Solar Eclipse Study – GLOBE Mission EARTH & NASA Earth Science Education Collaborative
(University of Toledo)
Solar eclipses have an immediate impact on the weather as the shadow from the Moon traverses the Earth. During the August 21, 2017 and October 13, 2023 solar eclipses, citizen scientists including students took air temperature, surface temperature and cloud observations through the GLOBE Program. And, citizen scientists and students will collect more data during the upcoming April 8, 2024 total solar eclipse. Observations taken by citizen scientists offer unique insights into weather changes specifically since there are so many of them on the days of the events. Analysis of data from 2017 showed that temperature dropped significantly, and clouds dissipated as the Moon’s shadow covered the Earth. Be part of the exciting and unique area of research. Students who choose this project will study the effect of Solar Eclipse Events on weather through the citizen scientists' databases or through their observations, by analyzing observations other students have taken and through geospatial software.
The GLOBE (The Global Learning and Observations to Benefit the Environment) Program encourages hands-on observations of students’ environment and promotes students working together on a research question. The GLOBE Program is being implemented in at least 124 countries worldwide. The hallmark of the GLOBE Program is that students upload their data on a central server that they can then use to retrieve data from other schools to answer their research questions.