Earth Explorations

Living as I do here in the northern plains, bird migrants from tropical areas don't show up until May, late April if conditions are good. There will be plenty of migrants moving through the Eastern side of the state in the next few weeks, mostly geese, ducks, and birds like robins but they won't be warblers and orioles. Here on the western most edge of the central flyway, we will have robins and a few geese this month. Weather plays a significant role in migration. I found this Weather Map Primer  resource from Journey North. Since it touches upon some of my favorite explorer topics- birds, maps, weather-I was excited to see it. I really like how the weather map reading is applied to birding. I am facilitating a monthly online professional development opportunity and March's topic is migrations. This resource will make it into the lesson. Also on that Weather Map Primer page I found a link to current global wind conditions which is not only interesting but visually ...

In the Jane Goodall Institute Roots and Shoots online class I'm taking we had an opportunity to explore a Google street view map of Gombe National Park in Tanzania where Dr Jane did her groundbreaking work with chimpanzees. I was excited to see lichen in the opening screen. It looks like shield lichen from this distance. Street view is an immersive format that lets you see a 360° scene, including up and down. Roots and Shoots also offers a Google cardboard experience and additional activities about Gombe at  http://rootsandshoots.org/streetview  Maps are fascinating to me as I believe they are to all explorers. Google has brought us into a new immersive dimension with street view maps. You get to be there without actually being there. And yet, I'm always concerned about the exotic and far making the familiar and near seem less. Less interesting, less fun - and most worrisome - less important. It is none of these, of course. How do we transfer that sense of wonder ...