Coastal Climate Science Activities and Experiments
Embedded Files
Environmental Explainers:
Increasing carbon dioxide (CO2) in the atmosphere
What is it? How is it changing? Why does it matter?
Start here:
The Carbon Cycle
Video (4.5 min) explaining the Carbon Cycle. Emphasizes that more carbon dioxide is going into the atmosphere than is going back into the earth.
Recommend for upper elementary school and up.
CO₂ and Greenhouse Gases
Illustrated article with charts showing the rise in CO₂ emissions over time, and by country. Along with evidence showing that human emissions of greenhouse gases are the primary driver of climate change, the article states some of what is being done and what is needed to reduce the emission of carbon dioxide.
Recommend for upper middle school and up.
Why is Carbon Dioxide a problem?
Video (90 sec) that explains how CO2 is being released at a rate which is much greater than the rate at which it is absorbed in nature, and therefore contributing to a warming atmosphere. Published by the International Energy Agency.
Recommend for middle school and up.
Increased Emissions: Climate Change, Lines of Evidence: Ch 4
Scientific video (5 min) that explains how scientists have arrived at the current state of knowledge about climate change and evidence that proves it is the result of human activities.
Recommend for high school and up.
Learn more:
What's in the Atmosphere?
Interactive illustration of the layers of the atmosphere. Published by NASA Climate Kids.
Recommend for upper elementary school and up.
The Carbon Cycle Process
Detailed video (3 min) explaining the steps of the carbon cycle, the locations of carbon (in the earth, on the earth, and in the atmosphere), and how the cycle works.
Recommend for middle school and up.
Atmospheric Carbon Dioxide
Brief article showing evidence that carbon dioxide in the atmosphere is increasing and explains why it's important. Published by the U.S. Global Change Research Program.
Recommend for high school and up.
Carbon Dioxide Tagged by Source - Science on a Sphere
This visualization shows the CO2 being added to Earth's atmosphere over the course of the year 2021, split into four major contributors: fossil fuels, burning biomass, land ecosystems, and the ocean.
Recommend for high school and up.
We’d love to hear how you used this tool in your community, how the students responded, and your suggestions to improve the experiments and other resources. Contact us at ccsae@mit.edu.
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