NASA Wavelength Resources Collection

NASA Wavelength is a collection of resources that incorporate NASA content and have been subject to peer review. You can search this collection using key words and/or the drop down menus to pinpoint resources to use with your audience of learners.
1604 result(s)

Dawn Mission Video

Leonard Nimoy narrates this a video about NASA's Dawn mission to the asteroids Vesta and Ceres. Learners will follow the mission from paper to launch pad to asteroid belt and beyond. The video features the planning, instrumentation and technological challenges of this unique mission.
Keywords: Satellite mission planning and design
Audience: Middle school, High school, Higher education, Informal education, Middle school programming, Informal education, High school programming, Informal education, General public
Topic: Earth and space science, Solar system, Asteroids and comets, Earth and space science, Solar system, Origin/formation of solar system, Engineering and technology, Aircraft, probes, satellites and/or spacecraft, The nature of science
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Why Is Earth Called the "Water Planet?"

Comparing the amounts of land and water on Earth's surface leads students to discover why it is called the water planet.
Audience: Elementary school, Grades K-2, Elementary school, Grades 3-5, Elementary school
Topic: Earth and space science, Earth structure, Ocean and water
Materials Cost: 1 cent - $1
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Electricity and Magnetism

This is an activity about electromagnetism and the Sun. First, learners will do a KWL activity using six vocabulary words. Next, they will build an electromagnet and investigate how it works.
Audience: Elementary school, Grades 3-5, Middle school, Grades 6-8, Middle school, Middle school
Topic: Earth and space science, Solar system, The sun, Magnetosphere, Physical sciences, Electricity and magnetism
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Discover the Solar Cycle

This is an activity about the periodicity of the solar cycle. Learners will calculate the number of M-class solar flares as a percentage of the total number of X-ray solar flares and graph these results as a function of time.
Audience: Middle school, High school
Topic: Earth and space science, Solar system, The sun, Solar physics
Materials Cost: Free
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The Adventures of Amelia the Pigeon

This interactive website engages children in a story-based scenario that emphasizes concepts of remote sensing and how NASA scientists use satellite imagery to better understand the Earth's environmental changes. The story features a pigeon named Amelia and is set in New York City.
Audience: Elementary school, Grades 3-5, Informal education, Elementary school programming, Informal education, Parents/caregivers
Topic: Earth and space science, Earth structure, Landforms/geography, Engineering and technology, Image processing and visualization, Engineering and technology, Aircraft, probes, satellites and/or spacecraft, Engineering and technology, Remote sensing, The nature of technology, Technology and society
Materials Cost: Free
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Modeling Hot and Cold Planets: Activity B Experimenting with Computer Models

In this activity, students pose several hypotheses for what will happen if you continue heating or supplying energy to the hot and cold planet models (Mercury, Mars, Venus, and Earth) and then test their hypotheses using a spreadsheet based radiation balance model.
Keywords: Albedo, Equilibrium, Climate change, Radiation balance model, Inverse square law, Thermal equilibrium, Greenhouse Effect, Reflection coefficient
Audience: High school
Topic: Earth and space science, Earth processes, Climate, Earth and space science, Earth processes, Earth's energy budget, Earth and space science, Earth structure, Atmosphere, Earth and space science, Solar system, Planetary atmospheres, Life sciences, Ecology and ecosystems
Materials Cost: Free
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Supernova Explosions

In this activity, students are reminded that the Universe is made up of elements and that the heavier elements are created inside of a star. They are then introduced to the life cycle of a star and how a star's mass affects its process of fusion and eventual death.
Audience: Informal education, Middle school programming
Topic: Earth and space science, Astronomy, Stars, nebulae and galaxies, Physical sciences, Structure and properties of matter
Materials Cost: $1 - $5
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Properties of Fresh and Sea Water

This is a hands-on lab activity about the properties and states of water.
Keywords: Evaporation, Freezing point, Boiling point, Heat capacity
Audience: Middle school
Topic: Earth and space science, Earth structure, Ocean and water, Physical sciences, States of matter, Physical sciences, Structure and properties of matter
Materials Cost: $10 - $20
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Measuring Angular Size and Distance

This is an activity about measuring angular size and understanding the solar and lunar proportions that result in solar eclipses. Learners will use triangles and proportions to create a shoebox eclipse simulator.
Keywords: Penumbra, Umbra, Nodes
Audience: Middle school, Informal education, Middle school programming, Informal education, High school programming, Informal education, General public, Informal education, Informal science education professionals
Topic: Earth and space science, Earth, moon and sun, Eclipses, Mathematics, Measurement
Materials Cost: $1 - $5
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What Is There to See From Sea to Shining Sea?

This investigation teaches that physical and human features are used to characterize places on Earth.
Audience: Elementary school, Grades K-2, Elementary school, Elementary school, Elementary school, Grades 3-5, Elementary school
Topic: Earth and space science, Earth structure, Landforms/geography, Earth and space science, Earth structure, Ocean and water, Engineering and technology, Image processing and visualization, Engineering and technology, Aircraft, probes, satellites and/or spacecraft, Engineering and technology, Remote sensing
Materials Cost: 1 cent - $1
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