• 3-5 minutes per observation

• 1 or more people  

Participants will take on the role of a botanist, studying plants as they change over the seasons. Project Budburst, a citizen science project, provides the observation sheets and directions for youth to make regular observations of a variety of plants they may find near their home or school. The observations are reported through the Project Budburst website, contributing to a collection of data that professional scientists are using to track global climate change.

Plants use the chemical process of photosynthesis to grow - they absorb energy from the sun and carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. The chemical process of photosynthesis results in oxygen being released into the atmosphere. NASA measures the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere and noticed an interesting trend. Watch the map below, take note of the dates as the gases change. 

• What does the green coloring represent? 

• What does the yellow coloring represent?

• What patterns do you notice between the green and yellow coloring? 

• Why do the colors change at different times of the years?

• Why might there be a delay when deciduous plants start to leaf out, and when the carbon dioxide levels change?

• What do people do to contribute to or reduce the levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere?