Integrating EarthScope seismic, GPS, and other active Earth observations into informal education programs in parks and museums
Abstract
EarthScope is a National Science Foundation program that uses seismic, GPS, and other geophysical devices to explore the structure and evolution of the North American continent and to understand the physical processes that cause earthquakes and volcanic eruptions. Two challenges facing the EarthScope community include providing the public with access to timely science results and presenting complex data and related principles in language and formats accessible to varied audiences. A series of workshops for park and museum educators combines scientific observations with interpretive methods to convey stories of the dynamic landscape of the western United States. The initial workshop, held at the Mt. Rainier National Park Education Center, focused on how EarthScope data and scientific results enhance the "sense of place" represented by the coastlines, valleys, and mountains of the Cascadia Subduction Zone. Participants learned how seismic and GPS instruments monitor earthquakes, volcanoes, and tsunamis that reveal the power of Earth's forces in the Pacific Northwest. A second workshop, held at the University of Nevada-Reno, related EarthScope observations to active continental rifting in the Basin and Range Province. Future workshops will focus on the San Andreas Fault, Colorado Plateau, Rio Grande Rift, and other regions. The workshops are helping interpretive professionals learn how observations of dynamic landscapes can be used to connect various audiences to many of the physical, historical, and cultural aspects of a park or museum site.
- Publication:
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AGU Fall Meeting Abstracts
- Pub Date:
- December 2008
- Bibcode:
- 2008AGUFMED52A..06L
- Keywords:
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- 0800 EDUCATION;
- 0815 Informal education;
- 1200 GEODESY AND GRAVITY;
- 7200 SEISMOLOGY;
- 8100 TECTONOPHYSICS