Investigating Atmospheric Absorption and Scattering at High Altitudes Gabriel Michael Project Mentor(s): Darci Snowden, PhD; Addison Wenger In this project, I constructed and utilized a balloon-borne spectrometer to investigate how elemental absorption and scattering change at high altitudes. A high-altitude balloon allows us to make measurements from the surface up to 100,000 feet. Using Fusion 360, I modeled a housing compartment for the spectrometer. It has two main layers: the optics layer, which houses the spectrometer's optical components, and an additional layer that houses the battery and Raspberry Pi. The optical layer consists of a concave mirror, a diffraction grating, and our sensor, which is sensitive from about 380 nm to ~1000 nm in the visible and NIR range and has a resolution of 4608 x 2592 pixels. An automated code was created to take images every 7 seconds, corresponding to differences of about 35 meters altitude. At each altitude, the camera takes five images at different exposures to ensure at least one non-saturated image for data analysis. I then developed a data analysis code to compare the spectrum of Earth’s atmosphere at different altitudes. Using emission lamps for different elements, I can calibrate my spectrometer, allowing the identification of specific features in the spectra. The launch for the spectrometer is planned for late April or early May, and I expect the data to show a light-intensity curve with dips indicating molecular absorption and changes in solar scattering; comparing these at different altitudes will allow me to understand how the atmosphere changes as the air becomes less dense. Presentation Type: Poster Presentation (May 21, 9:30am–3:00pm) Keywords: Absorption Spectroscopy, Optics, High-Altitude Weather Balloon SOURCE Form ID: 187 Evaluating the Effectiveness of a Physical Cross-Product Model in Physics Education Luisa Miller Project Mentor(s): Nathan Kuwada, PhD The cross-product is fundamental within vector operations and is widely used in many undergraduate physics courses to compute quantities such as torque, angular momentum, and the Lorentz force. When first learning the cross-product, the 3D spatial reasoning required to visualize vector orientation is frequently challenging for students. To address this challenge, we designed a 3D-printed tool to support students’ understanding of the cross-product. The purpose of this research is to evaluate the tool's effectiveness; this will be done using pre- and post-tests to measure learning gains in CWU’s lower- division physics classes. The students will be given the pre-test immediately following the conceptual introduction of the cross product, then given the tool to complete a post-test the following day. Further work on this project will include expanding the data set to include students in lower and upper-division physics classes during the 2026-2027 academic year.
Presentation Type: Poster Presentation (May 21, 9:30am–3:00pm) Keywords: Physics, Education, Physical Modeling, Cross-Product SOURCE Form ID: 181
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