Cosmic Data Science:
Our Sun
This page holds materials related to a proposal for the next phase of CosmicDS: Cosmic Data Stories, based at the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory.
Introductory Video
What's "Solar Maximum"?
A sample of the kind of scaffolding/introductory content to be provided to learners.
Video credit: Goddard Space Flight Center (source)
Explanatory Video
How much do sunspots effect the total brightness of the Sun?
A measurement called "TSI" (of "Total Solar Insolation" tells us how bright the Sun appears. It varies due to various factors, including sun spots. Learners might wonder how important the sunspots are to changing TSI...
Video credit: Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics (source)
Skills:
Finding Data
Show data retrieval options & sources here.
ChatGPT + an expert's...
"Sunspot Cycle Data Exploration"
The summarized discussion between Prof. Alyssa Goodman & ChatGPT 4o below shows what AI could do as of June 2025, in the hands of an expert. Using just one data set, about an historical record of sunspots over about 150 years, tremendous insight into both the Solar cycle, and the limitations of "real-life" data are made clear.
In designing Cosmic Data Science, we surely do NOT expect learners to instantly acquire the level of sophistication to ask the questions that allowed an expert to make these graphs in under an hour. BUT, we will test--in our pilot project-- how various elements of what ChatGPT helped Goodman do can be deployed in Cosmic Data Science.