NASA’s GLOBE Program – Pedosphere: Soil Moisture and Gravimetric – at TEECS

The Thomas Edison EnergySmart Charter School’s Middle School Science Department is partnering with NASA’s GLOBE Program – Pedosphere: Soil Moisture and Gravimetric. Middle School students have an exciting educational opportunity to measure soil water content by comparing the wet and dry masses of samples right from our school property. Students will be led by Mrs. Jignasha Patel, TEECS’ MS Science Teacher and certified GLOBE Eco-School Teacher.

The program, Pedosphere: Soil Moisture and Gravimetric, will include data collection of soil temperature, moisture, and chemical properties that is invaluable to scientists in many fields:

• soil scientists use the data to better understand their potential for plant growth
• hydrologists use the data to determine potential sedimentation in water bodies
• meteorologists and climatologists use soil data in weather and climate prediction models as soils can affect humidity and air temperature
• biologists use soil data to understand its potential for supporting plant and animal life
• anthropologists study the soil in order to reconstruct the human history of an area

Students will be performing various measurements and collecting the following information:

• soil temperature and moisture protocols that involve repeated measurement of rapidly changing environmental variables
• soil characterization measurements that offer an in-depth observation of generally long-lasting properties of the soil column
• frost tube observations that give important climate information about frozen soils

GLOBE (The Global Learning and Observations to Benefit the Environment) is sponsored by the U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) with support from the National Science Foundation (NSF), National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), and Department of State.

The GLOBE Program is an international science and education program that provides students and the public worldwide with the opportunity to participate in data collection and the scientific process and contribute meaningfully to our understanding of the Earth system and global environment.

GLOBE provides grade-level-appropriate, interdisciplinary activities and investigations about the atmosphere, biosphere, hydrosphere, and soil/pedosphere, which have been developed by the scientific community and validated by teachers. GLOBE connects students, teachers, scientists, and citizens from different parts of the world to conduct real, hands-on science about their local environment and to put this in a global perspective.