NOAA UNVEILS TEACHER IN THE AIR BOOK DURING NATIONAL CONFERENCE AND DISTRIBUTED DURING HURRICANE AWARENESS TOUR
Hurricane Awareness is Key Element

May 11, 2006 — The NOAA Teacher at Sea program unveiled its second children's book, Teacher in the Air, before 12,000 educators at the National Science Teachers Association conference in Anaheim, California. The book also was distributed during NOAA’s just-completed hurricane awareness tour across Gulf Coast states. Co-authors Diane Stanitski, associate professor in the Geography-Earth Science Department at Shippensburg University, and Lieutenant Commander John Adler, NOAA Corps, a NOAA P-3 aircraft navigator, along with illustrator Bruce Cowden, chief boatswain of NOAA ship Ronald H. Brown, signed books by the thousands. (Click NOAA image for larger view of Teacher in the Air book cover. Click here for high resolution version. Please credit “NOAA.”)

As a NOAA Teacher in the Air, Stanitski flew aboard the NOAA P-3 hurricane hunter (nicknamed "Miss Piggy") during the 2005 East Coast Hurricane Awareness Tour. The idea for an aircraft-based book was generated after the release of the first Teacher at Sea book, which was also co-authored by Stanitski. Cowden, who had illustrated the first book, agreed to put his talent to work on the first Teacher in the Air book and visited the tour with sketchbook in hand.

"Drawing airplanes is something of a novelty to me and an all new learning experience for sure," said Cowden, who does cartooning and watercolor for a hobby. "It took many tries before I was ready to submit! My sketch book is full of funny looking airplanes.

"It really is quite a concerted effort to get the whole team together in one room equipped with a few boxes of donuts and many cups of coffee, then sit all day and work out the storyboard so all agree the little scribbles I put in each square will represent the picture that will match the text of each page, and then go home and start pumping out the illustrations. It's a lot of work but always rewarding. I hope, if anything, that somebody who reads our book can see the importance of getting out of harm's way when one of these terrible storms makes way for their home," Cowden said.

According to Stanitski, "It was a pleasure working with John and Bruce to develop the storyboard for the book after participating in the NOAA Hurricane Awareness Tour last year. My meteorology students at Shippensburg University were excited to be highlighted in the book and have been inspired to learn more about hurricane dynamics. (Click NOAA image for larger view of (left to right) co-authors Lt. Cmdr. John Adler and Diane Stanitski, and illustrator Bruce Cowden as they sign thousands of “Teacher in the Air” books at the National Science Teachers Association conference in Anaheim, Calif. Click here for high resolution version. Please credit “NOAA.”)

"We must inform our children about the importance of hurricane safety and awareness so that they can, in turn, help educate their families. If this book can play a part in saving even one life during a hurricane event, then it was a worthwhile effort," Stanitski said.

The book covers the hurricane research that is conducted aboard the aircraft, including the deployment of dropsondes, instruments that measure weather conditions within a hurricane. One of the purposes of the book is to help teachers and their students become more aware of actions they can take to prepare for hurricanes and protect themselves and their families.

"I thoroughly enjoyed writing this book with Diane and Bruce because it highlights for school children around the country important facts about these massive storms," Adler said. I have been involved with the NOAA Hurricane Awareness Tours for the past six years, which is an incredible opportunity for students to go on board a hurricane hunter aircraft. However, these tours are limited to a few cities along the Atlantic seaboard and the Gulf Coast states. Now, through this book, students nationwide can learn about the hurricanes.

"Having the book released at the NSTA in Anaheim was a great experience because so many teachers from the West Coast were able to receive copies of it for their classrooms," Adler said. "I remember growing up in southern California, where earthquake preparedness was emphasized, and never learning much about hurricanes. Bruce's brilliant pictures and the informative text will definitely help educate America's school children."

The hard-cover book is written at the middle school science level and was reviewed and edited by middle school science teachers and scientists. Its content includes science and math activities, a glossary of terms and full-color images. The collaborative effort included Jennifer Hammond, Teacher at Sea program manager, who coordinated the production and publishing of the book; and personnel from the NOAA Aircraft Operations Center, including Jim McFadden and Lori and Greg Bast, who served as consultants and technical advisors.

The book's release wasn't the only hurricane-focused event at the conference. NOAA meteorologist Stanley B. Goldenberg of the Atlantic Oceanographic and Meteorological Laboratory was a featured speaker on "Hurricanes—Researching the Greatest Storms on Earth, in the Air, on the Ground, and on the Computer."

Conference attendees received a NOAA hurricane education kit that included a variety of resources and education activities focusing on hurricane research. Items included the Teacher in the Air book, a CD, a DVD and hard copies of the materials on the disks. Nearly three-fourths of the educators received a kit. The NSTA conference was held April 6-8.

Rear Admiral Samuel P. De Bow Jr., director of the NOAA Commissioned Officer Corps and the NOAA Office of Marine and Aviation Operations, which manages the Teacher at Sea program, gave an account at the NOAA booth of his experience in flying through the eye of a hurricane aboard a NOAA P-3 hurricane hunter last year. At the booth, he also received a lot of feedback on NOAA's first Teacher at Sea book.

"At the book signing, a number of teachers who stopped by told us they have been using our Teacher at Sea book in their classroom during this past year," De Bow said. "They were excited to get the new book, which highlights a very different type of experience.

"It was a great feeling to know that these books are being integrated into science curricula in many parts of the country. The books provide first hand accounts of teachers' experiences aboard NOAA ships and aircraft in an easy to understand and colorful format," De Bow added.

De Bow said his office hopes to produce two more books, including one that will be based on a teacher's experience aboard NOAA hydrographic survey vessel Thomas Jefferson during 2007, the year NOAA celebrates 200 years of science, stewardship and service to the nation. Cowden has already agreed to illustrate the book.

Since its inception in 1990, the NOAA Teacher at Sea program has offered educators around the country the opportunity to see NOAA's exciting scientific research first hand. In the past 16 years, more than 430 teachers have participated in the program, representing 47 states, Puerto Rico, American Samoa, Chile and Argentina. The program provides kindergarten through college level teachers the chance to live and work side-by-side, day and night, with those who contribute to the world's body of scientific knowledge, and then take that experience back to the classroom.

Copies of the book will be distributed at other education conferences. Teachers may request a free copy by contacting the NOAA Outreach Unit at noaa-outreach@noaa.gov.

NOAA, an agency of the U.S. Department of Commerce, is dedicated to enhancing economic security and national safety through the prediction and research of weather and climate-related events and providing environmental stewardship of the nation's coastal and marine resources.

Through the emerging Global Earth Observation System of Systems (GEOSS), NOAA is working with its federal partners, 61 countries and the European Commission to develop a global network that is as integrated as the planet it observes, predicts and protects.

Relevant Web Sites
NOAA Teacher at Sea Program

NOAA Office of Marine and Aviation Operations

NOAA Aircraft Operations Center

NOAA Corps

NOAA Hurricanes Page

Media Contact:
Jeanne Kouhestani, NOAA Office of Marine and Aviation Operations, (301) 713-3431 ext. 220