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STORM SIGNALS

The Storm Signals program allows you to collect data to answer the question, "Have signals been recorded today due to a flare or CME that could affect Earth?"

Solar flares and coronal Mass ejections (CMEs) emit a broad range of light - most of this light is invisible to us. Since all light travels at the same speed (186,000 miles per second or 300,000 km per second), all of the light gets to Earth in a little over 8 minutes. Scientists monitor the Sun using instruments that detect many of the different kinds of light emitted. For detecting solar storms we will use radio waves, x-rays, and ultraviolet light. Radio waves are especially useful because they can be measured by instruments on the Earth and in interplanetary space. Scientists put instruments on satellites to detect X-rays and ultraviolet light because the Earth's atmosphere interferes with emissions of these kinds of light from the Sun. You will use radio, x-ray and ultraviolet data to tell you when a major solar storm has taken place and where on the Sun that storm occurred.

From Students:

RadioJove Icon

Learn how to construct your own inexpensive radio telescope and use it to monitor the Sun for solar storms that might affect Earth.

TEACHER'S NOTE

The construction of the RadioJove kit requires the assembly of a circuit board including some soldering and may take 15 hours. Assembly of the kit is most appropriate for middle school and high school students.

From Observatories:

Observatory Icon

Ground-based radio observatories provide real-time measurements of radio emissions from the Sun and archives of results from earlier measurements. Find out how to get and interpret this data to determine whether a solar storm has erupted.

From Satellites:

Satellite Icon

NASA satellites monitor the Sun for solar flares and CMEs. These satellites supply scientific data from instruments that detect radio and x-ray emissions. With this data you will be able to tell if a solar storm has occurred, how big the storm is and where on the Sun the storm occurred.

 

TEACHER'S NOTE

Students participating in Storm Signals play a critical role in the overall process of the Student Observation Network (S.O.N.). They are able to confirm the predictions of the Sunspotter's Sunspot Suspect, and they will predict magnetic storms around Earth, issuing Space Weather alerts that tell other students to begin monitoring the Magnetosphere for magnetic storms. By collecting and analyzing real-time data from their radio antennas, professional observatories, and NASA satellites, they can carry out the same duties as NASA researchers! The Space Weather alerts issued by the Space Environment Center (SEC) of NOAA (National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration) are essential to protect satellites, power grids and astronauts.

In Storm Signals you will learn:

  1. how to instruct students in the construction of a simple device to detect radio emissions from the Sun,
  2. how to enable students to obtain and interpret radio emissions from ground-based professional observatories,
  3. how to enable students to obtain and interpret radio, x-ray and ultraviolet emissions from NASA satellites.

ACTIVITIES

All activities are in PDF format.

Here are some classroom-ready activities to help students to learn about the electromagnetic spectrum and where radio, visible, ultraviolet and x-ray fit in the light spectrum.

Activities:

Additional science content is available in the Content Enhancement topics"Electromagnetic Spectrum", "Electromagnetism" and "How Astronomers Use the EM Spectra".
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