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Hi, I'm Sean O'Keefe, I'm the Administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration,

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and also the father of three kids.

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I'm excited by the opportunities that we can provide from NASA to inspire that next generation of explorers.

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Matter of fact, I'm here at Belmont Ridge Middle School to lend a hand on a NASA Connect activity.

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NASA Connect lets viewers experience the exciting and important work that engineers, scientists, and technicians do every day.

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Work that's about the future, and for which you, our next generation, will have the opportunity to pick up and carry to new heights and possibly other planets.

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There are many hands-on and web-based activities from NASA Connect that the family can do together at home.

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I encourage you to learn more about those activities in today's program.

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On this episode of NASA Connect, you'll learn how weather affects our daily lives.

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You'll see national and international scientists using satellite technology to help improve weather forecasting and improve our ability to predict long-term climate change.

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You'll also be introduced to two NASA satellite Earth science missions, CloudSat and Calypso.

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In your home or classroom, you will apply math, science, and technology concepts with two really cool activities.

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All in this episode of NASA Connect, the A-Train Express.

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Music

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Bonjour! I'm Jennifer Pulley, and welcome to NASA Connect, the show that connects you to math, science, technology, and NASA.

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On today's episode, we're filming on location in France.

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Voila! As you can see, France is a beautiful European country that is rich in culture and history.

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Here's a quick tour of some of the places we've seen during our trip to France.

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Music

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Music

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As you can see, France is a great place to visit, especially when you have nice weather.

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Speaking of the weather, what is one of the first things you want to know when you wake up in the morning?

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Well, if you're like me, you'll think, hmm, I wonder what the weather's going to be like today.

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You depend on information about the weather for a variety of reasons.

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You need to decide what to wear to school, and you need to plan for after-school activities if they're outdoors.

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Do you realize that the weather in the United States can have a significant effect on what the weather will be like here in France?

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Storms heading eastward from the Atlantic coast can bring wind and rain to Europe a few days later.

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We truly live in a global society where we all are interconnected in some way.

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Today's program will focus on predicting weather and climate change.

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You will learn that we need to work together internationally to answer some of the questions that Earth scientists from around the world ask every day.

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But before we get to those questions, let's first learn about the fundamentals of weather and climate.

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During the course of the program, you will be asked to answer several inquiry-based questions.

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After the questions appear on the screen, your teacher will pause the program to allow you time to answer and discuss the questions.

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This is your time to explore and become critical thinkers.

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Students working in groups take a few minutes to answer the following questions.

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How is weather different from climate?

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List and discuss various kinds of weather you have experienced.

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What are some factors that determine weather?

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What climate do you live in?

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It's now time to pause the program and answer the questions.

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Okay, guys, let's talk about weather.

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Basically, weather is the daily condition of the Earth's atmosphere.

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Weather is produced by the interaction of several factors, which include heat, air pressure, winds, and moisture.

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Let's briefly look at each one of those factors.

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Heat, transferred from the sun, is absorbed by the Earth and spread through the atmosphere.

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Air temperature varies from place to place because the sun's rays strike the Earth at different angles.

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Air pressure is the measure of the force of the air pressing down on the Earth's surface.

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Air pressure depends on the density of the air.

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Denser air exerts more pressure than less dense air.

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Air pressure on the Earth can vary considerably from location to location due to unequal heating of the atmosphere.

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These air pressure differences cause the movement of air, which we call wind.

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Finally, the amount of moisture in the air, called relative humidity, also influences weather.

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Moisture in the atmosphere condenses, causing clouds to develop and precipitation to fall to the Earth.

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So, have you come up with the difference between weather and climate?

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I said earlier that weather is the daily condition of the Earth's atmosphere.

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But what about climate?

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Well, for most of us, climate means a location is hot, cold, wet, or dry.

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You see, climate is the average weather conditions for a specific region over an extended period of time.

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The climate of any place is determined by two main factors, temperature and precipitation.

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The Earth is divided into three major climate zones based on the average temperature of these zones.

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They are the tropical, temperate, and polar zones.

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Can you determine what climate zone you live in?

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To learn more about weather and climate, check out the following NASA website.

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Have you ever been in a situation where the weather forecast called for sunny skies, yet it ended up raining all day long?

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You think, oh, if I only had my umbrella.

