from your science librarian's desk

interesting exhibitions from Smithsonian: Earth from Space; Transitions: Photographs by Robert Creamer Monday, 4 December 2006 5:06 pm

** Get your Head in the Clouds! — See Earth from Space

Have you ever wondered what your backyard looks like from space? The new Earth from Space exhibit is kicking during Geography Awareness Week and promises to give you breathtaking views from the “eyes” of a satellite. The exhibit explains how satellite imagery is gathered and used to understand how the Earth changes through time. This brilliant new perspective is on view at the Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum in Washington, D.C. through Jan. 7, and then will travel to various locations around the country. To check out the exhibit’s tour schedule, visit http://www.earthfromspace.si.edu/default.asp . (from USGS Newsroom)

The nice thing about this exhibit is that there’s an online exhibition that goes with it, there are lots of stunning satellite images on the Website, lesson plans for teachers, other resources (bibliographies: list of books that’s relevant, and Webliographies: links to Websites that’s helpful). Enjoy!

** Transitions: Photographs by Robert Creamer

Bringing to life rarely seen flora, fauna, and fossil specimens, Creamer’s imagery is drawn from the research collections at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History (NMNH), the Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden in Florida, and the Echo Hill Outdoor School in Maryland. This exhibit includes 40 meticulous images. The interesting aspect of this exhibition is that all the photographs were not captured using traditional means, that is, a camera, but rather, they were created using a scanner. See some of the images on the Web, aren’t they wonderful? You can find more photos by Robert Creamer on his Website.