Unit 1: Collecting GPS Data part of Measuring the Earth with GPS
Karen M. Kortz (Community College of Rhode Island) Jessica J. Smay (San Jose City College)
GPS data can measure vertical and horizontal bedrock motion caused by a variety of geologic processes, such as plate movement and the changing amount of water and ice on Earth's surface. In this unit, students ...

Unit 2: Earthquakes, GPS, and Plate Movement part of Measuring the Earth with GPS
Karen M. Kortz (Community College of Rhode Island) Jessica J. Smay (San Jose City College)
GPS data can measure bedrock motion in response to deformation of the ground near plate boundaries because of plate tectonics. In this module, students will learn how to read GPS data to interpret how the bedrock ...

Unit 1: Monitoring Volcanic Activity at Mount St. Helens part of Monitoring Volcanoes and Communicating Risks
Rachel Teasdale (California State University-Chico) and Kaatje van der Hoeven Kraft (Whatcom Community College)
How can data from an impending volcanic dome-building event be used to forecast the hazard to a surrounding community? In this activity, students will examine geodetic data (GPS and lidar) and seismic data in a ...

Unit 2: Kilauea Hawai'i - Monday Morning Meeting at the USGS Hawai'i Volcano Observatory part of Monitoring Volcanoes and Communicating Risks
Kaatje van der Hoeven Kraft, Whatcom Community College and Rachel Teasdale, California State University-Chico
How do volcanologists at the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory monitor volcanoes? In a jigsaw format, students first work in teams to learn one of the four volcano monitoring data sets (GPS, Tilt, Seismic and InSAR) and ...

Unit 2: Global Sea-Level Response to Temperature Changes: Temperature and Altimetry Data part of Understanding Our Changing Climate
Bruce Douglas, Indiana University-Bloomington; Susan Kaspari, Central Washington University
What is the contribution of seawater thermal expansion to recent sea-level rise? In this unit, students create time-series graphs of global averaged sea surface temperature anomaly (SSTA) data spanning 1880–2017 ...

Unit 4: Groundwater, GPS, and Water Resources part of Measuring the Earth with GPS
Karen M. Kortz (Community College of Rhode Island) Jessica J. Smay (San Jose City College)
GPS data can measure ground elevation change in response to the changing amount of groundwater in valleys and snow cover in mountains. In this module, students will learn how to read GPS data to interpret how the ...

Unit 3: Glaciers, GPS, and Sea Level Rise part of Measuring the Earth with GPS
Karen M. Kortz (Community College of Rhode Island) Jessica J. Smay (San Jose City College)
GPS data can measure bedrock elevation change in response to the changing mass of glaciers. In this module, students will learn how to read GPS data to interpret how the mass of glaciers in Alaska and Greenland is ...

Unit 3: What's in YOUR watershed? part of Eyes on the Hydrosphere: Tracking Water Resources
Jonathan Harvey, Fort Lewis College, and Becca Walker, Mt. San Antonio College
In this unit, students investigate water resources of their own area or another area of personal interest, which typically gets them very excited. They apply their knowledge from Units 1 and 2 to identify the water ...

Unit 2: Examining the Distribution of Mass Wasting Events part of Planning for Failure: Landslide Analysis
Bobak Karimi (Wilkes University) Stephen Hughes (University of Puerto Rico–Mayaguez)
What factors contribute to the distribution patterns of mass wasting events? In this unit, students will use a frequency-ratio method, one of the most common quantitative methods used in the statistical analysis of ...

Unit 5: Societal Implications of Climate Change: Stakeholder Report part of Understanding Our Changing Climate
Bruce Douglas, Indiana University-Bloomington; Susan Kaspari, Central Washington University
Sea-level rise due to the melting of glaciers and ice sheets and ocean thermal expansion has significant societal and economic consequences. In this final unit, students prepare a summary of the impacts of sea ...