Fall2021CloudUpdate - Clouds Protocol
NASA GLOBE Clouds Fall Update
September/October/November 2021
The (Solar) Terminator Problem Results
The (Solar) Terminator problem has ended and the results are in! In April 2021, the NASA GLOBE Clouds team launched the (Solar) Terminator Problem. The objective was to collect cloud observations near sunrise and sunset times. The observations help validate a new satellite cloud detection algorithm. Ryan Moore, a NASA summer intern, analyzed the satellite and citizen science data over the summer. Read about Ryan’s results and his research process on the GLOBE Observer site. You can find a recording of his presentation describing his results. Learn more about Ryan Moore and his experience as a NASA intern in the “Meet an Expert” section below.
Specialty Observations Page
All cloud observations are useful, and some can help with specific science questions. This includes making observations at specific times, or even taking pictures in a particular way. Learn more about CLOUD GAZE (Zooniverse), contrails, dust and observations related to aerosols on the Specialty Observations page.
Meet an Expert: Ryan Moore
Ryan Moore is a junior in Information Science at the University of Maryland (UMD). He worked on the Terminator Problem comparing citizen science observations with satellite data.
Question: Where are you from?
Answer: I have lived in Frederick, Maryland my whole life.
Question: What do you do for fun? Hobbies?
Answer: For fun I like to work out and play pickup basketball. I was also raised as a Washington sports fan so whenever I get the chance I go to their home games.
Question: What inspired you to become a NASA intern?
Answer: What inspired me to become a NASA intern was being able to work alongside some of the best scientists and researchers in the world. I also was driven to intern for NASA because I knew my work would have an impact which in return gave me a wide variety of experiences and opportunities I couldn’t get at other internships.
Question: What was your favorite part of being a NASA intern?
Answer: My favorite part of being a NASA intern was all of the connections I made. My mentors and intern coordinators made it easy to connect with other interns and employees throughout the agency. There was a great seminar series this summer for interns who wanted to learn more about travel to Mars and throughout it I was able to meet and talk with many interesting people.
Question: What surprised you the most while being a NASA intern?
Answer: What surprised me the most about being a NASA intern is how welcoming everyone is. Every intern I have talked with about their experience has had nothing but great things to say about NASA, even in an online format. From day one I felt like a part of the team and this helped with my growth as an aspiring scientific researcher.
Question: What advice do you have for students?
Answer: Some advice I wish I had known sooner is to never turn down opportunities given to you. There were many opportunities presented to me throughout my educational career that I wish I had been more open-minded too. Being able to build connections can open many different doors and if you turn down that opportunity you could be missing out on a life-changing experience.
Cloud Observation Tips: Identifying Stratus Clouds
Stratus clouds are one of the three main types of clouds. Remember that there are many types of clouds that fall into three main categories: cumulus, stratus, and cirrus. Using hand-motions, we would stretch out our hands as far out as we could to mimic a stratus cloud. There are stratus-type clouds at all three basic altitude levels. These are: stratus clouds (low level), altostratus clouds (mid level), and cirrostratus clouds (high level). When stratus-type clouds are present, your skies will most likely be overcast or the cloud cover is 90% or more. Note, there is a difference between overcast and obscured skies.
How can you tell which one you are looking at? NASA scientist Dr. Lin Chambers came up with tips for students, teachers, and anyone in the public to use.
The main tip is to look for clues near the Sun. Caution: NEVER look directly at the Sun!
- If it rained recently or is about to rain, you are most likely dealing with a low level stratus cloud. While it is possible for rain to fall from mid-level clouds, it is quite rare.
- If it is raining during your observation, you have nimbostratus (or cumulonimbus - but the difference should be obvious! The latter is a thunderstorm). The terms nimbo/nimbus are from a Latin word for rain.
- If a stratus cloud is so thick you can't even figure out where the sun is, most likely it is a low level stratus. The visual opacity of such a cloud is opaque.
- If you can see the sun but it looks diffused (like looking through a glass bottle), most likely you have altostratus. The visual opacity would be translucent.
- High-level cirrostratus will generally be thin enough that the sun is still quite distinct. If the cirrostratus is not between you and the sun, you may be able to distinguish cirrostratus as being so thin that parts of the cloud appear bluish (that is, you are seeing through to blue sky). The visual opacity is transparent.
Sometimes, you might see stratocumulus clouds, which are flat with a puffiness to them. Stratocumulus clouds form when the stratus layer is breaking up. It indicates that the weather patterns have changed! You see stratocumulus clouds near warm, cold, and occluded fronts.
Find photographs of clouds and their varieties by visiting the World Meteorological Organization’s International Cloud Atlas.
Science Topic: NASA GLOBE CLOUD GAZE By Marilé Colón Robles
Marilé Colón Robles is the Project Scientist for NASA GLOBE Clouds at NASA Langley Research Center in Hampton, VA. Marilé works to enhance GLOBE Clouds and became the Principal Investigator for NASA GLOBE CLOUD GAZE. CLOUD GAZE is a merger of GLOBE Clouds and The Zooniverse online citizen science platform. Marilé is originally from San Juan, Puerto Rico, is an avid volleyball player and has two beautiful daughters.
This is how the idea for NASA GLOBE CLOUD GAZE came to be. The project allows you to look at cloud photographs. These photographs were submitted by GLOBE participants through the program’s GLOBE Observer app. It then asks you to identify elements such as the presence or absence of clouds, dust storms, smoke plumes and haze layers.
Want to get started? Great! Go to our NASA GLOBE CLOUD GAZE page on the Zooniverse online citizen science platform. You can learn more about the project and choose between the two interactives: Cloud Cover and What Do You See. In each, you will go through a quick tutorial and answer a simple question for each photograph that pops up. The Cloud Cover interactive asks to identify what is the total cloud cover observed in the photograph. The What Do You See interactive asks to identify the type of clouds you observe. For both, choose the best selection and submit. It is that easy!
Why two different interactives? The NASA GLOBE CLOUD GAZE team made the interactives and selections as simple as possible. We realize that the Cloud Cover interactive is simpler to do. We ask that you try both. The results from both interactives will be used to create data quality flags. As always, send in your best selection. Do not feel like you need to be perfect.
How will this information be used? The information gathered from CLOUD GAZE will be merged with GLOBE cloud observations and matched to the satellite data. It will be used to create data quality flags. Data quality flags will make the cloud data more usable for research by atmospheric scientists at NASA.
Want to see your photographs on NASA GLOBE CLOUD GAZE? Simple, send in your cloud observations using the GLOBE Program’s GLOBE Observer app. If possible, do it up to 15 minutes before or after a satellite flyover time. This last step will increase your chances of getting a satellite match.
Want to chat? NASA GLOBE CLOUD GAZE has a “talk” option. It allows you to chat with the NASA GLOBE CLOUD GAZE team and other citizen scientists in the projec.
Are you an educator? We have developed a one-week pacing guide focused on cloud types. The pacing guide features NASA GLOBE CLOUD GAZE with additional resources you can use in your classroom or in an out-of-school setting.