On 24 December 1997, Dr. Alistair Fraser--reknowned professor of meteorology at Penn State University--was interviewed on National Public Radio's Morning Edition about one of his interests, optical phenomena in the atmosphere. If you have RealPlayer installed, you can hear the interview.

Miscellaneous Sky Awareness Resources

• Look Up! Setting a Course for Sky Awareness. Look Up! is an innovative program for learning designed to stimulate heightened awareness and creativity in children through observation of the sky, its many moods and elements.
• "Ask Jack" (Jack Williams, Editor, USA TODAY Weather Page) - Frequently Asked Questions about sky phenomena and color
• Explore the mysterious beauty of ice crystal atmospheric optical phenomena by visiting the Atmospheric Halos Web site, then go look for sundogs (parhelia), halos, and Sun pillars in the real sky!
• Snowflakes - A Thematic Approach provides K-12 teachers with a flurry of ideas for using snow to deliver interesting and exciting interdisciplinary instruction perfect for the holiday season.
• About Rainbows, by Beverly Lynds, the Unidata Education Programs Coordinator, is an excellent source of information on rainbows and the optical processes that occur to produce them. This article includes diagrams, folk lore, and experiments that may be useful in teaching optics to children.

Increase Your Awareness of Weather Hazards

• Did you know that people get 80% of their lifetime Sun exposure before the age of 18, and that 1 in 5 Americans will develop skin cancer from overexposure to the Sun? Visit the following Web sites to learn more about ozone depletion and Sun safety:
  • United States Environmental Protection Agency (US EPA) - Ozone Depletion
  • US EPA - The SunWise School Program
  • National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) UV Index Map
• Most years, lightning is the deadliest weather hazard (or number two, second only to flash flooding). Global Atmospherics, Inc. - Lightning Explorer (Requires Microsoft Internet Explorer 3.X and 4.X or Netscape 4.X. "Cookies" are used and must be accepted by your Web browser.)
• One of the bigger winter weather hazards is Wind Chill (the apparent temperature which results from the combined effect of air temperature and wind speed). Did you know that exposed flesh will freeze at a wind chill of less than -25 degrees F! Before venturing outside, check the current wind chill index and dress warmly!

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