{"id":1493,"date":"2012-04-05T13:27:19","date_gmt":"2012-04-05T18:27:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/inside.nssl.noaa.gov\/nsslnews\/?p=1493"},"modified":"2012-04-05T13:27:19","modified_gmt":"2012-04-05T18:27:19","slug":"whats-it-like-to-work-at-a-museum","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/inside.nssl.noaa.gov\/nsslnews\/2012\/04\/whats-it-like-to-work-at-a-museum\/","title":{"rendered":"What’s it like to work at a museum?"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"<\/a>NSSL’s Dave Rust, Sean Waugh, and Susan Cobb spent two weeks at the San Francisco Exploratorium science museum as part of a NOAA Environmental Literacy grant to introduce staff and visitors to weather science. \u00a0The following is a description of how a just a portion of time was spent, from Susan’s perspective.<\/em><\/div>\n

\n<\/em><\/div>\n
Whirring, clanking, \u00a0buzzing. \u00a0It\u2019s Monday, and though the SFO Exploratorium is closed, the world-renowned museum of science, art and human perception still hums with activity.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf you break it, it\u2019s our fault,\u201d proclaims the staff proudly. \u00a0Intended to be a completely \u201chands-on, play with it, figure it out\u201d type of experience, each exhibit is designed to be durable. \u00a0There are few placards telling you what to do.<\/p>\n

NSSL scientists were part of a unique NOAA education grant to educate SFO Exploratorium visitors about severe weather science. \u00a0The project involved a week of orientation and planning in the fall, and two weeks in the spring. \u00a0During those weeks we had a key to the museum, which made me a little giddy. \u00a0Who gets a key to a museum?<\/p>\n

Weather is not currently addressed at the Exploratorium, not directly anyway. \u00a0We could show atmospheric movements in the \u201cFluid Trough,\u201d and how thunderstorms form in the \u201cConvection Currents\u201d display. \u00a0But in a year, the Exploratorium will be moving from their current site at the Palace of Fine Arts not far from the Golden Gate Bridge, to Pier 15 on the Embarcadero. \u00a0There they WILL have a weather observatory, and NOAA has had a role in helping brainstorm ways to showcase weather.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe can run around in it?\u201d \u00a0The \u2018tornado machine\u2019 immediately draws hands into its vortex of water vapor. \u00a0Parents hold their children back until Exploratorium staff assures them it is okay. \u00a0\u201cRun around in it! \u00a0Stand over the vent. \u00a0Block the airflow. \u00a0What happens?\u201d \u00a0An \u201cExplainer\u201d approaches with a bottle of bubbles and gently blows the bubbles into the funnel. \u00a0Some get flung outwards towards the squeals of the children. \u00a0Some rise up into the tube until they pop.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat is it?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat do you think it is?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cA tornado?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah! \u00a0An upside down tornado. How do you think it works?\u201d \u00a0We introduce them to moisture, rising air, ingredients for a thunderstorm. \u00a0\u201cWhat makes it spin?\u201d<\/p>\n

We move on to shear. \u00a0\u201cFeel the air coming out of those holes. \u00a0Which direction is it going? \u00a0How about over here? \u00a0And at that other column? Do you know, we study tornadoes where I work?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cReally? \u00a0How? \u00a0Why?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, we don\u2019t really know how tornadoes start. \u00a0I mean, we know what makes a big monster thunderstorm start to turn, but we don\u2019t really know what makes that huge storm concentrate that energy into a smaller funnel.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh! \u00a0I know!\u201d \u00a0A six year old sits next to me at the tornado machine and spends ten minutes explaining his theory on tornado formation. \u00a0\u201cThe storm gets a lot of energy and pushes it together and explodes into a tornado!\u201d \u00a0This was the abridged version, but he went on to talk about how Zeus and Thor had roles too. \u00a0He was from Italy.<\/p>\n

\u201cOh! \u00a0We just saw Tornado Alley at the IMAX theater!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cDid you see that car over there in the movie?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh yes!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe take cars like that and drive them into storms! \u00a0That one has hail dents the size of BASEBALLS! \u00a0See that stuff on top? \u00a0Those are weather instruments so we can measure the storm as we drive through. \u00a0How else do you think we could study storms? They\u2019re kind of big and dangerous so we have to be clever.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cCould you fly through the storm?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, we do sometimes, but it\u2019s bumpy and dangerous.\u201d<\/p>\n

Puzzled looks.<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, see that big plastic bag up there? \u00a0It is a huge weather balloon! \u00a0We attach instruments to it and fly it into the storm! \u00a0Wanna see a launch? \u00a0See this instrument? \u00a0What do you see? \u00a0It got struck by LIGHTNING while it was attached to that balloon! Do you wanna know what these instruments do?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhoa! \u00a0That\u2019s so cool!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m from Joplin,\u201d \u00a0said another visitor. \u00a0We went on to talk what happened May 22, 2011. \u00a0Her eyes were haunted. \u00a0\u201cA tornado has come too close to me before. I took shelter. \u00a0I don\u2019t know why others didn\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWell we are looking into that problem right now. \u00a0We have meteorologists and social scientists, emergency managers and engineers all talking about ways to solve it.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, I am so glad to hear that. \u00a0Please keep doing this work.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThose are the clouds over the earth right now?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYup! \u00a0This is called Living Earth, an app on the iPad. \u00a0Do you see any curly ques?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI see a curly que!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah! \u00a0That\u2019s a storm! \u00a0Over Antarctica! \u00a0Let\u2019s see what it looks like there right now. \u00a0Oh! \u00a0There IS a storm! \u00a0Look how snowy it is! \u00a0But here is another place in Antarctica away from the storm. \u00a0See the icebergs?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThose are icebergs right now?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYup! \u00a0Wanna see a volcano? \u00a0This is Kilauea in Hawaii. \u00a0See the smoke? \u00a0If you check back at night, you can see it glow!\u201d<\/p>\n