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But you know, guys, the job of predicting weather accurately is a difficult one because our atmosphere, it's constantly changing.

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You see, in order to predict the weather accurately for the hours and days ahead,

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weather forecasters must analyze information they receive from a number of sources,

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including local weather observers, weather balloons, weather stations, and satellites.

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Speaking of satellites, NASA has a train of satellites called the Afternoon Constellation,

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nicknamed the A-Train, which are orbiting the Earth.

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And they're collecting all sorts of data, including data that will help predict weather and climate change.

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Two additional satellites, CloudSat and Calypso, will soon be launched to be a part of that train.

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CloudSat will help improve weather prediction by studying the different aspects of clouds, as its name implies.

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Calypso will help predict climate change and how aerosols or particles affect the Earth's atmosphere.

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Later on in the program, Dr. Didier Tonray will tell us all about aerosols.

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But first, let's visit with Dr. Graham Stevens.

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He's the principal investigator on the CloudSat mission.

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Thank you, Jennifer.

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We rely on accurate weather predictions for many activities.

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Farmers need to know the best times to plant and harvest their crops.

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Airplane takeoffs, landings, and flight paths are scheduled according to local weather conditions.

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Weather forecasts alert people to severe storms that could endanger life or property.

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And most people want to know what the weather will be like as they go to and from work and school or plan outdoor activities.

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But do you think weather predictions or forecasts are always correct?

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What do you think causes errors in weather forecasts?

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You know, Jennifer is right when she stated that weather prediction is difficult.

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The atmosphere is constantly changing and even though we receive weather data from a variety of sources

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such as weather stations, satellites, weather balloons, and ground-based observers,

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it is still impossible to predict the weather correctly 100% of the time.

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One of the ways of improving our prediction of weather and climate

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is to develop new technologies that helps us understand how the atmosphere works.

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A new satellite that will help improve weather prediction is NASA's CloudSat satellite.

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CloudSat will provide the first vertical cloud profiling from space, improving weather and climate forecasts.

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Before we continue with the specifics of the CloudSat mission,

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here are a few questions I would like you and your peers to discuss and answer.

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What is a cloud?

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What types of clouds exist?

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Which clouds make which weather?

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Why is it important to study clouds?

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It's now time to pause the program.

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So how did you do with your questions?

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You know, clouds are all made of water.

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Sometimes they are made of tiny drops, far apart and held up by the wind.

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Other times they are made of big drops, held up for a while by very strong upward winds inside the cloud.

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In this kind of cloud, the drops become too heavy to stay up, so they fall to earth as rain,

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or if it's cold enough, they fall to earth as snow, hail, or sleet.

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Clouds are classified based on three factors.

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Their shape, the altitude at which they occur, and whether they are producing precipitation.

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Clouds come in three basic shapes.

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Cumulus clouds, which are heaped and puffy.

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Stratus clouds, which are layered.

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And cirrus clouds, which are wispy.

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Clouds also occur in three altitude ranges, specifically the altitude of the cloud base.

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High clouds, which occur above 6,000 metres and designated by cirrus,

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or cirro, are cirrus, cirrocumulus, and cirrostratus.

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Middle clouds, which occur between 2,000 and 6,000 metres and are designated by alto,

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are altocumulus and altostratus.

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Low clouds, which occur below 2,000 metres are stratus, nimbostratus,

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cumulus, stratocumulus, cumulonimbus, and fog.

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I bet you didn't think fog was a cloud.

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It's a cloud that touches the ground.

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Clouds that incorporate the word nimbus, or the prefix nimbo,

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are clouds from which precipitation is falling.

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Can you think of another type of cloud?

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I'll leave the answer to that question up to you.

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So how many of you are wondering how to keep all those clouds in order?

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You know, it's tough even for me.

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That's why I use this globe cloud chart as a reference.

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You'll learn more about globe later in the program.

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So why is it important to study clouds?

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Clouds exert an enormous influence on our weather and climate.

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They are nature's way of moving fresh water from place to place on Earth.

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Clouds play a very important part in maintaining Earth's temperature.

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We need to understand how clouds reflect the sun's energy back into space

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or trap the Earth's energy in the atmosphere.

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We call this Earth's radiation budget.

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Using the CloudSat satellite, for the very first time,

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we'll be able to measure the altitude and properties of clouds.

