Student Research Reports
The Influence of Humidity, Precipitation, and Temperature on Mosquito-borne Vectors in the United States
Country:United States of America
Student(s):Benjamin Folk, Dori Stein, Mia Obid, Sidha Kunada
Grade Level:Secondary School (grades 9-12, ages 14-18)
GLOBE Educator(s):Cassie Soeffing
Contributors:Dr. Rusty Low, IGES, scientist
Peder Nelson, OSU, sme
Dr. Erika Podest, NASA JPL, scientist
Andrew Clark, IGES, EO Researcher and Data Analyst
Report Type(s):International Virtual Science Symposium Report, Mission Mosquito Report
Protocols:Earth As a System, Mosquitoes
Presentation Video:
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Presentation Poster:
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Language(s):English
Date Submitted:01/25/2023
Mosquitoes are the primary insect vector of dangerous pathogens, specifically dengue fever and
the West Nile virus. The potential risk of a mosquito-borne epidemic can be correlated with
many environment-specific variables that affect mosquito oviposition, activity, and feeding
habitats. We sought to draw connections between environmental variables such as precipitation,
humidity, and temperature to the risk of mosquito-borne diseases. Before examining potential
data, we hypothesized that the outcome of our study would show a direct positive correlation
between mosquito-borne disease transmission and precipitation, temperature, and humidity. This
was primarily because the presence of these conditions would create more natural mosquito
breeding habitats and make diseases more easily transferable through more suitable conditions.
We used data from the Center of Disease Control's (CDC’s) National Arbovirus Surveillance
System (ArboNET) to analyze the vector transmission of the West Nile virus and dengue
fever. The GLOBE Observer Mosquito Project Advanced Data Access Tool (ADAT) was
another source of our data that examined submissions from separate institutions in five major
cities on the East Coast (Denver, NC, Tallahassee, FL, Hays, KS, Norfork, AR, and Northville,
NY). Records from these sites enabled us to evaluate environmental data, including daily air
temperature. Additionally, NASA’s Prediction of Worldwide Energy Resource (POWER) Data
Access Viewer was utilized to obtain the relative humidity percentage statistics at the above
sites. Precipitation statistics via rain depth were found using the National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration’s Climate at a Glance County Mapping tool (NOAA). Ultimately,
our study found that humidity and the spread of mosquito-borne diseases are not directly related,
while increased temperature appears to be directly related to both West Nile virus and dengue
fever. Finally, West Nile virus cases were found to positively correlate with precipitation, while
dengue fever cases were found to be inversely associated with rainfall levels.
Keywords: Baxter county, CDC, dengue fever, Ellis county, Fulton county, GLOBE,
humidity, Leon county, Lincoln county, mosquitoes, NASA, NOAA, precipitation, temperature,
West Nile