Education and Outreach
| Middle School Project | Randy Smith Middle | Somers High |
Randy Smith Middle School Students Visit 34 Mile Pond, March 2003
On Saturday 29 March 2003, four 7th grade students from Randy Smith Middle School, their science teacher Carol Scott, two teachers from Denali Elementary School (Alice Hoffmann and Fran Stredny) and Martin Jeffries spent the day making snow and ice measurements at 34 Mile Pond on the Steese Highway in the Chatanika Valley, about 55 km northeast of Fairbanks.
First we stopped at Poker Flat Research Range for a preliminary discussion of the day’s activities. Then we drove a short distance along the highway to 34 Mile Pond. This pond was the subject of study by Shannon Graham in 2002 when she worked with Martin under the auspices of the Teachers Experiencing the Arctic and Antactic (TEA) program. Click here for Shannon’s results.
When we visited 34 Mile Pond on Saturday 29 March 2003, the first thing that we did was to mark out a measurement transect on the snow surface with a measuring tape. We then divided into an East Team and a West Team, each with two students and two adults, to make measurements on the east and west sides of the transect, as shown in the accompanying diagram.
The first set of measurements was the depth of snow and the temperature at bottom of the snow cover every 5 m along the transect, as shown in the photograph below. Note how the snow depth and bottom temperature are being measured to the left (east) and right (west) of the measuring tape that marks the transect.
Randy Smith Middle School students take snow depth and snow-ice interface tempeature measurements at 34 Mile Pond, Steese Highway.
Randy Smith Middle School students do a snow surface temperature experiment at 34 Mile Pond, Steese Highway.
The snow surface temperature also had to be measured at the beginning and end of the transect. This provided an opportunity for the students to learn the importance of making snow surface temperature measurements in the shade to avoid direct solar radiation on the temperature sensor, rather than in the sun, where direct solar radiation heats the sensor and gives a biassed reading. The photograph below shows this activity.
By this time, the batteries in Martin’s camera had expired and he had no replacements. Consequently, there are no more photographs. Sorry.
The next activity was taking snow samples at distances of 0 m, 25 m, 50 m and 75 m along each side of the transect. The snow samples were taken using a metal tube that was pushed all the way into the snow to the ice below. Using a spatula to prevent the snow falling out, the tube was lifted up and the snow was transferred to a plastic bag.
At the end of the day on the ice, the snow samples were taken back to Poker Flat Research Range, where the students weighed them on an electronic balance to determine their mass. Then they calculated the snow sample volume and the snow density.
The final activity was drilling holes in the ice and measuring the ice thickness. This was the most popular activity as it involved using an electric drill powered by a generator.
The data obtained at 34 Mile Pond are shown in the graph below. The red symbols represent the data obtained by the West Team. The blue symbols represent the data obtained by the East Team. The differences between each set of measurements are generally small. The dashed lines are the average of the East and West measurements.
The horizontal arrows indicate the snow surface temperature, and it is clear that it was not a particularly cold day. The temperatures at the base of the snow cover (at the ice surface) are a little higher than those at the surface because the snow is insulating the ice from the cooler air above. The snow at 34 Mile Pond is a good insulator because it has a fairly low density, i.e., there is plenty of air trapped between the snow grains.
The temperature difference between the top and bottom of the snow is, nevertheless, small. This small snow temperature difference coupled with the low snow density, leads to a low conductive heat flow. The scientific notation that we use for conductive heat flow means that the more negative the value, the greater the heat flow.
Data collected by Randy Smith Middle School students.
The snow density at 75 m is particularly low, which suggests that it would be a better insulator than the snow at 0 m, 25m and 50 m. However, take a look at the ice thickness in the vicinity of 60-80 m. It is the thinnest ice that was measured and occurs below the thinnest snow cover. This indicates that, during the course of the winter, the snow depth played a greater role than the snow density in insulating the ice. Because the ice at 60-80 m was not as well insulated, it grew faster and, therefore, thicker than the other ice.
Carol Scott Reflects on the Day at 34 Mile Pond
On Saturday March 29, 2003 I accompanied four of my 7th grade students on a trip to Poker Flat with Dr. Martin Jeffries. These students volunteered their time to spend the day with Martin and two teacher-students learning about snow and ice research by actually doing some data gathering and analysis. We began the day with an overview by Martin in the Poker Flat building. The kids listened well and asked good questions about how to conduct snow/ice research. We also examined the tools we would be using to gather data. After stopping at one pond to see what an actual site looked like, we went to 34 Mile Pond to lay out a data site. The kids measured the transect, set out temperature/snow depth probes, then began recording data from them. Next we took snow cores, and lastly drilled to measure ice thickness. This last task was the definite favorite of the day. Back at the Poker Flat building the kids wanted to calculate their snow densities. Martin led them through the calculations, but the kids wanted to do the math themselves!
I was really impressed by how engaged these kids were all day long, but not surprised by this - they were learning science by actually doing science, and they were in an almost one-on-one teaching situation. They sponged up the attention, and really loved the active learning. Two of the kids who went on this trip have since really improved their effort and achievement in my science class at school. For one student the change has been dramatic. I think this trip was a real motivator and confidence-builder for her. The other two kids have always been interested and motivated in class.
I really appreciate Martin's willingness to work all day with such a small group of students and to collaborate with me to make this happen for the kids. Through this project I was also able to talk over ideas with Ron Reihl (Tanana), and, had the weather allowed, all my students would have finished up an ice measuring project that both Ron's and Sarah Drew's classes (Ryan) had worked on. This type of inter-school collaboration can really motivate the students.