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toc = ABOUT THE TEAM = === Smith middle school is a team of highly educated kids that work together to discover many great things about our universe. We have so far come up with a great amount of research questions about Earth's features. ===

**STEPS IN THE PROCESS OF SCIENCE**

= = =** Step 1 - Preliminary Question **=

1) Do different shapes and types of ice form near different sized bodies of water? 2) How does Mauna Loa compare to Mt. Olympus on Mars? 3) How does the eye of the Red Spot on Jupiter compare to Earth's largest hurricanes? 4) Are deserts on Earth with the same magnitude the same temperature? 5) How does the length of the Andes compare to other mountain ranges in the inner planets? 6) When you see a canyon, does it mean there was a trace of water? 7) How much snow can be seen on a planet when taking pictures from space?

Our final research question was: How does the eye of the Red Spot on Jupiter compare to Earth's largest hurricanes?

= = = = = = = = = = =** Step 2 - Initial Observations **=

**1. RESEARCH QUESTION:** How does Jupiter's red spot compare to Earth's largest hurricane?

**2. SOURCES TO VIEW ASTRONAUT PHOTOS:** Gateway to Astronaut Photography Expedition Earth and Beyond Quick List of Images Visible Earth Earth from Space

**3. LIST OF SPECIFIC DATA TEAM WILL LOG FROM EACH ASTRONAUT PHOTO:** Image ID/Website/URL Focal lens length Size of eye Name of hurricane Other Citation

**4. HYPOTHESIS:** If we compare the Red Spot of Jupiter to the largest hurricanes on Earth, then the Red Spot will be larger.

= = = = = = = = = = =** Step 3 - Background Research **=

**1. IMPORTANT TERMS AND DEFINITIONS:** Hurricane Red Spot

**2. EARTH SYSTEM INFORMATION:** The hurricane affects the atmosphere because, it causes strong winds.

**3. FORMATION PROCESS:** Hurricanes are formed when cold air from the atmosphere and warm air from the oceans mix together and form a hurricane. The warmer the water from the ocean is the stronger the hurricane is. **4. FEATURE DESCRIPTION OR CHARACTERISTICS:** Hurricanes have large puffy clouds, extreamly strong winds, and tons of rain.

**5. ASTRONAUT IMAGES (2-3) THAT INCLUDE THE FEATURE YOU ARE STUDYING (links, ID#s, or images):** 1. ISS007-E-10244

2.ISS008-E-19646

**6. GEOGRAPHIC REGION OF FOCUS:** We will focus on the coast lines of different countries

**7. IF YOU WILL CONDUCT A PLANETARY COMPARISON, PLEASE EXPLAIN:** We will compare hurricanes on Earth to the eye of Jupiters Red Spot.

**8. OTHER DETAILS IMPORTANT FOR YOUR RESEARCH:** We will be focusing on the eyes of the hurricanes on Earth and the eye of the Red Spot on Jupiter.

= = = = = = = = = = =** Step 4 - Experiment Design **=

**1. FINAL RESEARCH QUESTION:** How does the eye of Jupiter's red spot compare to the eye of one of Earth's largest hurricanes (specific)?

**2. HYPOTHESIS****:** If we compare the eye of the Red Spot on Jupiter to the eye of the largest hurricanes on Earth, then the eye of the Red Spot will be larger.

**3. IMAGE DATA COLLECTION:** Gateway to astronaut photography

**4. OTHER DATA SETS:** -ID number -size and shape of hurricane -color -date -citation -lens length

**5. MEASUREMENTS:** We will seperate all the data we find into groups by the focal length, then compare them to each other, we can get a general idea of how large each one is compared to the Red Spot.


 * Keep track of your sources in your bibliography.**

= = = = = = = = = = = = =** Step 5 - Collect and Compile Data **=

**1. MASTER DATA TABLE:**

of the Hurricane || Size of eye || Focal Lens length || Citation || Other ||
 * Image ID# || Name
 * ISS007-E-14419 || Fabian ||  || 50mm || Gateway to astronaut photography || The eye is covered by clouds ||
 * ISS008-E-19646 || Catarina ||  || 50mm || Gateway to astronaut photography || Eye is visible and uncovered by clouds ||
 * ISS007-E-10244 || Claudette ||  || 50mm || Gateway to astronaut photography || Clouds seem rigid ||
 * ISS007-E-14750 || Isabel ||  || 50mm || Gateway to astronaut photography || Eye seems to go in ||
 * ISS009-E-20440 || Frances ||  || 35mm || Gateway to astronaut photography ||   ||
 * ISS028-E-45579 || Katia ||  || 15mm || Gateway to astronaut photography || eye is covered with clouds ||
 * ISS028-E-31902 || Irene ||  || 28mm || Gateway to astronaut photography ||   ||
 * ISS024-E-15075 || Igor ||  || 16mm || Gateway to astronaut photography || eye is covered by clouds ||
 * STS044-93-80 || Yuri ||  || 250mm || Gateway to astronaut photography || 11/28/1991 ||
 * STS511-37-0083 || Odessa ||  || 250mm || Gateway to astronaut photography || very cloudy ||
 * ISS08-E-19646 || Katrina ||  || 50mm || Gateway to astronaut photography || located over the Atlantic Ocean ||
 * ISS011-E-12542 || Katrina ||  || 400mm || Earth from space || located near Mississippi ||
 * ISS020-E-0716 || N/A ||  || 400mm || Gateway to astronaut photography || located near Bolivia ||
 * 74693 || Katrina ||  || 550mm || Visible Earth ||   ||
 * ISS028-E-34037 || Irene ||  || 28mm || Gateway to astronaut photography || eye covered with clouds ||
 * ISS028-E-45516 || Katia ||  || 28mm || Gateway to astronaut photography ||   ||

