation and have rounded up the activities and resources we shared.   NASA and SEAL Booths   We hosted two booths that were wildly popular.   SEAL – Solar Eclipse Activities for Libraries  We are helping libraries prep for two beautiful eclipses that are coming up.   Annular Eclipse on Saturday, October 14, 2023  Total Eclipse on Monday, April 8, 2024  [...]

American Library Association Annual Conference – STAR Net Activities2022-07-08T15:55:35-06:00

STEAM Strategy Videos

2022-06-14T14:54:26-06:00

By Christine Shupla, The Lunar and Planetary Institute  NASA@ My Library has produced a series of short professional development videos as a resource to library staff conducting Earth and space science programs. Each video is 4 to 10 minutes, featuring suggestions and recommendations from library staff experienced in conducting Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, and Math (STEAM) programs. Most are accompanied by a website or document with additional resources.  NASA@ My Library STEAM Strategies videos include:  Addressing Earth Science Confusions  Libraries may need to prepare to address fundamental concepts while conducting Earth science STEAM activities. Learn some strategies for demonstrating and sharing [...]

STEAM Strategy Videos2022-06-14T14:54:26-06:00

Look Up! Featured Activity – NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope

2022-05-20T10:39:50-06:00

Credit: NASA This content was written by Dillon Connelly from the Space Science Institute  Celebrate the first images of NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope with this featured activity: NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope  In this activity, you and your patrons will assemble a paper model of the James Webb Space Telescope. The model allows you to assemble the JWST from its three main elements. Facilitate as an in-person program at your library or a Take & Make activity.  Time to complete: 15-30 minutes  Ages: Upper Elementary, Middle, High School, Family  Modification and Preparation List   Total Cost: cost of printing and assembly [...]

Look Up! Featured Activity – NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope2022-05-20T10:39:50-06:00

Look Up! Featured Activity – Filtered Light 

2022-05-27T16:04:25-06:00

Credit: NISENET This content was written by Christine Shupla from the Lunar and Planetary Institute   Celebrate the first images of NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope with this featured activity: Exploring the Universe: Filtered Light.   Filters allow us to block some types of light and isolate others; separating out these different colors or energy levels of light can give us new information. In "Filtered Light," participants discover how colored filters can help reveal more about an image. They can also make and study colorful images of their own.   Facilitate as an in-person program at your library, a Take & Make activity, [...]

Look Up! Featured Activity – Filtered Light 2022-05-27T16:04:25-06:00

Look Up! Featured Activity – Improv with the Stars

2022-05-27T16:07:40-06:00

Credit: Pioneer Library System Flickr This content was written by Christine Shupla from the Lunar and Planetary Institute  Celebrate the first images of NASA’s new James Webb Space Telescope with this featured activity: Improv with the Stars  After learning about four stellar classifications and the characteristics of stars, groups of patrons act out an improvisation of the “personality” of the four stars while the audience gets to guess which star type is which.   Facilitate as an in-person program at your library inside or outside. Consider pairing this with the Life Cycle of a Massive Star activity.  Time to complete: one [...]

Look Up! Featured Activity – Improv with the Stars2022-05-27T16:07:40-06:00

Our Blue Planet: EARTH Featured Activity – GLOBE Observer: Clouds and Cloudscape

2022-05-31T10:14:28-06:00

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vpYXh3xHoS4 Marilé Colón Robles, the project scientist for NASA Globe Clouds and her daughter Madison demo a Cloud Journal in the Do You Know that Clouds Have Names?  STAR Net’s Our Blue Planet: EARTH campaign is a celebration of NASA’s focus on Earth’s oceans, understanding how they are changing and their impact on sea life and our weather and climate systems. Participate in this event during the summer of 2022 by sharing activities and resources with your patrons! This month’s featured activities are GLOBE Observer: Clouds and Cloudscape.  Citizen scientists of all ages are invited to make environmental observations that [...]

Our Blue Planet: EARTH Featured Activity – GLOBE Observer: Clouds and Cloudscape2022-05-31T10:14:28-06:00

Our Blue Planet: EARTH Featured Activities – A Drop in the Bucket and Catch! The World’s Oceans 

2022-05-31T10:16:32-06:00

STAR Net’s Our Blue Planet: EARTH campaign is a celebration of NASA’s focus on Earth’s oceans, understanding how they are changing and their impact on sea life and our weather and climate systems. Participate in this event during the summer of 2022 by sharing activities and resources with your patrons! This month’s featured activities are A Drop in the Bucket and Catch! The World’s Oceans.   A Drop in the Bucket is a visual demonstration where participants learn the various sources of freshwater, and the relative ratios of these water sources on Earth. Pair this activity with the icebreaker Catch! The World’s [...]

Our Blue Planet: EARTH Featured Activities – A Drop in the Bucket and Catch! The World’s Oceans 2022-05-31T10:16:32-06:00

Our Blue Planet: EARTH Featured Activity – Building for Hurricanes 

2022-04-25T14:59:33-06:00

Image: Hurricane Irene making landfall over the Northeast US STAR Net’s Our Blue Planet: EARTH campaign is a celebration of NASA’s focus on Earth’s oceans, understanding how they are changing and their impact on sea life and our weather and climate systems. Participate in this event during the summer of 2022 by sharing activities and resources with your patrons! This month’s featured activity is Building for Hurricanes.  In this engineering design challenge, participants use simple materials to design and construct a tower as tall as possible that can hold up a tennis ball while resisting the force of wind from a [...]

Our Blue Planet: EARTH Featured Activity – Building for Hurricanes 2022-04-25T14:59:33-06:00
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