Welcome

Project ozone is an environmental science research project in which you will monitor ground-level ozone, and figure out ways to take action based on the results of your research. There are four stages to the project, and they are outlined below.

Stage 1: Invitation

1. What do you know about ground-level ozone? Visit the Project Ozone bulletin board and write about what you have heard or know about ozone. You might also post some questions that you have about ground level ozone. Go to the Bulletin Board!

2. What is the quality of the air at this site? This a web-cam view of the Smoky Mountains....is it smoky, smoggy or clear at this site today? How does it compare to the view you get when you look out the nearest window from where you are? Does a visual view help us know about air pollution? Go to the Bulletin Board and tell us what you think?

3. Go to the Air-Now site or the AIRSdata site at the EPA and check out the real-time data available for your city, and find out what the current conditions are according to the data at this site. Tell us what you found by posting a message on the board. You might also want to investigate the pattern of ground-level ozone in your community by exploring the Air-Now site and find the data that will help you answer this inquiry: How has the quality of the changed in my community over the past several years?

Stage 2: Exploration

What is the ground-level ozone in your community now? You are going to work with your classmates to monitor the ozone near your school and home over the next several days. You will use the Ecobadge monitoring badge (a chemically sensitive strip that turns color in the presence of ground-level ozone). You will also share the data you collected at your research site and post it on a web site so that others participating in the project can benefit from your work, and compare their site to yours. Materials: Several Ecobadge paper strips, a thermometer, a wind measuring device (optional), a topographic map (so you can determine your latitude and longitude), a notebook to record your data access to the Web. Procedures: Go to the CLEO web site. This is a site where you will find Project Ozone '99. You will need to register (its free!) when you get to CLEO and join Project Ozone '99. At the site Project Ozone '99 site you will find procedures for doing your research and Table where you will enter the data you collect on ozone.

Stage 3: Explanation

What did you find out about ground-level ozone in your community? What analysis can you make given the data that you and others collected? Use CLEO to investigate. You can use CLEO to draw graphs, and also in the Analysis section of CLEO you can post messages. Go ahead and see if you can analyze the data, and offer some explanation about the data. Speculate on what you think causes ground-level ozone. Do you have any data in CLEO that you can use to support your ideas. Write about this on the Project Ozone Bulletin Board.

Stage 4. Taking Action

1. Air pollution affects your health and the environment. What are some specific things that can be done to reduce the threat to your health and the environment? Go to the Air-Now site or the AIRSdata site again, and check out what the EPA has to say. Share your findings on the Project Ozone Bulletin Board.

2. Reflecting on your research work. Take a moment and think back over the work you did in Project Ozone. What did you really learn? Tell us about it on the Project Ozone Bulletin Board.

Going further

Take the Ozone Scavenger Hunt Challenge.

Visit these sites for further research and information on air pollution and ozone.

• AIRSdata Site---The Air Pollution Monitoring Site.
• Everything you wanted to know about air pollution: An EPA Site.
• Office of Air and Radiation at EPA.
• The Other Ozone---sometimes called the Good Ozone.

Contact: Jack Hassard, Georgia State University