NASA Climate Action Grant - Montshire Museum of Science

NASA Climate Action Grant

Photos from the Montshire’s “Empowerment Through Climate Action” in which middle school-aged youth (grades 5-8) will use the Montshire’s 110-acre campus as a living laboratory to evaluate the carbon sequestration potential of various meadow and forest habitats.

Data collected “on the ground” by students will then be compared to NASA satellite data that uses advanced technology to measure and calculate carbon sequestration from space. A key deliverable of the project will be the development and evaluation of a new climate science curriculum for both homeschool students and visiting public school classes.

Students work together to drill a tree core

Students work together to drill a tree core from a birch stump.

Students examining tree cookies and recording the age of their samples

Students examining tree cookies to record their age and diameter.

Students practicing coring tree stump to view annual rings.

Students practice coring a tree stump to view annual rings and record the age of a tree.

Students marking and recording tree data in the Montshire woods

Students marking and recording tree data in the Montshire woods.

Students collecting tree identification data

Students collecting tree identification data in the Montshire woods.

Student measuring chest height of tree

Student measuring breast-height (1.3m) of tree in the Montshire woods.

Student with Montshire Educator, discussing tree measurement

Student and Montshire Educator chatting while surveying trees on the Montshire campus.

Students ID-ing Tree Circumference

Student’s ID-ing tree on the Montshire campus and recording the trunk circumference to determine its carbon sequestration potential.

Students Examine Soil Health for Climate Study

Students examining soil health for a climate study.

Digital Surface Model Montshire

A normalized digital surface model created using LIDAR showing the relative height of the tree canopy compared to the surrounding ground.