composite eps and some associated supporting ideas from day 1

Composite EPs and some associated supporting ideas from

Day 1

Essential Principle #1

• The atmosphere is a variable, dynamic, and complex system.

– The atmosphere is mixture of gases with measurable properties.

– Layers– Chemical composition


• The atmosphere is one of many earth systems and interacts with these other systems.

– Ocean– Geological– climate


• Living things, including humans, affect the atmosphere.


• The cycling of water through the atmosphere has profound effects on it

– precipitation


• The cycling of energy through the atmosphere has profound effects on it.


• Changes in the atmosphere take place on a wide range of spatial and temporal scales.

– The atmosphere is made of many components that change over temporal and spatial scales.


1. The atmosphere can be studied and understood


• Earth is surrounded by a thin fragile atmosphere that sustains life– Layers


• The Sun and Earth’s rotation drive the atmospheric circulation


• The atmosphere and life are interconnected.


• Weather and climate vary in time and space– Scales of variability– Evolution of the atmosphere is linked to other

subsystems– Climate is the product of the interaction of a

number of different


• The atmosphere is part of the earth system

Initial Comments

• Scope? Decided to focus on “Atmospheric Science Literacy”

• Concerns that Earth system science concept is getting diluted by separating Oceans/Atmosphere/Climate

• Paralleling Ocean Literacy; could almost use first six of those Essential Principles, substituting “atmosphere” for “ocean”


• The atmosphere is a thin gaseous envelope that surrounds the earth


• Energy from the sun drives the atmosphere


• The atmosphere is an agent of transport


• The atmosphere [brings] weather and climate


• The atmosphere coevolved with life


• Atmosphere and humans are inextricably interconnected

Concluding Remarks

• We spent quite a bit of time trying to decide what was an “Essential Principle” and what was a “Fundamental Concept”

• Evolution of life and the hydrologic cycle need to be up front and center, but not sure if they are subsets of some of our Essential Principles


The atmosphere is part of the Earth system.


An atmosphere is a primarily gaseous envelope that surrounds planets.


The atmosphere changes through time and space.


All organisms are interconnected with the atmosphere.


How do we study the atmosphere?

(to be word-smithed later)


Atmospheric processes vary over many scales.


Solar energy drives atmospheric processes.


• Complexity– Complexity of Earth’s system is a challenge– Inadequate measurements and chaos

contribute to uncertainty– Earth system is nonlinear


• Linkages (Earth-System)– All life is linked to

atmosphere/ocean/land/space/cryo….


• Energy/Matter/Cycles– Uneven heating of the Earth drives weather

and climate– Water cycle– Energy transfers between systems


• Human Impact– Atmosphere is being altered by human activity– Human activities are being affected by the

atmosphere– Humans’ use of natural resources– Humans are able to live because of

atmosphere– Economic impact


• Change Happens– Rate of Change– Human activity accelerates chage– Constantly changing– Atmospheric changes affect living and non-

living components– Atmosphere is dynamic


• Nature of Atmosphere– Earth has only one atmosphere– Air is real and has mass– Atmosphere has structure and characteristics


• Nature of Science– How do we know what we know– Scientific process– Critical thinking– Earth systems science is interdisciplinary– Laws of Math and Science explain Earth systems– Our understanding and knowledge of Earth systems

evolves– Weather and climate are quantified and predicted based

on data and models


• Weather– Affects us daily– Links us to the Earth atmosphere system


• Climate– Regional vs global – Differentiating climate from weather

• Time scale

Concluding Remarks

• We are still confused about whether we are developing a high framework or a document like Ocean Literacy.

• Are we expressing Climate Change clearly enough?

• How much emphasis should weather have?

Initial Comments – People & Process• Facilitator is Carol Knight of NOAA. OPL: Cherilynn Morrow• Dilling (U. Colo. Center for Sci & Tech Policy) Tuddenham (College of Exploration), • Pandya (UCAR - SOARS - minority ugrad research), Ledley (TERC, research-education

interface), McCaffrey (U. Colo. CIRES), Geary (Director of GLOBE), • Meeson (NASA - Ocean science education) Pitman (K-12 educator, evaluator, Miami) , Henson

(UCAR Office of Communication), LaDue (NSF).