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CloudSat radar will slice through the atmosphere,

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providing vertical cross-sectional view of clouds

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and furnish new weather and climate data,

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including cloud layer thickness, cloud top and base altitude,

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and water and ice contents.

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Existing space-based systems only observe the uppermost layer of clouds

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and cannot reliably detect the presence of multiple cloud layers

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nor determine the cloud water and ice content.

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The penetration of CloudSat's radar into and through clouds

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will yield a new capability that fills a critical gap

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in existing and planned space-borne observational systems.

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With this new technology, CloudSat will improve weather predictions,

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increasing the accuracy of severe weather, hurricanes, and flood warnings.

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And now, Jennifer, I think the students are ready to size up the clouds.

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Back to you.

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Thanks, Dr. Stephens.

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I really had no idea how much the clouds impacted our weather.

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Well, now it's time to see how much you've learned,

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and it's time for you to size up the clouds.

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Students from the School of International Studies at Meadowbrook in Norfolk, Virginia,

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will preview Part 1 of this program's hands-on activity.

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NASA Connect asks us to show you this program's hands-on activity.

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In this activity, you will set up three simulated clouds

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representing three different cloud types.

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You will use different methods to estimate precipitation content in each cloud type.

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The precipitation from each cloud will be released,

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and you will compare your estimates with what is actually occurring on the ground.

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In addition to learning about weather forecasting,

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we will also be using math skills like estimation, percentages, averages, and ratios.

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You can download a copy of the Educator Guide containing directions

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and a list of materials from the NASA Connect website.

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Teachers should cut a three-quarter inch diameter hole

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in the center of the bottom of three different foam cups.

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Cover the hole with a Post-It note.

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Place about one ounce of M&M's in a plastic bag.

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Twist the bag tightly and tie the excess bag in a knot.

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Cut off the excess to make a compact bundle.

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Make a second bag following the same procedure.

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Select any cup.

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Pour in about half full of M&M's.

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Then add a bundle of M&M's and fill more loose M&M's into the cup

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until it is three-quarters full.

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The loose M&M's will represent the amount of precipitation in each cloud.

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Fill the second cup to about one-third full of M&M's.

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Fill the third cup to about one-fourth full of M&M's.

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Add a bundle of M&M's and then continue filling with loose M&M's

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until the cup is one-half full.

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Secure the lids on the cups by taping the joint with masking tape or transparent tape.

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Invert the cups and label each cup cloud type X, Y, and Z.

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Below this, write the actual capacity of the cups chosen.

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Line up the cups on a table.

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Students will estimate how many ounces of precipitation each cloud type contains.

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Write the estimate onto the data sheet.

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Next, remove the post-it note and shine a flashlight into the hole.

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Make a new estimate of how many ounces of precipitation each cloud type contains

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and record it on your data sheet.

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Do this for each cloud type.

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Choose a person to weigh each cloud type cup on a scale.

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Record the weight ounces.

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Remember, weight ounces do not equal volume ounces.

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Once you have collected all of the data, you will be able to use it

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Once you have collected all of the data, you will revise your precipitation estimate.

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Based on your data, answer these questions.

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How does the data compare with your estimates?

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What factors might cause differences?

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If you had another cloud type of a different size,

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would the data collected make for a more accurate precipitation forecast?

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Discuss these findings with your class.

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Great job, you guys!

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Okay, now let's review.

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First, we learned the difference between weather and climate.

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Then, we learned how weather is produced by several factors like heat energy and moisture.

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Next, Dr. Graham Stevens told us how the CloudSat satellite

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will be able to help improve weather prediction across the globe.

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Now let's focus our attention on aerosols, climate changes, and Calypso.

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For that, we're going to head to the Space Agency of France, or CNES.

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What NASA is to America, CNES is to France.

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So, let's go speak with Dr. Didier Tonray.

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He's a principal investigator of Parasol and a co-investigator for the Calypso mission.

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Calypso is a satellite that's being built by both France and the United States.

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Launch!

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Merci, Jennifer.

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The climate of the Earth has not remained constant through the course of time.

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It has changed.

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In general, living things have affected changes in climate,

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and changes in climate have affected living things.

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Working in groups, see if you can answer the following question.

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What are some reasons why our climate has changed over time?

