This National Strategies study guide from the Department of Education is one of a suite designed to support the development of aspects of subject knowledge. It has been designed to link with both the Progression Maps, the ...

The STEM club from Holy Cross School in Chorley and the North West Local Centre of the Royal Meteorological Society collaborated on a project to launch a balloon into the atmosphere. The balloon was carrying a camera, a GPS transmitter and a radiosonde, an instrument which transmits measurements by radio waves back...

A Catalyst article about how burning fossil fuels releases extra carbon dioxide into the atmosphere, which contributes to global warming. However, burning renewable biofuels is part of the normal carbon cycle and does not contribute to an increase in atmospheric carbon dioxide. This article looks at the ways in...

The Big Picture on pages 10-11 of this issue of Catalyst shows scientists in Antarctica launching a balloon which will travel up through the atmosphere to a height of 34 km above the Earth’s surface. This balloon is part of NASA’s BARREL mission, probing the radiation belts which surround the Earth.

...

Learners discover the BIFoR FACE (Birmingham Institute for forest research free air carbon enrichment) experiment and the infrastructure associated with it. They are introduced to the arrays, met masts and flux tower and encouraged to think about the research questions that this experiment can answer. Learners are...

A Catalyst article following the journey of the space probes Huygens and Cassini, sent to explore Titan, a moon of Saturn. After a seven year journey Huygens was set to fall through the atmosphere transmitting data back to Earth via Cassini so more can be learnt about this distant moon. The article describes the...

Produced by the Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC), this colour leaflet describes the largest space telescope ever to be launched. The Herschel mission, launched in 2009, reveals how the first stars and galaxies formed. Herschel is observing some of the coldest objects in the Universe. It is the...

A Catalyst article about the European Space Agency (ESA) which has sent the Venus Express spacecraft to explore Earth's cloudy neighbour. The purpose of the project, which is primarily to gather information about the atmosphere around Venus, is explained and is put into context with concerns about climate change on...

This Catalyst article looks at life in extreme environments on Earth which can suggest how life might exist on Mars. One of the developments in recent years that really opened up scientists’ eyes to the possibility of life on Mars has been the realization of just how adaptable and versatile life on Earth is.

This guide supports students following the Geology: Structure of the Earth topic. The topic, produced by Northumberland County Council, is designed to encourage self supported study and students are expected to work their way through independently, developing their study skills. This student guide introduces the...

This issue of Catalyst includes the following articles:

Impact Earth

Astronomers say that, one day, a giant rock from space will collide with the Earth and cause mass devastation. This could lead to the extinction of many...

With the aid of animations, ESA’s CHEOPS (CHaracterising Ex...

This issue of Catalyst contains articles on:

Body Sensors Networks

This article describes body sensor networks which are tiny electronic sensors used to monitor the movement of patients, athletes and game players.

...