Oranssi Lumi: Educational Materials for Aerosol Science Outreach

Oranssi Lumi: An Exploratory Journey Through Atmospheric Events is a digital educational resource focused on atmospheric dust, developed at the Finnish Meteorological Institute and inspired by the Saharan dust deposition event that affected Finland in 2021. Through this resource, educators and students explore together the physical processes involved in the dust’s journey, including desert formation, interactions between dust and clouds, and the mechanisms that allow dust to travel across continents.

The materials are structured into three thematic blocks corresponding to the stages of the dust’s journey: origin, transport, and deposition, which are linked to the related topics of dust, wind, and snow. Concepts are approached from multiple perspectives, enabling teachers from diverse disciplines, such as music, physics, language, and the arts, to implement the materials in their classrooms. This interdisciplinary design fosters connections between scientific and artistic practices and supports discussions on climate and climate change.

Grounded in an exploratory learning approach, the resource includes a set of ready-made activities, each accompanied by background information for educators. To facilitate classroom implementation, curriculum connections aligned with the Finnish National Core Curriculum for grades 1–9 are provided, along with an extensive list of additional resources for deeper exploration. The materials also include practical guidelines for snow sample collection.

The Oranssi Lumi educational resources are freely available in English at https://en.ilmatieteenlaitos.fi/oranssi-lumi.

 

This work was supported by the Kone Foundation through the granted project “Learning through atmospheric events: Citizen science and citizen arts educational material”.