SEISMOGRAPHS AND VOLCANOES IN UPPER MICHIGAN PRIMARY AND SECONDARY SCHOOLS

Upper Peninsula Seismic Experiments in Schools (UPSeis) was developed to promote Earth science education through seismology to elementary and secondary students at rural Upper Michigan schools. Relatively inexpensive and portable digital seismographs have been deployed in classrooms, allowing students to record their own data from teleseismic earthquakes, mine blasts, and other anthropogenic and natural sources. The systems include an EAI S102 seismometer, amplifier, and relatively simple software that runs on any PC. The UPSeis curriculum was designed so that students could analyze the teleseismic data recorded in their own classrooms. Students gain a variety of skills through hands-on activities, including analysis of teleseismic earthquake recordings made in the schools, location of earthquakes, and determination of earthquake magnitudes. Classroom activities include “Seismic Waves”, “The UPSeis Technique” and “Earthquake Hazards”. Within each unit, activities are rated for the appropriate grade level and have been correlated to the Michigan Content Standards. The systems are now being used for semi-permanent installations in Michigan high schools. We are developing an additional component that will teach students about the airborne acoustic and seismic energy radiated from volcanic eruptions. By instrumenting a liquid nitrogen volcano [Harpp, K. S., et al., 2005, Volcanoes in the Classroom: A Simulation of an Eruption Column, J. Geosci. Educ., v. 53, pp. 173-175] with accelerometers and a linear array of microbarometers, we plan to extend the UPSeis curriculum to include an exciting volcano seismology experiment. In the same way students take ownership of the data they record on the seismographs in their classrooms, students are especially eager to study the data they feel and hear during a “volcanic eruption.”