Ibercivis is offering schools in Zaragoza a free one-hour session on light pollution, in which secondary school students take part in a real citizen science initiative.
By comparing night-time photographs taken from the International Space Station with a map, students georeference the images and contribute data that the research team will use to study the loss of darkness in Europe.
Astronauts on board the International Space Station (ISS) have been photographing the Earth at night for more than twenty years. These images show the artificial light of cities, roads and ports in remarkable detail, but before they can be used as light pollution data they need to be georeferenced, that is, matched to their exact coordinates. This is where Lost at Night comes in: a citizen science initiative that, together with the European PLAN-B project, studies light pollution, noise pollution and biodiversity.
The Ibercivis Foundation is bringing this activity to schools in Zaragoza with a free one-hour session held at the school itself. It is aimed at secondary school students aged 14 and over, including Bachillerato (upper secondary).
What the session involves
The session begins with a talk on light pollution, after which students move on to hands-on work on the Lost at Night platform. Working in pairs, they compare each ISS photograph with the map and identify recognisable features, such as coastlines, roads or junctions, to place the image in its exact location. Schools take part as teams in a competition with other schools in Zaragoza.
The students’ contributions are real data: the PLAN-B research team will use them to study the loss of darkness in Europe and its effects on ecosystems and health. The activity links to Physics, Geography and Technology: students learn to read images taken from space, to find their way around maps and to cross-check references to decide where each photograph was taken.
All that is needed is one computer for every two students and an internet connection. After the session, students can keep taking part from home or from the classroom through the challenges Ibercivis will be setting. To get to know the platform, teachers can use a teaching unit (in Spanish) and video tutorials.
Schools in Zaragoza interested in taking part can write to Ibercivis at info[@]ibercivis.es with any questions or to arrange a session.