Students first learn about the weather, its history and geographical implications. Then they learn the definitions of specific weather terms and the mathematical formulas for weather measurements, such as relative humidity and dew point. Production of the newsletter falls within the language arts curriculum. Eventually we are hoping to generate a live news and weather TV program for city-wide broadcast. Another school studying the weather is North Carolina State University.
Students track chemical pollutants such as nitrogen oxide, nitrogen dioxide and ozone.
With the Observer computerized weather station students determine how the pollutant concentrations are effected by soil temperature, air temperature, wind speed and wind direction. The differences in the readings demonstrate the effect of the city environment on air quality. NCSU students journey out to the rural field station for two month periods to record the local climate conditions. The project is expected to continue into 1996 and possibly extend into 1997.