Articles

Earth

Collins, W., et al. “The Physical Science behind Climate Change.” Scientific American (August 2007): 64. Why scientists are now confident that human activities are changing our planet’s climate.

Glatzmaier, G., & Olson, P. “Probing the Geodynamo.” Scientific American (April 2005): 50. Experiments and modeling that tell us about the source and reversals of Earth’s magnetic field.

Gurnis, M. “Sculpting the Earth from Inside Out.” Scientific American (March 2001): 40. On motions that lift and lower the continents.

Hartmann, W. “Piecing Together Earth’s Early History.” Astronomy (June 1989): 24.

Jewitt, D., & Young, E. “Oceans from the Skies.” Scientific American (March 2015): 36. How did Earth get its water after its initial hot period?

Impacts

Boslaugh, M. “In Search of Death-Plunge Asteroids.” Astronomy (July 2015): 28. On existing and proposed programs to search for earth-crossing asteroids.

Brusatte, S. “What Killed the Dinosaurs?” Scientific American (December 2015): 54. The asteroid hit Earth at an already vulnerable time.

Chyba, C. “Death from the Sky: Tunguska.” Astronomy (December 1993): 38. Excellent review article.

Durda, D. “The Chelyabinsk Super-Meteor.” Sky & Telescope (June 2013): 24. A nice summary with photos and eyewitness reporting.

Gasperini, L., et al. “The Tunguska Mystery.” Scientific American (June 2008): 80. A more detailed exploration of the site of the 1908 impact over Siberia.

Kring, D. “Blast from the Past.” Astronomy (August 2006): 46. Six-page introduction to Arizona’s meteor crater.

Websites

Earth

• Astronaut Photography of Earth from Space: A site with many images and good information.
• Exploration of the Earth’s Magnetosphere: An educational website by Dr. Daniel Stern.
• NASA Goddard: Earth from Space: Fifteen Amazing Things in 15 Years: Images and videos that reveal things about our planet and its atmosphere.
• U.S. Geological Survey: Earthquake Information Center
• Views of the Solar System: Overview of Earth.

Impacts

• B612 Foundation: Set up by several astronauts for research and education about the asteroid threat to Earth and to build a telescope in space to search for dangerous asteroids.
• Lunar and Planetary Institute: Introduction to Terrestrial Impact Craters: Includes images.
• Meteor Crater Tourist Site
• NASA/Jet Propulsion Lab Near Earth Object Program
• What Are Near-Earth-Objects: From the British Spaceguard Centre.

Videos

Earth

All Alone in the Night: Flying over Earth at night (2:30)

Earth Globes Movies (including Earth at night)

Earth: The Operator’s Manual: A National Science Foundation–sponsored miniseries on climate change and energy, with geologist Richard Alley (53:43)

PBS NOVA Videos about Earth: Programs and information about planet Earth. Click full episodes on the menu at left to be taken to a nice array of videos

U. S. National Weather Service: Real Time Globe of Earth showing wind patterns which can be zoomed and moved to your preferred view.

Impacts

Chelyabinsk Meteor: Can We Survive a Bigger Impact?: Talk by Dr. David Morrison (1:34:48)

Large Asteroid Impact Simulation: Large asteroid impact simulation from the Discovery Channel (4:45)

Meteor Hits Russia February 15, 2013: Archive of eyewitness footage (10:11)

Sentinel Mission: Finding an Asteroid Headed for Earth: Public lecture by astronaut Ed Lu (1:08:57)