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Teacher, you may now pause the program so students can answer the question.

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From reports of increasing temperature, we think that the Earth's climate is maybe changing.

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But the processes behind these changes are not as clear.

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Two of the biggest uncertainties in understanding and predicting climate change

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are the effect of clouds and aerosols.

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The Calypso, or Cloud Aerosol LiDAR and Infrared Pathfinder Satellite Observation Satellite mission

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will help us answer significant questions about climate processes

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by providing new information on clouds and aerosols.

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Dr. Stephens provided you with some information on clouds,

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so now let's concentrate on aerosols.

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What are aerosols?

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Aerosols are tiny particles suspended in the air.

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Some occur naturally, originating from volcanoes, dust storms, forests and grassland fires,

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living vegetation and sea spray.

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Human activities, such as the burning of fossil fuels

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and the alteration of natural surface cover, also generate aerosols.

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Average over the globe, aerosols made by human activities

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currently account for 10% of the total amount of aerosols in our atmosphere.

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Most of that 10% is concentrated in the northern hemisphere.

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Can you think of a reason why?

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We have much to learn about the way aerosols affect global and regional climate.

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We don't know in what regions of the planet the amount of atmospheric aerosol

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is increasing, decreasing or remaining constant.

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Overall, we don't know whether aerosols are warming or cooling the planet.

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So why do we care about aerosols?

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Aerosols tend to cause cooling of the Earth's surface immediately below them.

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Because they reflect sunlight back into space,

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aerosols have a direct cooling effect by reducing the amount of solar radiation

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that reaches the surface.

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It is thought that aerosol cooling may partially offset expected global warming

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that is attributed to increases in the amount of carbon dioxide

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and other gases from human activity.

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Did you realize that if there were no aerosols in the atmosphere,

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there would be no clouds?

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What can you say about the relationship between clouds and aerosols?

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Aerosols are believed to have an indirect effect on climate

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by changing the properties of clouds.

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As aerosol concentration increases within a cloud,

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the water in the cloud gets spread over many more particles,

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each of which is correspondingly smaller.

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In this way, changing aerosol in the atmosphere

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can change the frequency of cloud occurence, cloud thickness and rainfall amounts.

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Also, clouds with low aerosol concentration and few large droplets

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do not scatter light well

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and allow much of the sunlight to pass through and reach the surface.

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However, the high aerosol concentration in these clouds

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allows for the formation of many small liquid water droplets.

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Up to 90% of visible radiation or light is reflected back to space by such clouds

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without reaching Earth's surface.

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Probably the best-known evidence of the effect of aerosols in the atmosphere

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occurred in 1991.

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A severe volcanic eruption from Mount Pinatubo, Philippines,

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put an estimated 20 million tons of sulfur dioxide into the atmosphere.

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Aerosols from that eruption stayed in the atmosphere so long

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that average global temperature over the following year cooled by about half a degree.

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So, earlier in the program, Jennifer was right

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in that weather in the United States affects the weather here in France

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and all over the globe.

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And the reverse is true.

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Scientists have been observing clouds and aerosols globally from space for many years

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using sensors that measure the amount of energy leaving Earth.

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The sensors observe how clouds and aerosols vary with latitude and longitude

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but provide little information of what is inside the clouds

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or on how they vary with altitude.

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For the first time, the CALIPSO satellite will provide vertical,

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curtained-like images of the atmosphere on a global scale using a LiDAR.

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The LiDAR technique is similar to radar in operation,

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but LiDAR uses short pulses of laser light instead of radio waves to prompt the atmosphere.

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The LiDAR data from CALIPSO will allow us to determine precisely

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the altitudes of clouds and aerosol layers and the extent of layer overlap

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to identify the composition of clouds and to estimate the abundance and sizes of aerosols.

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CALIPSO is a highly advanced research tool to study the Earth's atmosphere

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and will provide the international community with a data set

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that is essential for a better understanding of the Earth's climate.

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With more confidence in climate model predictions,

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international leaders will be able to make more informed policy decisions about global climate change.

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So the next time you wake up on a hazy summer day,

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you can tell your friends that the haziness may be caused by sandstorms

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or volcanic eruptions that occur halfway around the world.

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Now back to you, Jennifer. Au revoir.

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Merci, Dr. Tonray.

