1. NSTA Denver Regional 2013 National Center for University Corporation Atmospheric Research for Atmospheric Research Teresa Eastburn Tim Barnes

2. NSTA Denver Regional 2013 2 The Interior of the Sun

3. NSTA Denver Regional 2013 3

4. 4 Sunspots Magnetic “loops” near sunspot area Source NASA TRACE Spacecraft

5. NSTA Denver Regional 2013 Solar Flares

6. NSTA Denver Regional 2013 6 Coronal Mass Ejection

7. NSTA Denver Regional 2013 7 Solar Cycle

8. NSTA Denver Regional 2013 8 Earth’s Magnetosphere

9. NSTA Denver Regional 2013 Activity on The Nature of Light – Absorption, Reflection (Scattering), Transmission, or Combination of These Meet the Photon Folks

10. NSTA Denver Regional 2013 Where does color come from? What if...

12. NSTA Denver Regional 2013 12 Weather and Light Text

13. NSTA Denver Regional 2013 13 Air Temperature

14. NSTA Denver Regional 2013 14 Atmosphere ’ s Convection Currents

15. NSTA Denver Regional 2013 15 White-light image of the sun. Taken on September 13, 2001 by the Big Bear Observatory The Sun in Visible Light -- What color is this light? White? Are you sure? Let’s find out! Taking Light Apart; Putting It Back Together

16. NSTA Denver Regional 2013 Blue Sky* Activity... and Red Sunsets

17. NSTA Denver Regional 2013 17 Our Atmosphere from Space

18. NSTA Denver Regional 2013 18 Sun seen in light/radiation that is invisible to our eyes. Soft X-ray image of the sun. Taken on September 13, 2001 by the Yohko Spacecraft. Extreme Ultraviolet image of the sun. Taken on September 13, 2001 by the Extreme Ultraviolet Imaging Telescope aboard the SOHO Spacecraft.

19. NSTA Denver Regional 2013 Ultraviolet Light Infrared Light Visible Light

20. NSTA Denver Regional 2013 20

21. NSTA Denver Regional 2013 Wavelength is the distance from the crest of one wave to the crest of the next. Wavelength is measured in meters. Frequency is the number of waves in a given unit of time, usually a second. Frequency is measured in Hertz.

22. NSTA Denver Regional 2013 Wave Demo Activity

23. NSTA Denver Regional 2013 Spectroscope Activity

24. NSTA Denver Regional 2013 24 a. Incandescent b. Fluorescent c. Hg low pressure d. Hg high pressure e. Metal Halide f. Na (sodium) high g. Na low pressure h. Red Neon Sign i. Neon Sign (other than red)

25. NSTA Denver Regional 2013 Our Atmospheric Filter

26. NSTA Denver Regional 2013 26 ALBEDO – the amount of light energy reflected by the Earth, measured on a scale from 0 to 1 or 0 to 100% (Earth’s average albedo is about 0.31 or 31% -- Snow has a high albedo; the ocean has a low albedo))

27. NSTA Denver Regional 2013 27 Albedo Zebra Stripes!

28. NSTA Denver Regional 2013 28 Source: Jet Propulsion Laboratory & the University of California IR movie

29. NSTA Denver Regional 2013 29

30. NSTA Denver Regional 2013 30 11 million square miles 3 times the size of the U.S.

31. NSTA Denver Regional 2013 31

32. NSTA Denver Regional 2013 32 Refraction of Light Light is bent by refraction. The index of refraction for water is 4/3, implying that light travels 3/4 as fast in water as it does in a vacuum.

33. NSTA Denver Regional 2013 33 The LEO tracks the GPS phase while the signal is occulted to determine the Doppler -- when you understand light, you can understand today ’ s most advanced technological tools. For instance you have to understand principals of refraction to understand radio occultation. (Demonstrate refraction by having students stick a sharp pencil through a closed baggy filled with water LEO v leo v GPS Tangent point

34. NSTA Denver Regional 2013 34 Ultraviolet Light

35. NSTA Denver Regional 2013 Thank you for joining us today for In a New Light