I knew I had connected when one in a crowd of first graders put her hand on my shoulder (I was sitting on the floor with them), and asked if she could tell me a story about weather.<\/p>\n

\u201cOf course!\u201d<\/p>\n

The Exploratorium has been hesitant to delve into the world of technology, including iPads, to enhance the visual experience. \u00a0But I think we showed how it could work. \u00a0From sharing photos of tornadoes, lightning or clouds, to YouTube videos of balloon launches or live current radar where severe weather was occurring, people were fascinated. \u00a0Many adults would get out a piece of paper and write down the names of the apps I would show them.<\/p>\n

\u201cDo you have any games on your iPad?\u201d from a little boy.<\/p>\n

Well, okay, not everyone.<\/p>\n

I sometimes stood near the \u201ccloud in a bottle\u201d demonstration. \u00a0Increasing the air pressure in a clear soda bottle with some water in it, and releasing the pressure to produce a little puff of vapor can hardly compete with the popular cow eye dissection that occurs most days on the hour. \u00a0But it was fun to connect the cloud demonstration with what was happening outside. \u00a0Don\u2019t remember what the sky was like before you came in? \u00a0There\u2019s an app for that! \u00a0Let\u2019s look!<\/p>\n

But that was just a small part of our time. \u00a0Mornings, even on the weekends, were spent conducting \u201ctrainings.\u201d \u00a0These were special sessions with floor staff called \u201cExplainers\u201d who facilitate the visitor experience. \u00a0During these times, we would share our knowledge and experience, and answer their questions. \u00a0They will translate this new knowledge to visitors after our residency was over.<\/p>\n

Where\u2019s Dave? \u00a0The training was set to start at 9:30 a.m. on Sunday morning, with our retired storm electricity scientist showing how to use the Van De Graff generator to explain lightning. \u00a09:40 a.m. \u00a0Hmmm. \u00a0Our hostess is missing too. \u00a0Daylight Savings time had left me in front of a roomful of teenagers. \u00a0Alone! \u00a0I wasn\u2019t going to tackle atmospheric electricity on my own, but I did have some questions. \u00a0I\u2019ve always wanted to work at a science museum. \u00a0How in the world did these teenagers score this gig?<\/p>\n

So I asked.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy brother did it first. \u00a0He loved it.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cReally?\u201d said their manager. \u00a0\u201cI didn\u2019t know that!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI like science.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt sounded cool.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHow did you, Susan Cobb, get into your career?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, the Wizard of Oz.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat?!? No way!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat do you want to be when you grow up?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMarine biologist.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cEnvironmental scientist.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cScience teacher.\u201d<\/p>\n

More than two thirds of the room wanted to pursue a career in science. \u00a0But their enthusiasm was measured. \u00a0Dave finally arrived.<\/p>\n

\u201cWill you give me a job?\u201d one said.<\/p>\n

\u201cDo well in school,\u201d was Dave\u2019s fatherly answer.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy kid loves weather! \u00a0What did you have to study?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMath, lots of math.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh. \u00a0He\u2019s not good at math.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s okay, neither was I.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBut you still did it?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, the only thing I have ever wanted to do was be a meteorologist.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou need to talk to my son. \u00a0Let me find him. \u00a0Will you still be here?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat\u2019s that?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cRadar. \u00a0I am looking to see if the rain is going to stop today in SFO. \u00a0What do you think? \u00a0Which way is it moving? \u00a0What do the colors mean? \u00a0Why are their pinks and blues over here? \u00a0What? \u00a0Snow in the Sierras? \u00a0Let\u2019s check the webcam at Lake Tahoe!\u201d<\/p>\n

The clang of a loud dinner bell gives the signal that the museum is closing for the day. \u00a0The high school explainer team herds visitors toward the exits and shut down exhibits. \u00a0Opening people\u2019s eyes to the world around them. \u00a0Making them curious about weather and weather phenomena. \u00a0Sparking their interest in science. \u00a0Answering their questions. \u00a0Showing them research matters. \u00a0Giving me confidence I do know something worth sharing. \u00a0That\u2019s what the NOAA Scientist in Residence program did for me.<\/p>\n

<\/span><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

NSSL’s Dave Rust, Sean Waugh, and Susan Cobb spent two weeks at the San Francisco Exploratorium science museum as part of a NOAA Education grant to introduce staff and visitors to weather science. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":38,"featured_media":1494,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_eb_attr":"","ghostkit_customizer_options":"","ghostkit_custom_css":"","ghostkit_custom_js_head":"","ghostkit_custom_js_foot":"","ghostkit_typography":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[87,131,218,325,336,421,426,463],"class_list":["post-1493","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-outreach","tag-dave-rust","tag-exploratorium","tag-issue-april-2012","tag-noaa","tag-nssl","tag-san-francisco","tag-sean-waugh","tag-susan-cobb"],"acf":[],"wps_subtitle":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/inside.nssl.noaa.gov\/nsslnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1493","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/inside.nssl.noaa.gov\/nsslnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/inside.nssl.noaa.gov\/nsslnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inside.nssl.noaa.gov\/nsslnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/38"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inside.nssl.noaa.gov\/nsslnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1493"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/inside.nssl.noaa.gov\/nsslnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1493\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inside.nssl.noaa.gov\/nsslnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1494"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/inside.nssl.noaa.gov\/nsslnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1493"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inside.nssl.noaa.gov\/nsslnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1493"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inside.nssl.noaa.gov\/nsslnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1493"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}