• The Essential Principles of the Climate Literacy Draft and those published for Ocean Literacy were written on the walls. We built on and referred to these in our introductory discussion.

• Opening discussions have centered on the ideas of a. the Sun as an essential source of energy, b. the interconnectivity of all the spheres, and c. the interplay with humans and their impacts.

• We're focusing on science content but it is felt that the content we choose should be considered in light of how it can be related to society and what people might do as result of being literate about the atmosphere and climate.

• We brainstormed ideas for Essential Principles (EP's) that will be revisited, filtered, and prioritized later on. They numbered 26. We then binned those 26 into 9 themes that seemed to capture our ideas.


• The atmosphere is a single, integrated system… everyone interacts with it… We all live in an ocean of air: 2, 3, 7, 8, 9, 20


• The atmosphere is a fluid that transports heat and matter: water, particles… 10 , 11, 18, 21


• The atmosphere is unique and makes Earth habitable: 4, 5, 6, 12, 17, 26


• Humans change the atmosphere, The atmosphere changes over time: 5, 9, 13, 14


• The atmosphere is dynamic – it changes at different rates, the composition changes, it varies from location to location, small changes can have transformational effects: 4, 11, 14, 15, 16, 18


• Plants use content in the atmosphere to build life: 17


• There is exchange between the atmosphere, hydrosphere, oceans, and biosphere, The atmosphere is constantly exchanging energy and matter with other spheres: 5, 10, 11, 17, 18, 21, 25


• There is one atmosphere that varies depending on location and at different timescales. Weather and Climate are different but inextricably connected. 14, 15, 19, 22, 23, 24, 25


• The Sun is the source of all energy in the atmosphere: 5

Concluding Remarks• Our sub-points can help refine the Essential Principles and also inform

the discussions about Fundamental Concepts. These sub-points are documented completely on the BLOG.

• In developing these Essential Principles we used technical terms as a shorthand. This will need additional care and revision.

• The final articulation of these Essential Principles should use terminology carefully and be sensitive to clarifying common misunderstandings (e.g. the differences between “atmosphere”, “weather”, “climate”)

NASA Goddard

1. Earth is completely enshrouded in an atmosphere

• Our atmosphere is relatively thin

• The processes by which our atmosphere formed

• The reasons our atmosphere remains intact

2. The atmosphere is made up of gases & particles

• Indicate the concentrations of primary gases

• Concentrations of particles• The atmosphere brokers exchanges of

energy b/t Earth & space– Gases help trap heat– Gases block certain solar rays– Particles both reflect and absorb, depending

upon their color & composition

3. The atmosphere changes over time and place

• Atmospheric movements are driven by solar energy

• Atmospheric movements are driven by Earth’s rotation

• Atmospheric movements are driven by convection

• Atmospheric movements are driven by temperature gradients

• Atmospheric movements are driven by interactions w/ the surface

4. The atmosphere has five different layers

• The troposphere (e.g., where is it, what’s it made of, why does it matter?)

• Stratosphere

• Mesosphere

• Thermosphere

• Exosphere

5. The atmosphere is essential for life

• Protects life forms from the Sun’s harmful rays

• Keeps our planet warm

• Distributes water

• Protects us from space debris, CMEs, etc.

6. Atmosphere interacts w/ all other Earth system “spheres”

• Interactions with the surface (land & ocean) influence the physical and chemical composition of the atmosphere

• Life respires and evapotranspires, thus influencing the physical & chemical composition of the atmosphere

7. Humans influence and are influenced by the atmosphere

• Humans add gases that help trap heat• Humans add particulates that can both cool and

warm the surface by reflecting or absorbing sunlight• Humans are changing the chemistry of the

atmosphere, with global consequences (e.g., ozone hole; global warming)

• Human-released particles modify clouds to sometimes delay, sometimes intensify rainfall

• Humans change the surface, which affects the warmth and particulates the surface gives to the atmosphere

composite eps and some associated supporting ideas from day 1

Documents

atmosphere slide

earth slide

ocean slide

life slide

interconnected slide

c slide

b slide

earth system slide