Archived Problems
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A
Matter of Perspective. [PDF] - Grade level: 9-11
Why can't we see aurora at lower latitudes on Earth?
This problem will have students examine the geometry of
perspective, and how the altitude of an aurora or other
object, determines how far away you will be able to see
it before it is below the local horizon.
Solar
Storms in the News [PDF] - Grade level: 6-10
Students will use a newspaper archive
to explore how reporters have described the causes of
aurora since the 1850's. They will see how some
explanations were popular for a time, then faded into
oblivion, as better scientific explanations were
created.
Exploring
Earth's Magnetosphere [DOC] Students will examine a NASA website that
discusses Earth's magnetosphere, and identify the
definitions for key phenomena and parts to this
physical system. They will write a short essay that
describes, in their own words, how aurora are produced
based on what they have read at the NASA
site.
Reading
Between the Lines [PDF] Students
solve simple equations for x, (like 2x + 3 = 5) to
discover which words complete an essay on the causes of
aurora, and answer questions after reading the
completed essay.
The
Auroral Oval [PDF] Students learn
that the aurorae are observed as two 'halos' of light
encircling the North and South Poles. Students use
measurements made from two satellite images of the
'auroral ovals' to determine the diameter of the rings,
and their approximate geographic centers - which are
not at the geographic poles!
How
high is an aurora [PDF] Students
use the properties of a triangle to determine how high
up aurora are. They also learn about the parallax
method for finding distances to remote
objects.
The
Life Cycle of an Aurora [PDF] Students examine two eye-witness descriptions of
an aurora and identify the common elements so that they
can extract a common pattern of changes.
Aurora Power! [PDF] Students use
data to estimate the power of an aurora, and compare it
to common things such as the electrical consumption of
a house, a city and a country.
Solar Flares, CME's and Aurora [PDF] Some articles about the Northern Lights imply that
solar flares cause them. Students will use data to
construct a simple Venn Diagram, and answer an
important question about whether solar flares cause
CME's and Aurora.
The November 8, 2004 solar storm [PDF] Students calculate the speed of a CME, and
describe their aurora observations through writing and
drawing.
Sketching the Northern Lights [PDF] Students read an account of an aurora seen by an
observer, and create a drawing or painting based on the
description.
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