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Well, now that you are experts on aerosols,

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let's head to Collège Cantolando, located in Bordeaux, France,

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for part deux of this program's hands-on activity, the Globe Aerosol Protocol.

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In this activity, called Aerosols Protocol,

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you will use a sun photometer to measure the aerosol optical thickness of the atmosphere

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or how much of the sun's light is scattered or absorbed by particles suspended in the air.

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Remember, you can download a copy of the educator guide

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containing directions and list of materials from the NASA Connect website.

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When you are ready to go outside, put your sun photometer in an insulated bag

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to keep it at room temperature.

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Putting your sun photometer in a bag will help minimize any temperature sensitivity problems.

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To begin taking measurements with your sun photometer,

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flip the power switch on and then select the green channel.

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Hold the instrument in front of you about chest high.

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Point the sun photometer at the sun

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and then find the spot made by the sun as it shines through the front alignment bracket.

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Remember, guys, never look directly into the sun.

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Use the mark on the rear alignment bracket as a guide

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to align the sunspot until it rests on the color dot.

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It is normal for the readout to fluctuate within a few millivolts.

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Record only the highest reading that you see over a period of about 15 seconds.

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Record the value on the data sheet and the time of the reading to within 15 seconds.

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Now take the dark voltage reading.

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Cover the two holes on the sun photometer.

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Record the value of the dark voltage reading on the data sheet.

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Switch to the red channel.

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Record the maximum voltage and the time just as you did with the green channel.

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Then take the dark voltage reading again just like before.

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You need to repeat the process for the green and red channels two more times,

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giving you a total of three data points for each channel.

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Next, using your cloud chart as a guide, observe and record cloud conditions.

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Determine what types of clouds are in the sky.

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Record your observation on the data chart.

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Next, determine the percentage of cloud cover and record the value on the data sheet.

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Now you need to observe the sky conditions.

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What is the sky color? Is the sky clear or hazy?

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Is the sky obscured by fog, smoke, or haze?

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Record these observations on the data sheet.

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Finally, record the current temperature.

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When you get back into your classroom, log on to the following website.

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You will record all your data into the database.

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The database will automatically convert your voltage readings to aerosol optical thickness.

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To learn more about assessing a sun photometer, check out the NASA Connect website.

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Très bien. Super job, you guys.

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You sure did collect a lot of data in your aerosol protocol.

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Now, don't throw it away because it could be useful to scientists from around the world.

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Say, how would you like to be a part of a really cool international science program?

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Well, Dr. Diane Robinson, Calypso Outreach Director from Hampton University,

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and Dr. Teresa Kennedy with Globe International can tell you more.

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Thanks, Jennifer. Those are great activities that can be used with Globe and Calypso,

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the satellite being built right here at the Alcatel building in Cannes, France.

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If you would like to participate with this experiment

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or other Earth science activities related to satellite observation,

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the Globe program is actively looking for students to work with scientists worldwide.

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Globe is a cooperative worldwide effort to collect environmental observations

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into a large database on the Internet,

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and we welcome the French to be the newest members to Globe.

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Students around the world collect real data in all Earth science areas.

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The measurements collected by students are sent to the Globe database via the Web or e-mail

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and used by students and scientists around the world.

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The student information is used in a real way with the data collected by scientists and satellites

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to give us a greater idea about how the environment works.

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Once submitted, these data are publicly available on the Globe website

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and are displayed graphically with Globe visualization tools.

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An important aspect of the program is that students are encouraged to communicate directly with Globe scientists

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to better understand the importance and impact of their data.

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Another important aspect is that the information you collect

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can and does make a difference to understanding our world around us.

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More than a million students in over 14,000 schools have joined the Globe effort,

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and the numbers are growing.

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Won't you join the effort?

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For more information, go to our website at www.globe.gov.

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Back to you, Jennifer.

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Thanks, Diane and Teresa.

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Well, guys, that wraps up another episode of NASA Connect.

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Students, don't forget to check out the website for this program's Web activities and the student challenge.

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Hey, got a question, comment, or suggestion?

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Then e-mail them to connect at lark.nasa.gov.

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So until next time, stay connected to math, science, technology, and NASA.

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Au revoir.

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NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory

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California Institute of Technology

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NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory California Institute of Technology