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This would make a great anchor phenomenon for the chemistry unit on gas laws.

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This would make a great anchor phenomenon for the chemistry unit on electrons.

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Ask your students if they've ever heard of the Northern Lights (Aurora Borealis.) Most likely a large number of students have heard of them, and know that they are a phenomenon in the sky. Although students may not have seen the Northern Lights, most have probably seen other phenomena in the sky, such as a rainbow, shooting star, or super moon. These experiences provide an opportunity for students to reflect on the awesomeness of space.

This activity will show how mathematics is used by scientists to predict when the Northern Lights will occur, and should be used only after students have learned how to evaluate equations, create Venn diagrams, and calculate simple probability. These activities inform the class as a whole about the earth's place in the universe and space systems, an important scientific practice identified in the Next Generation Science Standards (NGGS Lead States 2013) (see Online Connections).

It all starts on the Sun

Explain that the temperature of the center of the Sun is approximately 27 million degrees Fahrenheit or 15 million degrees Celsius! This heat in the core of the Sun causes convection near its surface, which generates magnetic fields. These fields can get twisted and tangled, causing the release of energy that produces solar flares and/or the ejection of billion-ton clouds of plasma called coronal mass ejections (CME). CMEs reach Earth in approximately 40 hours, causing disturbances in Earth's magnetic field, which accelerate charged particles into the polar regions where they cause the dramatic and dazzling phenomenon known as the Northern Lights.

At this point, distribute the article " Aurora...fabled glowing lights of the Sun-Earth connection". Give students a chance to read the article and make notes of the most important points. When everyone is done, collectively discuss these key points and make a public recording of them that can be referred to as needed throughout the activity (for example writing them on a large post-it easel pad or on portions of the board). Next, engage the students in a discussion surrounding the article to ensure everyone has a solid baseline understanding. Table 1 offers suggested question prompts and potential student responses.

In 1859 a solar storm, referred to as the Carrington Event, had a severe impact on the telegraph system. Provide students with the article " A Super Solar Flare". Have students read the article independently, discuss with a neighbor, and then discuss the main points with the whole class. See Table 2 for suggested question prompts and potential student responses.

Next, motivate students to predict solar storms by providing them with a few modern examples of what an unexpected solar storm could do. For example, a solar storm could cause a gas pipeline to explode (possibly killing hundreds of people); make a satellite mysteriously fall silent, interrupting TV and cellular phone traffic; or cause a power blackout, throwing millions of people into darkness. Ask students how long they think they could make it without their cell phone, TV, or electricity.

At this point allow students to pose questions about solar storms and share ideas about why and how they might have such serious impacts on Earth. Record students' questions and ideas on the board so you can refer back to them throughout the lesson.

Solar wind and CME velocity

The solar wind can act as a conveyor belt, dispersing plasma and magnetic fields from the solar surface throughout the solar system. This activity begins with basic instruction about 2-dimensional vectors, which is then extended to 3-dimensional vectors, and then finally applied to calculating the velocity of solar wind.

Begin by activating students' prior knowledge. Engage them with a think (ask students to think), pair (ask students to talk to their neighbor), share (whole class discussion, while you compile a list on the board) asking students to brainstorm physical quantities that have magnitude and direction. Some examples of vectors that may interest students include: a football thrown by a player, a billiard ball after being hit, or wind currents.

Tell students that a vector that starts at point P and ends at point Q would be written: PQ. Explain to students that vectors are arrows that represent two pieces of information: a magnitude value (the length of the arrow or distance traveled) and a directional value (the way the arrow is pointed or direction traveled). The magnitude of a vector is the distance between the initial point P and the end point Q. The magnitude of PQ is written: | PQ |. If the coordinates of the initial point and the end point of a vector are given, the distance formula can be used to find the magnitude of the vector ( Figure 3A).

The direction of a vector is the measure of the angle it makes with a horizontal line. The following formula can be used to find the direction of a vector: tan θ = ( y ₂− y ₁) / ( x ₂− x ₁). Figure 3b provides students a concrete example of calculating a vector's magnitude and direction. In this example | PQ | = sqrt {(4−1) ² + (7−3) ²} = sqrt {9+16} = sqrt {25} = 5 and θ = (7−3) / (4−1) ≈ 53°.

Vectors provide us with a graphical method to calculate the sum of several simultaneous movements. Figure 3C shows that if movement is affected by only one variable (represented by vector A or by vector B), then the final position of the movement would be the end of that vector. However, if the movement is affected by two variables (represented by the sum of A and B), then the final position can be found by linking the two vectors together.

Explain that the most typical way to perform calculations on vectors is to first describe the vectors in terms of their × (horizontal) and y (vertical) components. For example, if a = (4,12) and b = (18,7), then a + b = (4,12) + (18,7) = (4+18, 12+7) = (22,19). To subtract vectors, we will reverse the vector we want to subtract and then add the vectors. For example, if a = (4,12) and b = (18,7), then a− b = (4,12) + − (18,7) = (4,12) + (−18,−7) = (4+ −18, 12+ −7) = (−14, 5).

Next, transition into a discussion about calculating the magnitude of a vector. Explain that the magnitude of a vector is expressed by either one or two vertical bars on either side of the vector. For example, | a | or || a ||. To calculate the magnitude of a vector, we use the Pythagorean theorem. The formula is: | a | = sqrt { x ² + y ²}. For example, the magnitude of vector w = (9,12) would be | w | = sqrt {92 + 122} = sqrt {81+144} = sqrt {225} = 15.

Explain to students that we will now extend what we learned about 2-dimensional vectors in the x-y plane to 3-dimensional vectors using the x-y-z axes. Since we live in a 3-dimensional world, it makes sense to define points using three coordinates ( x, y, z). The x, y, and z axes are mutually perpendicular; each one is at right angles to the others.

For this coordinate system, the origin is at the center of Earth. The x-axis points from the center of Earth through the Prime Meridian (by convention chosen as the meridian in Greenwich, London, UK (longitude = 0). The z-axis points towards the north geographic pole ( Figure 4). To find the magnitude of a vector in 3-dimensions we will use the following formula: | a | = sqrt { x ² + y ² + z ²}. Ask students if they notice the similarity of the formulas for the magnitude of 2-dimensional and 3-dimensional vectors. Next, solidify students' understanding with an example and visual representation ( Figure 5). For example, the magnitude of vector m = (2,3,5) would be | m | = sqrt {22 + 32 + 52} = sqrt {4 + 9 + 25} = sqrt {38} ≈ 6.16.

Application

In this first Northern Lights application activity, students will be using data from NASA's DSCOVR spacecraft and the 3-dimensional magnitude formula to calculate the strength of the solar winds' velocity. The direction and intensity of the magnetic field determines the strength of geomagnetic storms and auroral events, and how disruptive they will be. When the Z-component of the magnetic field is large and negative, the solar storm event will be especially severe.

Provide students with the following example: A scientist measures the three components to the velocity of a solar storm event ( x, y, z) in kilometers per second, and finds: (145, 103, 523.7).

a. Use the velocity formula above to calculate the total speed, v, of the solar wind.

b. Determine its transit time, T in hours from the Sun to Earth. Assume that the distance from Earth to the Sun is 150 million kilometers. Round your answer to the nearest hour.

Give students about 5 minutes to work the problem, then go over the correct solution:

a. Velocity

b.Transit time

Explain that in 2018, the DSCOVR spacecraft measured the three components of the solar wind velocity at a location 1.5 million kilometers from Earth. Table 4 (see Online Connections) includes actual NASA data for a series of DSCOVR spacecraft measurements of the three components of the solar wind velocity. Instruct students to use the 3-dimensional magnitude formula, together with the three magnetic field measurements ( x, y, z) in the data table, to:

a. Calculate the total speed, v, of the solar wind on each date. Round answers to the nearest kilometer per second.

b. Determine its transit time, T in hours from the sun to Earth. Assume that the distance from the earth to the sun is 150 million kilometers. Round answer to the nearest hour.

This should take approximately 15 minutes. Circulate around the room, monitoring student progress and aiding struggling students. At the completion of this portion of the lesson ask students to share both the strategies they used to solve the problems and the answers. Solutions can be found in Table 5 (see Online Connections).

What causes a solar storm?

Provide students with the following definitions:

1. Solar flare: A violent explosion of magnetic energy on the sun.

2. Coronal Mass Ejection (CME): A billion-ton cloud of plasma exploding from the solar surface.

3. Aurora: The emission of light by oxygen and nitrogen atoms in Earth's atmosphere caused by a CME colliding with Earth's magnetic field.

Explain that statistical data from these events can be used to draw conclusions about cause-and-effect relationships. Explain that astronomers use Venn diagrams to organize statistical information and use them to make predictions about what will happen near Earth.

Provide students with the following example. In 2000, 142 solar flares, and 89 CMEs were spotted on the Sun. Moreover, 34 flares happened at nearly the same time as CMEs.

a. What percent of CMEs are not accompanied by solar flares? Round your answer to the nearest whole number.

b. What are the odds of a CME not being accompanied by solar flares?

Give students about five minutes to work on the problems. Ask students to share both the strategies they used to solve the problems and the answers. Be sure that the Venn diagram and computations are shared during this debrief discussion. Solutions can be found in Figure 6.

Students will now attempt to predict when the next Aurora will occur. Engage students in a Think-Pair-Share surrounding the question: Why is it important to predict when the next Aurora will occur? Students should be able to generate responses based on the Carrington Event they read about and discussed previously. During the share portion, provide students with any information that they are unable to generate (Table 6; see Online Connections).

Next, present the example and questions listed below. Provide students with about 20 minutes to complete the problems. Circulate around the room, monitoring student progress and aiding struggling students. Show students Table 6 (see Online Connections) and ask them to check that their tables contain all of the correct data.

A NASA satellite called ACE measures changes in the magnetism of the gas flowing away from the sun. During 2000 it detects 56 severe magnetic changes. Another satellite called SOHO detects 55 CMEs of which 29 happen at the same time as the ACE disturbances. The IMAGE satellite detects aurora in the polar regions of Earth. A total of 63 bright aurora are detected during the 56 ACE magnetic 'storms'. There are 31 cases where auroras are seen at the same time as the magnetic disturbances.

Using the data from the example, what percent of solar flares do not happen during CMEs? What are the odds of a solar flare not happening during a CME? Round your answer to the nearest whole number. What do the odds indicate?

A news reporter says that solar flares produce CMEs. Is this an accurate statement? Explain.

What percentage of CMEs happen at the same time as a severe magnetic disturbance? What are the odds of a CME happening at the same time as a magnetic disturbance? Round your answer to the nearest whole number. What do the odds indicate?

What percentage of magnetic disturbances lead to major aurora on Earth? What are the odds of magnetic disturbances lead to major aurora on Earth? Round your answer to the nearest whole number. What do the odds indicate?

Can CME's be reliably used to predict when the next aurora will occur? Explain.

Design project

After completing the activities presented in this article we recommend assigning students a follow-up project. Ask students to design something that could be used to prevent magnetic disturbances from interfering with electronics. This activity would engage students in all aspects of STEM and the integration of the three dimensions of the Next Generation Science Standards. Students could prepare presentations of the products they design to share with the class.

Teachers from other disciplines (computer science, technology, engineering, art/design, etc.) and community members with applicable professions (engineers, scientists, etc.) may be interested in mentoring students during this project and attending the final presentations.

Conclusion

References

NGSS Lead States. 2013. Next Generation Science Standards: For States, by states. Washington, DC: National Academies Press.

Paris Todd. Awesome Aurora Display. September 27, 2017. Fairbanks, Alaska.

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Ask your students if they've ever heard of the Northern Lights (Aurora Borealis.) Most likely a large number of students have heard of them, and know that they are a phenomenon in the sky. Although students may not have seen the Northern Lights, most have probably seen other phenomena in the sky, such as a rainbow, shooting star, or super moon.

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Many students are into Breaking Bad and always ask if we will do any of the science from the show. So starting of the electrochemistry unit with a discussion about the science behind it as the anchor phenomenon/storyline, would be awesome.

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Breaking Bad: Real Science or Hollywood Science?

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Great to show IMFs and have students do a POE or CER.

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Description:
I learned about this phenomenon when a teacher spilled their water on my whiteboard. Make sure to use a plate with an impermeable surface. It's a great phenomenon for intermolecular forces. Surface chemistry, temperature, color, ink type, polarity, salinity, and many more factors affect this phenomenon.

Web Resources: Drawing on Water - It is so surreal - YouTube

Tagged: hs-matter-structure-and-properties, HS-PS1-3, cool, 5-PS1-1

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Floating Whiteboard Ink - The Wonder of Science

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Description : I learned about this phenomenon when a teacher spilled their water on my whiteboard. Make sure to use a plate with an impermeable surface. It's a great phenomenon for intermolecular forces. Surface chemistry, temperature, color, ink type, polarity, salinit

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Great phenomenon to use to introduce gas laws. Students can use this demo or activity to complete a POE or CER. This shows the relationship between volume and temperature (Charles' Law).

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This site is a curated collection of science phenomena for the NGSS, along with phenomenon based learning resources and help for how to use phenomenon to drive student questions in the classroom centered around 3 dimensional teaching and learning.

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Why do some reactions get hot, but others cold? -- Storyline

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Why do some reactions get hot, but others cold? -- Storyline

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This resource lays out a storyline that can be used in the endothermic/exothermic unit. The storyline guides the students to figuring out why some reactions are endothermic and others are exothermic.

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What students figure out:

By the end of the unit, students develop ideas about chemical reactions, structures and properties of matter, and the relationship between energy and forces. These ideas include:

A stable molecule has less energy than the same set of atoms separated; one must at least provide this energy to take the molecules apart.

When two objects interacting through a field change relative position, the energy stored in the field is changed.

Whether or not energy is stored or released in a chemical process, can be understood in terms of the collisions of molecules and rearrangements of atoms into new molecules, with consequent changes in the sum of all bond energies in the set of molecules that are matched by changes in kinetic energy.

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Why Do Some Things Get Colder (or Hotter) When They React? - Next Generation science storylines

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By the end of the unit, students develop ideas about chemical reactions, structures and properties of matter, and the relationship between energy and forces. These ideas include: A stable molecule has less energy than the same set of atoms separated; one must at least provide this energy to take the molecules apart.

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This demo makes for a great POE or CER for exothermic reactions. Students can gather observations as to whether or not it is exo- or endothermic.

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Description: Elephant toothpaste is a dramatic chemistry demonstration that involves the decomposition of concentrated hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) into water and oxygen. Potassium iodide is used as a catalyst to speed up the reaction. Soap is added to trap the escaping oxygen gas and food coloring is often added to the experiment. This phenomenon can be using in elementary science classes to illustrate non-reversible reactions and can be studied in more detail in middle and high school.

Web Resource: Elephant toothpaste - Wikipedia

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Elephant Toothpaste - The Wonder of Science

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Description: Elephant toothpaste is a dramatic chemistry demonstration that involves the decomposition of concentrated hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) into water and oxygen. Potassium iodide is used as a catalyst to speed up the reaction. Soap is added to trap the escaping oxygen gas an

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Great activity for students to apply their understanding of heat and reactions, while also investigating endo- and exothermic. Great for a lab investigation.

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Description: This phenomenon uses a supersaturated solution of sodium acetate. Clicking the metal disc releases a small number of crystals of sodium acetate which act as nucleation sites for the crystallization of the sodium acetate into a hydrated salt. Energy is released from the crystal lattice. The heating pack can be placed in boiling water and the sodium acetate can be dissolved again. This phenomenon shows how bond energy can be released. It also shows the importance of chemical engineering and could lead to a section where students design a device (or application) of their own.

Web Resource: Chemical Heat Pack - Wikipedia, Snappy Heat - Amazon

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Reusable Heat Packs - The Wonder of Science

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Description: This phenomenon uses a supersaturated solution of sodium acetate. Clicking the metal disc releases a small number of crystals of sodium acetate which act as nucleation sites for the crystallization of the sodium acetate into a hydrated salt. Energy is released from t

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This document outlines various concepts and terms related to this topic. This would be a good resource for teachers to help plan, and could act as a digital textbook of sorts for students too.

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Thermodynamics and Enthalpy | Chemistry: Unit 7 | PBS LearningMedia

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Introduce students to thermochemistry, the study of energy in chemical reactions with this downloadable PDF. After completing this unit, students should be able to understand the various types of energy along with basic thermodynamic terms: system, surroundings, heat, and work. The unit also explains the first law of thermodynamics and provides an introduction to enthalpy and calorimetry.

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Classifying Matter -- Interactive Lesson

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Classifying Matter -- Interactive Lesson

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This resource covers many topics when it comes to classifying matter and matter in general. This would make for a great review or it can be broken up into parts for each subtopic, such as subatomic particles and types of mixtures.

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Classifying Matter: Interactive Lesson | PBS NC Science | PBS LearningMedia

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They're ridiculously small, and absolutely essential to the world we live in. The 118 known types of atoms make up everything in the world that has mass, and can be arranged in countless ways. Find out about these building blocks of matter with this Interactive Lesson.

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This interactive resource can be assigned on Google Classroom and allows students to learn some more about atoms with visuals and assessment. The interactive is on the basic side, so it works well for an intro activity.

