Each week Cosmos takes a look at projects and news about Citizen Science in Australia. This week they went global with two projects: the very contemporary CoronaReport initiative, and the venerable (well, quarter-century-year old) GLOBE program.
The GLOBE Program is an international science and education program that provides students with the opportunity to participate in data collection and science so let’s find out more.
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The Global Learning and Observations to Benefit the Environment (GLOBE) Program is an international science and education program that provides students and the public with the opportunity to participate in data collection and science, and contribute meaningfully to our understanding of the Earth and the global environment. GLOBE was announced by the US Government on Earth Day in 1994 and was launched worldwide in 1995.
GLOBE provides opportunities to look at four of the Earth’s spheres: the atmosphere, biosphere, hydrosphere, and soil/pedosphere; in studies developed by the scientific community and validated by teachers. GLOBE connects students, teachers, scientists, and citizens from different parts of the world to conduct real, hands-on science about their local environment and to put this in a global perspective.
GLOBE is sponsored by NASA and, in Australia, is delivered through a partnership between CSIRO and the Australian Space Agency.
The numbers are impressive. At January 2020, GLOBE participation included
- 123 countries
- 37,087 schools
- 39,633 teachers
- 180,308 GLOBE observers
- 185,285,567 measurements
Each Earth sphere has an online introductory module and a short multiple-choice assessment. Completion of the introductory module and one or more of your chosen training protocols qualifies you as a trained GLOBE teacher.
Go to the GLOBE Observer program here.
