Browse Energy Cycle Resources

Subtopics:

Earth Systems, Climate, Energy Cycle

Type:

Lesson Plan

Audience:

Formal, 6 - 8

Standards:

ESS2.D

Keywords:

energy budget, albedo, reflection, absorption, radiation, unequal heating

Summary:

In this lesson, students will explore (through labs, videos, and a simulation) how energy from the sun is absorbed, reflected and radiated back out into space as part of the Earth’s energy budget.

Weather & Climate iQuest

Primary Topic:

global warming, extreme weather

Subtopics:

Weather, Climate, Human Impact, Energy Cycle, Satellites, Remote Sensing

Type:

Interactive

Audience:

Formal, 6 - 8

Standards:

ESS2.C, ESS2.D

Keywords:

Summary:

This IQuest has been developed to help you explore the wild and changing world of weather and climate. Weather and climate are shaped by complex interactions involving sunlight, the ocean, the atmosphere, clouds, ice, land, and life forms.

Tour of the Electromagnetic Spectrum

Primary Topic:

Technology

Subtopics:

Earth Systems, Weather and Climate, Energy Cycle, Satellites, Remote Sensing, Data

Type:

Website

Audience:

Informal, Formal, General

Keywords:

energy budget, electromagnetic spectrum, microwaves, infrared

Standards:

ESS2.A, ESS3.D, ETS2.A, ETS2.B

Summary:

Welcome to the Tour of the Electromagnetic Spectrum. This unique NASA resource on the web, in print, and with companion videos introduces electromagnetic waves, their behaviors, and how scientists visualize these data.

Towers in the Tempest

Primary Topic:

Subtopics:

Weather, Tropical Cyclones, Energy Cycle, Remote Sensing

Type:

Audience:

Informal, Formal, 9 - 12, 6 - 8, General

Standards:

ESS2.A

Keywords:

hurricanes, hot towers, TRMM, low pressure

Summary:

'Towers in the Tempest' is a 4.5 minute narrated animation that explains recent scientific insights into how hurricanes intensify. This intensification can be caused by a phenomenon called a 'hot tower'.

Energy Literacy: Essential Principles and Fundamental Concepts for Energy Education

Primary Topic:

Subtopics:

Climate, Human Impact, Energy Cycle, Societal Applications

Type:

Article

Audience:

Formal, 9 - 12, General

Standards:

ESS3.A

Keywords:

energy, climate change

Summary:

This is a downloadable high-resolution booklet that will give the educator in-depth background information on energy concepts. This booklet is a joint project of the Department of Energy and The American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS).

Real World: Monitoring Earth's Energy Budget with CERES

Primary Topic:

Subtopics:

Weather, Human Impact, Energy Cycle, Technology, Satellites

Type:

Audience:

Informal, Formal, 6 - 8

Standards:

ESS2.A, ESS2.D

Keywords:

energy budget, radiation budget, atmosphere, greenhouse effect, greenhouse gases, carbon footprint

Summary:

Learn how NASA uses a data-collecting sensor, Clouds and Earth’s Radiant Energy System, or CERES, to study clouds and make accurate measurements of energy leaving Earth.

Launchpad: Global Warming - How Humans are Affecting Our Planet

Primary Topic:

Subtopics:

Climate, Human Impact, Energy Cycle

Type:

Audience:

Informal, Formal, 9 - 12, 6 - 8

Standards:

ESS2.A, ESS3.D

Keywords:

climate change, greenhouse effect, atmosphere, greenhouse gases, energy budget, radiation budget

Summary:

Learn how the greenhouse effect keeps more of the sun's heat and energy within Earth's atmosphere causing temperatures on Earth to rise. This video explains the effect warmer temperatures are playing on Earth.

The Thermohaline Circulation - The Great Ocean Conveyor Belt

Primary Topic:

Water Properties, Earth Systems, Energy Cycle

Subtopics:

Type:

Audience:

Informal, Formal, 9 - 12, 6 - 8

Standards:

ESS2.C

Keywords:

ocean, density, salinity, ocean temperature, ocean circulation, thermohaline, ocean currents

Summary:

The oceans are mostly composed of warm salty water near the surface over cold, less salty water in the ocean depths. These two regions don't mix except in certain special areas, which creates a large slow current called the thermohaline circulation.

Components of the Water Cycle on a Flat Map

Primary Topic:

Hydrologic Cycle, Precipitation, Earth Systems, Weather and Climate, Energy Cycle

Subtopics:

Type:

evaporation, sea surface temperature, water vapor, atmosphere

Audience:

Outreach, Informal, Formal, General

Standards:

ESS2.A, ESS2.C

Keywords:

Summary:

The process by which water moves around the earth, from the ocean, to the atmosphere, to the land and back to the ocean is called the water cycle. These animations each portray a component of the water cycle.

Components of the Water Cycle

Primary Topic:

Hydrologic Cycle, Precipitation, Earth Systems, Energy Cycle

Subtopics:

Type: