CISESS Hosts Outreach Event for Local Students

CISESS
December 13, 2023
Highlights

Last month, CISESS hosted a field trip for a 6th grade class from New Hope Academy. Twenty students and five adults visited the ESSIC offices and participated in educational activities led by CISESS scientists. CISESS Coordinator Kate Cooney organized and coordinated the event.

During the morning session, Dr. Malar Arulraj and Dr. Veljko Petković led the students in a “making a cloud in a bottle” activity and showed them remote sensing images from their birthdays that they could print and bring home. The students also completed a scavenger hunt. Following lunch and outdoor activities, Dr. Guangyang Fang and CISESS intern Ashmita Pyne provided VR demonstrations in the CISESS Visualization Lab and Dr. Daile Zhang and Joseph Patton taught the students about lightning observations and safety. In addition, Dr. Hu Yang showed students the CISESS Remote Sensing Lab and led hands-on activities, including building ultrasonic radar in a breadboard and wearing specially-designed “bat eyes” that allow students to experience sensing objects using ultrasound.

The students also enjoyed freebie educational materials. Bekkah Lampe (NOAA Office of Education) sent cloud charts and stickers, Caroline Donovan (NOAA Coral Reef Conservation Program) delivered coral reef activity booklets and other materials, and Cazzy Medley (ESSIC) provided educational and fun giveaways for the students.

Caption:: A 6th grade class from New Hope Academy visited ESSIC/CISESS on 11/7/2023. (Top from left to right) Malar Arulraj explains how to “make a cloud in a bottle”; Veljko Petković uses a Lego model to teach about satellites; Hu Yang leads student a wearing “bat eyes”. (Center) Intern Ashmita Pyne instructs students wearing VR headsets. (Bottom from left to right) Guangyang Fang explains VR visualization; Hu Yang demonstrates an ultrasonic breadboard; Joseph Patton & Daile Zhang teach a lightning safety game. (Center photo by G. Fang; Top right and bottom center photos by K. Cooney; all other photos by A. Hughes.)

This article was put together by the CISESS coordinators based on scientist input.

Debra Baker

Debra Baker is the Coordinator for the Cooperative Institute for Satellite Earth System Studies (CISESS) at the University of Maryland. She received her M.S. in atmospheric science from the University of Maryland, College Park. Before joining ESSIC in 2013, she worked on air quality issues at the Maryland Department of the Environment. Debra also has a law degree from Harvard Law School.

Kate Cooney

Katherine Cooney is a part-time faculty assistant at the Cooperative Institute for Satellite Earth System Studies (CISESS). Kate received a B.S. in environmental science and policy from the University of Maryland (UMD), College Park. She later earned a M.S. in geology from UMD, while investigating the isotopic fractionation of precipitation nitrate under the guidance of Distinguished University Professor James Farquhar. After graduation, she worked as an air-quality specialist at the Mid Atlantic Regional Air Management Association in Baltimore, Maryland. While her family was stationed in Tokyo, Japan, she dedicated her time serving military families and the local community. She is grateful for the opportunity to return to earth system studies, supporting the CISESS Business Office and assisting the CISESS Coordinator Deb Baker since January 2021.