Atmosphere

When scientists are investigating the atmosphere, they want to be able to understand and predict:

  • Weather (the air temperature, rain, snow, relative humidity, cloud conditions etc...);
  • Climate (the average and extreme conditions of the atmosphere);
  • Energy Budget (land-atmosphere interactions); and
  • Atmospheric Composition (the trace gases and particles in the air).

Each of these characteristics of the atmosphere affects us and our environment. How we build our homes and schools, what crops we grow, what animals and plants naturally live around us all depend on climate. Does rain come mainly in winter or summer or every day? How long to dry spells last?

The composition of the atmosphere affects how our air looks and feels and how far we can see. On days when clouds don’t completely cover the sky, does the sky look blue or milky? Does it ever have a brown tint? Do sunsets have lots of red colour? All these are dependent on the composition of our air.

Students can use GLOBE to investigate their local weather, climate and atmospheric composition, and how these vary from place to place, season to season, and year to year.

For more information on GLOBE atmosphere protocols, please visit the teacher’s guide at the GLOBE website here... Most New Zealand schools that study atmosphere follow the basic protocols, including measuring the maximum and minimum daily temperatures, precipitation, snowfall, pH, and cloud cover. Making sure that your equipment is calibrated is also important to ensure the accuracy of your measurements.

Atmosphere Photo

Photo: University of Waikato

Project Ideas

Atmosphere data can be used to support measurements done in other study areas such as hydrology or soils to enhance an investigation. It can also be easily integrated into any horticultural or agricultural studies to determine when the best time to plant crops is, or with an organic garden.

The data collected through atmospheric measurements is also perfect for using for basic mathematics, and many schools then report their findings through newsletters and at assemblies.

NIWA also has a host of investigation ideas on their website. Click here to check them out!

Moreover, atmosphere data is brilliant for fully utilising the ‘Maps and Graphs’ function on the GLOBE website. You are able to make comparisons with other schools around the world to learn about seasons and how the different hemispheres work. To learn more about ‘Maps and Graphs’, check out the tutorial.

GLOBE PowerPoint Presentations and Data Sheets

These are the PowerPoint (PPT) presentations that have been used in GLOBE workshops. They are useful for helping you to understand the various atmosphere protocols.

To view further PowerPoint presentations on advanced protocols click here... Further atmosphere resources can be found in the Resource section of this website.

FAQs

How do I set up my instrument shelter?
There are instructions on how to set up an instrument shelter at your school, including how far your shelter should be positioned from other buildings and what direction it should face. These are downloadable from clicking here (210KB PDF). Also check out the PowerPoint presentation above on site selection and set-up.

How can we distinguish between different cloud types?
In addition to the cloud chart (1MB PDF) there is an online cloud quiz and an online interactive cloud module available through the GLOBE website. Students can also practice reading a max/min thermometer online.