Introduction to Remote Sensing

Ecology aces examine sea surface temperature maps and relate temperatures to concentration in fish and zooplankton populations. Take your class to a computer lab and provide experience with actual remote sensing data. Some of the links...

Check out climate anomalies just like NASA climatologists! Investigators use a GISTEMP map from NASA to analyze one month of climate anomalies. Scientists look for data extremes and generate possible explanations for observable patterns. 

Environmental science learners examine satellite imagery of temperature, vegetation, precipitation, and productivity. They use these maps to understand how scientists divide the planet into major biomes. As part of a larger unit on...

Bathymetry is not a measure of the depths of bathtubs! Through the three lessons, scholars explore two different types of maps and how they are made. The resource focuses on topographic and bathymetric maps and teaching the techniques...

Tour the universe from the comfort of your own desk! View the video to learn more about bigbangregistry.com, an interactive map of the great beyond. Pupils discover cosmic background radiation, the oldest light in the universe. The...

Earth's vast ocean is full of mysteries! Science scholars discover the big-picture properties that influence its characteristics at different latitudes using a lesson from PBS's Weather and Climate series. After completing a background...

Blow the roof off your classroom with this multimedia science lesson on volcanic eruptions. A short online video teaches young geologists about shield and composite volcanoes and explores the examples of Kilauea and Mt. Vesuvius, before...

The Mars Global Surveyor spent two years creating a mineral map of the planet Mars using thermal emission spectrometry. To help young astronomers understand this remote sensing instrument, have them simulate how data is collected and...

Middle schoolers examine the differences between air temperature and ground temperature.  In this investigative lesson students find NASA data on the Internet and use it to create a graph. 

Mars is home to the tallest mountain in our solar system, Olympus Mons. In this set of two activities, learners review geologic land formations through the analysis of aerial maps. They then apply this knowledge to aerial maps of objects...