MIT Coastal Climate Change Toolkit
A Scientific Framework with Hands-On Experiments
Embedded Files
Environmental Explainers:
Melting glaciers and ice sheets
What is it? How is it changing? Why does it matter?
Start here:
Glaciers
National Snow and Ice Data Center (NSIDC)
Short informative piece from the National Snow and Ice Data Center at the University of Colorado Boulder explaining the basics of glaciers.
Recommend for middle school and up.
Ice Sheets
National Snow and Ice Data Center (NSIDC)
Short informative piece from the National Snow and Ice Data Center at the University of Colorado Boulder explaining the basics of ice sheets and ice caps.
Recommend for middle school and up.
Where are Earth's glaciers located?
US Geological Survey
Short FAQ article with locations of glaciers across the world. 91% in Antarctica, and 8% in Greenland.
Recommended for middle school and up
Climate Change Indicators: Snow and Ice
US Environmental Protection Agency
Article focusing on trends in snow, glaciers, and the freezing and thawing of oceans and lakes. Contains good explanantions of ice and snow phenomena. Be sure to click on the "View Indicators sidebar for excellent infographics.
Recommend for high school and up.
Antarctic Ice Mass Loss 2002-2020
NASA Earth Data
Short (30 second) video showing changes in Antarctic ice mass in the 21st century.
Recommend for middle school and up.
Greenland Ice Mass Loss 2002-2020
NASA Earth Data
Short (30 second) video showing changes in Greenland's ice mass in the 21st century.
Recommend for middle school and up.
Learn more:
International Thwaites Glacier Collection: What is happening at Thwaites Glacier?
British Antarctic Survey
Video (2.5 min) about the one of the most unstable glaciers in Antarctica, the Thwaites Glacier, roughly the same size as Florida or Britain. This video and more information about the Thwaites Glacier can be found at https://thwaitesglacier.org/
Recommend for middle school and up.
Antarctic sea ice at record lows as global ocean temperatures rise
PBS News
Video (5 min) explaining reduction in sea ice. Features interviews with scientists that study and interpret the data.
Recommend for high school and up.
World's ice is melting faster than ever
European Space Agency
Video (5 min) showing how satellite data is used to monitor the changing global landscape. Aligns with physical science (8th grade) curriculum.
Recommend for middle school and up.
Why Ice Sheets Matter
National Snow and Ice Data Center (NSIDC)
Detailed piece from the National Snow and Ice Data Center at the University of Colorado Boulder explaining how ice sheet are important to human and wildlife populations.
Recommend for high school and up.
What is the global volume of land ice and how is it changing?
Antarctic Glaciers
This is a technical article but it is easy to read and has excellent illustrations. It describes how most of the permanent ice volume in the world is locked up in ice sheets and glaciers and shows calculations of the amount of sea level rise that could result from the ice melting.
Recommend for high school and up.
How much of Earth's ice is melting?
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
Explains the tools researchers are using and what they are discovering about the quantity of melting ice and where it is happening.
Recommend for high school and up.
Was This Really a 1 in 700,000,000,000 Year Event?! - Antarctic sea ice melting fast
PBS Terra
Engaging video (13 min) with a detailed analysis of Antarctic sea ice trends and data. Watching even he first half is worthwhile.
Recommend for middle 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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