Learn how the Hawaiian Islands were formed by a geothermal hotspot and resulting volcanic activity in this video segment from Nature.

Astronomy students learn how to use the Hertsprung-Russel diagram by plotting stellar data. HR diagram then reveals evolutionary stage of stars.

This video segment adapted from the Space Telescope Science Institute shows what the Hubble telescope found when it stared at a single, nearly empty spot in the sky for 10 days in 1995. The unexpected result was a picture of a multitude of galaxies stretching into the distance.

This article examines the sixth of seven essential principles of the climate sciences--"We Change Earth's Climate." Written for the science teacher, the article covers greenhouse gases, land-use changes, and other human-induced causes of global climate change. Each issue of the free online magazine Beyond Weather and the Water Cycle is structured around one of the seven principles. The content provides background information, lessons, and activities for K-5 classrooms.

In this video segment adapted from the National Film Board of Canada, learn how the Inuit people have used their traditional knowledge to understand and adapt to changes in their Arctic environment, particularly when hunting and navigating the landscape.

In this activity, students investigate data from Hurricane Ivan, the September 2004 storm that devastated the Caribbean Islands and the Alabama Gulf Coast before looping across Florida and back into the Gulf of Mexico, where it regenerated into a new storm system. They will analyze data on the storm's location, windspeed, and barometric pressure, develop study questions, and map the hurricane's position at selected intervals.

This module discusses the hydrologic cycle and its impacts on the planet Earth. Additionally, the module addresses connections between the hydrologic cycle, climate and the impacts humans have had on the cycle.

The EERC at the University of Bristol has developed an Earthquake Engineering Competition that challenges secondary school students to design and make small scale models of buildings that can withstand strong earthquakes. Provided on the website are tips for model design and construction, load testing advice, and a gallery of models organized by various characteristics.

This game allows students an opportunity to identify different kinds of rocks based on an actual photograph of the rock as well as characteristics of the rock, which are also shown.

In this investigation, students locate a round or spherical naturally-occurring rock and take notes about its location and their reasons for selecting it. After measuring the rock and assessing some of its properties, they will answer a series of questions to determine the type of environment that would create a round rock, as well as the different types of weathering and components of the rock's internal structure that might contribute to its shape.

This 24 minute planetarium show teaches about meteors, meteorites, asteroids, and comets. The show was created for fulldome theaters, but is also available on DVD to be shown in flat version for TVs and computer monitors, and can be freely viewed online. It shows the effects of the Chixulub and Tungusta events, plus the Pallasite impact that resulted in the Brenham meteorite fall, and describes ways that asteroid hunters seek new objects in the solar system, and how ground penetrating radar is used to find meteorites that have survived to the Earth's surface. Narrated by astronaut Tom Jones, it also discusses ways that humans might try to deflect an asteroid or comet that is on a collision course with Earth. The show was created for informal science venues (digital planetariums); it is also useful as supplemental material for middle school science. Impact Earth is available for free if presented directly from the Space Update site (widescreen or fisheye views linked from YouTube). Otherwise, a DVD of the show can be purchased for $10.

Learn where diamonds originate and how inclusions trapped within diamonds help geologists determine their age in this video segment from Nature.

In this activity, learners explore the size and scale of the universe by shrinking cosmic scale in 4 steps, zooming out from the realm of the Earth and Moon to the realm of the galaxies. This informational brochure was designed as a follow-up take-home activity for teen and adult audiences. It can follow informal education activities where participants have experienced related space science programming. This activity allows participants to explore ideas of size and scale in the universe at their own pace.

In this video segment adapted from NASA, astronomer Michelle Thaller introduces the world of infrared light and demonstrates how infrared cameras allow us to see more than what the naked eye can perceive.

This video segment adapted from NOVA illustrates why carbon is at the center of life on Earth. It also asks whether carbon-based life might exist on other planets.

This is a set of three, one-page problems about the size and area of solar panels used to generate power. Learners will will use integer arithmetic to tally the number of hydrogen, oxygen and carbon atoms in a molecule and determine the number of methane atoms that can result. Options are presented so that students may learn about how NASA is using signs of methane gas to search for life on other planets, such as Mars, through a NASA press release or about how astrobiologists who are looking for life beyond Earth are using spectroscopy to identify methane plumes on Mars by viewing a NASA eClips video [7 min.]. This activity is part of the Space Math multi-media modules that integrate NASA press releases, NASA archival video, and mathematics problems targeted at specific math standards commonly encountered in middle school.

This is an activity about challenges that humans face in future space travel as analyzed through news articles highlighting discoveries about the Sun. Learners will read and analyze a series of related articles and answer questions to determine the most newsworthy points. Ultimately, they will investigate a given problem and present their findings to their peers in their very own "In the News" broadcast.

This is the first of nine lessons in the Visualizing and Understanding the Science of Climate Change website. This lesson is an introduction to Earth's climate and covers key principles regarding Earth's unique climate, atmosphere, and regional and temporal climate differences.

This activity introduces students to the process of converting sunlight into electricity through the use of photovoltaics (solar cells). Students complete a reading passage with questions and an inquiry lab using small photovoltaic cells.

This lesson provides a way for students to determine the relationship between the distance from a light source and its brightness. Once students discover the relationship, they can begin to understand how astronomers use this knowledge to determine the distances to stars and far away galaxies.