NASA Lands at EIS

   On Monday, December 7, 2009, Dr. Eric Brown de Colstoun, Ph.D., a geographer from University of Maryland Baltimore County/Goddard Earth Sciences and Technology Center and NASA Goddard Space Flight Center spoke to 6th  Grade students at Ephrata Intermediate School. Dr. Brown showed images from the satellites recording changes to climate, global warming, and shrinking/expanding polar ice caps. He showed satellite pictures of Ephrata Intermediate School, the surrounding athletic fields, and Lancaster County. In addition, he showed the Chesapeake Bay Area Watershed. 
   He did a hands-on demonstration using paper airplanes. Each flew, including he own 'interesting' shape as an activating strategy to report some of the experiments/design still going on at the space center for all planes. Students Cheyenne Angelo and Anton Corch assisted Dr. Brown in this experiment.
   He closed with some information about how science and math support careers as an engineer and astronaut.
   Students enjoyed the presentation immensely. This presentation ties into the 6th  Grade science curriculum as students study variables in controlled science experiments along with the 6th Grade reading series when student will read about  space, including the Mars rover, Sojourner.