USGS presentation

The Upper Loup, in cooperation with the U.S. Geological Survey, and UNL Conservation Survey Division sponsored an educational outreach with the Districts 9th grade science classes at the ULNRD office on September 9th. Schools that participated were Dunning, Hyannis, Mullen, and Thedford.

The day’s activities started with an Power Point presentation and a video on sample data and geophysics. Students attended four different stations: river, land, groundwater monitoring well, and a “truckside chat.” The river station covered different kinds of stream measurements, determining loss or gain of a stream flow, how much water is flowing in the stream, and whether there is interaction between surface water and groundwater. The land station included taking soil core samples with an instrument called a Geoprobe and conducting a geophysics experiment with the core removed from the ground. The groundwater-monitoring station included a presentation about groundwater-monitoring wells, an explanation of uses for data collected, a computer demonstration, and included a static water level measurements taken by the students. The “truckside chat” talked about the connection between the ground and air-based work currently done in the area. Maps of the Sandhills and stream cross sections were shown to help visualize the information. During lunch the students tested their knowledge with a quick game of Water Jeopardy. The workshop ended with a survey that indicated it was a fun filled and informative day. Students enjoyed the “hands-on” experience and requested more of it.

"Truckside Chat"

Stream Flow Testing

Groundwater level testing

Geoprobe

Streamflow testing