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In this interactive activity from ChemThink, learn about atomic structure. Follow the tutorial to understand how individual atoms-the basis of all matter-are composed of subatomic particles such as electrons, protons, and neutrons. Investigate the three types of particles, their properties (such as mass and charge), and relative locations.

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This is a great resource for students to formulate, draw, and name compounds. This can easily be used as an investigation activity and/or a way to practice newly acquired understanding.

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Starting from atoms, see how many molecules you can build. Collect your molecules and view them in 3D!

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This PhET is listed as a "prototype," but it is still a great resource for students to see the nucleus and how changes can lead to instability and radiation. This would be great for investigating how nuclear instability leads to radiation, especially since we cannot look at that in our classroom in person.

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How does changing the number of neutrons or protons affect the nuclear species, the stability of a nucleus, and its possible decay mechanisms? Explore different species, and learn about the common decay paths! Visualize these through the chart of the nuclides and discover the inner energy levels of the nucleus.

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This is a great resource to visualize molecule polarity. This can be challenging for students, so using a simulation would be an awesome tool for their investigation.

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When is a molecule polar? Change the electronegativity of atoms in a molecule to see how it affects polarity. See how the molecule behaves in an electric field. Change the bond angle to see how shape affects polarity.

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This is a great resource for showing Valence Shell Electron Pair Repulsion (VSEPR) Theory and showing electron pair geometries.

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Explore molecule shapes by building molecules in 3D! Find out how a molecule's shape changes as you add atoms to a molecule.

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There are not many resources for chemistry on NASA or NOAA, however, this resource could be used as a phenomenon for specific heat. Students could investigate why the city is hotter, based on absorbing and holding heat.

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The My NASA Data website offers a variety of opportunities to explore Earth Science phenomena of the Atmosphere, Biosphere, Cryosphere, Geosphere, and Hydrosphere using uniquely NASA related content.

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Students could use this investigation to investigate specific heat and use the real world connection to melting ice due to climate change as a means to make a real connection. This is a great way for students to ask questions.

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You might have heard that melting ice contributes to sea level rise. But it makes a difference whether that melting ice is on land or in the sea.

Make a prediction about what each type of ice will do to the level of water in a container. Then build a model to compare what you predicted to what you observe.

Watch the Tutorial

See below for materials and step-by-step instructions. For more video tutorials and activities like this one, visit Learning Space.

Watch en Español: Seleccione subtítulos en Español bajo el ícono de configuración.

In this episode of Learning Space, you'll do an experiment to see how the melting of land ice and sea ice contributes to global sea level rise. | Watch on YouTube

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Student Project: How Melting Ice Causes Sea Level Rise | NASA/JPL Edu

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Learn the difference between land ice and sea ice, then do an experiment to see how the melting of each contributes to global sea level rise.

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Ocean Acidification -- Acid & Base Chemistry

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Ocean Acidification -- Acid & Base Chemistry

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Students would use this investigation to see how acidity can have a real world connection to climate change, via acidity and increasing CO2 levels. This is a great way to tie chemistry to climate change.

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Vinegar is to an Eggshell What Ocean Acidification is to Marine Ecosystems? - Science On a Sphere

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As CO 2 levels in the ocean rise, the pH of the seawater decreases, which can have a "dissolving" effect on some animals-such as coral-similar to the way vinegar dissolves an eggshell.

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This is a great interactive simulation that allows students to explore two of the gas laws. This simulation is similar to PhET.

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Investigate the properties of an ideal gas by perform... | Gizmo

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This is a great interactive simulation that allows students to explore the ideal gas law. This law can be challenging for students, so a simulation would be great for students to visualize this law.

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Explore relationships between amount, temperature, pressure, and volume for an ideal gas in a chamber with a moveable piston. Discover rules of proportionality contained in Boyle's law, Charles's law, Avogadro's law, and Gay-Lussac's law. Use these relationships to derive the ideal gas law and calculate the value of the ideal gas constant.

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Explore relationships between amount, temperature, pressure, and volume for an ideal gas in a chamber with a moveable piston. Discover rules of proportionality contained in Boyle's law, Charles's law, Avogadro's law, and Gay-Lussac's law. Use these relationships to derive the ideal gas law and calculate the value of the ideal gas constant.

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This is a great video that explains vapor pressure from a molecular level. This topic is very challenging for students, so a video or simulation would help students visualize from a molecular perspectives.

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Explore the concept of vapor pressure and boiling