Cluster-2 Mission Outreach

(in progress... watch this space)

Cluster is a Sun-Earth Connections Mission, a joint program of ESA with NASA support

The four-spacecraft mission allows distinguishing spatial versus temporal changes, allowing for the first time understanding of turbulence in the solar wind and merging at the magnetopause and magnetotail.

At Rice, we are leading the Cluster Educational effort by creating animations, data sonifications, educational products, and planetarium shows, in cooperation with Mona Kessel at GSFC.

This outreach progam is part of the Public Connection program, which uses museum kiosks, games, and educational CD-Roms to teach about earth and space. Cluster data and animations can be found on the Space Weather disk (given away free to teachers in the annual SECEF packet); and the Space Update disk (available for sale through our web site and in museums and catalogs)

Cluster animations created by GSFC and Rice are now being shown in our portable immersive theaters, which are available for daily in-school programs or for sale:

Four-spacecraft fisheye high resolution video of cluster orbit (from GSFC), with sonification of magnetic field data. Can be put directly into our fisheye projection systems http://earth.rice.edu but can also be projected using a normal projector into a hemisphere. WARNING: 180 MB. Courtesy M. Kessel of GSFC.
Four-spacecraft measurements of magnetic fields through a magnetic x-line (March 18, 2002). The spacecraft with the lowest measured field in the x-plane set the location for all four.
Four-spacecraft measurements of magnetic fields through a magnetic x-line (March 18, 2002). (previous version, with slightly different assumptions) (From D. Wendel thesis, Rice University). Sonification by M. Kessel at GSFC.
animation (using a weather analogy) of why one needs four spacecraft to infer the motion of and orientation of boundaries (in this case, weather fronts). Used by teachers as an activity to determine the boundaries of the weather fronts (rain, snow, clearing).
"Micro to Macro" workshop this summer at Rice University, teaching about Cluster and other ways we use measurements in spacecraft data analysis. (Registration deadline May 30)

For NASA science press releases, go to science.nasa.gov.

For more Sun-Earth connections missions, go to the SECEF web site.

To be notified of additional educational materials released, Just go to the Rice University Lists and subscribe to the "e-teacher" Mailing List or send an e-mail to this address. To unsubscribe follow the instructions on the e-teacher Mailing List page, or send an e-mail to this address.

Page last updated 04/29/06.