Space Weather in Introductory Curricula: Design and Early Implementation of an Educational Intervention

Tuesday 1:30pm-4:00pm
Poster Session Part of Tuesday Poster Session

Authors

Tony Williams, Auburn University Main Campus
karen mcneal, Auburn University Main Campus
Space weather science has received increasing attention across research and educational communities and carries important relevance for sectors that rely on technological infrastructure. Introducing space weather concepts to undergraduate students is becoming more relevant as space weather represents an increasingly fundamental component of the Earth System Science framework, yet the topic is often underrepresented in introductory curricula. Ensuring that students have access to foundational and varying STEM education topics, including space weather, can increase scientific literacy and broaden exposure to interdisciplinary scientific fields. This study describes the implementation of a newly designed space weather instructional module embedded within an introductory Weather and Climate course at Auburn University. The educational intervention follows a dual-model approach in which students are introduced to space weather concepts through a focused group lecture, and complete a separate hands-on lab activity and lesson where they access real-time space weather data and evaluate the current state of solar activity. Students were invited to complete an optional pre-instruction questionnaire at the beginning of the spring semester in January 2026, and will be invited to complete a corresponding post-instruction questionnaire at the end of the academic semester in May 2026. Data analysis has not yet been completed as the post-instruction assessment is still pending as of this writing. The goal of this project is to integrate space weather topics into introductory Earth System Science instruction and promote space weather literacy by examining measurable shifts in students' conceptual understanding.