| Project | Astronomy Village |
| Contact | Steven McGee |
| mcgee@cotf.edu | |
| URL | http://www.cotf.edu |
| Project description | Astronomy Village presents a virtual mountain-top observatory interface from which students investigate contemporary problems in astronomy. After selecting one of ten investigation pathways, students are guided by virtual mentors through the steps of scientific research: background research, data collection, data analysis, data interpretation and presentation of results. The heart of each investigation is the use of NIH Image to analyze real and simulated data of a variety of astronomical phenomena such as nebulae, galaxies, and stars.There are two strands to the Astronomy Village research program. (1) Classroom-based research on how Astronomy Village can be used to support scientific inquiry. (2) How student conceptions of light relate to remote sensing interpretations. |
| Theoretical background | Through a task analysis of remote sensing, we have identified four properties of light that are required by remote sensing: (1) A light source emits photons at specific wavelengths; (2) Photons are objects that propagate through space at a finite speed; (3) Photons interact with other objects and are absorbed, refracted, or reflected; (4) An absorbent material can be used to detect the number of photons. We are at the beginning stages of research, but it would appear from the literature on student conceptions of light, that middle school students would have difficulty with several aspects of remote sensing. |
| Challenges | What types of background knowledge do students need to be able to design their own scientific investigations using remote sensing and visualization? |
| Partnership | We have access to scientific expertise and dataset resources at NASA. We are looking for partners to help implement research studies. Also, we are in a position to help other groups implement the visualization tools that they have developed. |