NASA HEAT
Welcome to your launchpad for infusing curated heliophysics resources into your learning space! NASA data, videos, activities, lesson plans, and more plus educator background on the heliophysics topics that NASA explores.
Heliophysics is the study of our star, the Sun [helio], and how it works [physics].
The NASA Heliophysics Education Activation Team, or NASA HEAT, is composed of NASA scientists, engineers, and educators passionate about making heliophysics accessible to multiple audiences and learners of all ages.
Heliophysicists ask...
What are the impacts of the changing Sun on humanity? Space weather can affect a wide variety of modern technologies, from radio waves that travel through near-Earth space to GPS satellites to the computer electronics on board spacecraft. Explore more with Helio Big Ideas 1.1 - 1.3.
How does Earth, the planets and the heliosphere respond to the changing Sun? Understanding the forces that drive change in our space environment not only helps us protect technology and astronauts from radiation, it also helps us understand what makes any given planet habitable. Explore more with Helio Big Ideas 2.1 - 2.3.
What causes the Sun to vary? Churning hot plasma, writhing, tangled magnetic fields, and gigantic solar eruptions cause our Sun to change over both short and long timescales. Explore more with Helio Big Ideas 3.1 - 3.3.
Building a Framework for Heliophysics Education
NASA HEAT is building a Framework for Heliophysic Education to provide the background and scaffolding educators need to incorporate heliophysics topics into existing STEM curricula. Using the three questions that heliophysicists investigate as the foundation, we cross-referenced heliophysics topics with the NGSS Disciplinary Core Ideas, to create NGSS-aligned “heliophysics big ideas.” Learn more about the Framework for Heliophysic Education.
Featured
Experience the Annular Solar Eclipse Saturday, October 14, 2023 Fact Sheet
On Saturday October 14, 2023, an annular solar eclipse will cross North, Central, and South America. Millions of people in the Western Hemisphere can experience this eclipse. The fact sheet, available to download in color and grayscale, provides information about eclipses and how to experience them safely.