**2. NEW DATA REQUEST INFO:**

= = = = = = = = = = = = = = =** Step 6 - Display Data **=

**1. DATA TABLE(S): Under __each__ data table, list 1-3 observations.**

**2. GRAPHS: Under __each__ graph, list 1-3 observations.**

**3. MAPS: Under __each__ map, list 1-3 observations.**

**4. IMAGE ILLUSTRATIONS: Under __each__ image illustration, list 1-3 observations.**

= = = = = = = = = = = = = = =** Step 7 - Analyze and Interpret Data **=

**1. RESEARCH QUESTION:**

**2. HYPOTHESIS:**

**3. ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETATION OF DATA:**

**DATA ANALYSIS #1:**
 * **RESTATE A SPECIFIC DATA DISPLAY __OBSERVATION__ FROM STEP 6:**


 * **__INTERPRETATION__ OF WHAT THAT OBSERVATION MEANS WITH RESPECT TO YOUR QUESTION:**


 * **ADDITIONAL EVIDENCE THAT SUPPORTS YOUR INTERPRETATION:**

**DATA ANALYSIS #2:**
 * **RESTATE A SPECIFIC DATA DISPLAY __OBSERVATION__ FROM STEP 6:**


 * **__INTERPRETATION__ OF WHAT THAT OBSERVATION MEANS WITH RESPECT TO YOUR QUESTION:**


 * **ADDITIONAL EVIDENCE THAT SUPPORTS YOUR INTERPRETATION:**

**DATA ANALYSIS #3:**
 * **RESTATE A SPECIFIC DATA DISPLAY __OBSERVATION__ FROM STEP 6:**


 * **__INTERPRETATION__ OF WHAT THAT OBSERVATION MEANS WITH RESPECT TO YOUR QUESTION:**


 * **ADDITIONAL EVIDENCE THAT SUPPORTS YOUR INTERPRETATION:**

**DATA ANALYSIS #4:**


 * **RESTATE A SPECIFIC DATA DISPLAY __OBSERVATION__ FROM STEP 6:**


 * ** __INTERPRETATION__ OF WHAT THAT OBSERVATION MEANS WITH RESPECT TO YOUR QUESTION: **


 * ** ADDITIONAL EVIDENCE THAT SUPPORTS YOUR INTERPRETATION: **


 * Add additional data analysis information as needed.**


 * CONSIDERATION OF ISSUES POTENTIALLY AFFECTING YOUR RESEARCH **
 * 1. POTENTIAL ERRORS OR INACCURACIES: **


 * 2. POTENTIAL MISINTERPRETATIONS: **


 * 3. LIMITATIONS OF DATA: **


 * 4. OTHER: **

= = = = = = = = = = =** Step 8 - Draw Conclusions **=

We learned that not all questions can be answeared We learned that all hurricanes occur over sea We learned that a hurricane's eye is small compared to the rest of the storm We learned that hurricanes are different sizes and shapes We learned that most hurricanes occur closer to the equator We learned that the location of a hurricane does not seem to be relevant to our research question
 * 1. SUMMARIZE CONCLUSIONS ABOUT THE ANSWER TO YOUR QUESTION: **

We learned we did not have enough data (or time) to support or not to support our hypothesis
 * 2. SUMMARIZE INFORMATION ABOUT WHETHER YOUR HYPOTHESIS WAS REFUTED OR SUPPORTED? **

How can we calculate the size of a hurricane's eye? Does location or climate affect the size of a hurricanes eye? How does the latitude of a hurricane compare to the latitude of the Great Red Spot? What affects the size of a hurricane? Does the distance frome the equator affect windspeed or size of a hurricane?
 * 3. NEWLY SPARKED RESEARCH QUESTION(S): **

Our mentor, Melissa Dawson ( who took time from her busy carrer to give us feedback on our ideas, we are very greatful for her help). EEAB project leader, Paige Graff ( Who gave us additional help alone the way.)
 * 4. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS: **


 * 5. REFLECTION OF RESEARCH: **

= = = = = = = = = = =** Step 9 - Share Research **=

= GLOSSARY =

= BIBLIOGRAPHY = = =

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