August 31, 1999:
AMS Features New GLOBE Haze Protocol
The American Meteorological Society has recognized the GLOBE Program and its contributions to science with a cover story in its July 1999 Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society. The article, entitled An International Haze Monitoring Network for Students, was submitted by Forrest Mims, co-principal investigator for the new GLOBE haze protocol currently under field testing.The paper details how GLOBE students will be using newly-developed sun photometers - which measure the amount of sunlight at a specific wavelength - and solar gnomons - which determine the angle of the sun's shadow. With these instruments, the students will be able to help determine the concentration of atmospheric aerosols at different times and places. Aerosols are particles suspended in a gas, such as air, and are often associated with haze. It is important to know the concentration of natural and man-made particles - like water vapor, dust, soot, and plant pollen - because of their possible effects on climate, plant growth, visibility, and health.
"This network has the potential of providing important data about changes in the aerosol optical depth of the atmosphere caused by weather fronts, industrial and automobile pollution, and smoke from forest and brush fires and volcanic eruptions," Mims states in the article.
The AMS Bulletin cover features a photograph of students at the University of the Nations Hawaii campus who tested prototype versions of a kit LED sun photometer. The pilot studies have also demonstrated that sun photometry provides a convenient means for allowing students to perform hands-on science while they learn about various topics in history, electronics, algebra, statistics, graphing, and meteorology.