Airplanes and Climate Change
Provided by: MIT Environmental Solutions Initiative|Published on: April 27, 2021|Last updated: September 26, 2026
Grades: 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12
Type: Lesson Plans
Subjects: Chemistry, Earth and Space Sciences, Mathematics, Engineering
Authors: MIT Environmental Solutions Initiative
This resource has been reviewed by SubjectToClimate's climate scientists and verified for scientific accuracy and up-to-date information. Learn about our review process →
This resource has been reviewed by SubjectToClimate's climate scientists and verified for scientific accuracy and up-to-date information. Learn about our review process →
Synopsis
- This lesson about greenhouse gases, the albedo effect, and the impact of aviation on climate includes a simple experiment, worksheet, graphing exercise, discussion questions, and a podcast.
Teaching Materials
Positives
- The podcast includes a great outline of how contrails heat the atmosphere.
- The experiment is easy to do and illustrates the concept well.
- It talks about fluorinated gases, which are major greenhouse gases but are not commonly discussed.
Additional Prerequisites
- There are student pages and teacher pages to download and print.
- You will need thermometers, lamps, containers, and two types of soil or sand for the experiment.
Differentiation
- At 8 minutes, 45 seconds of the podcast, Steven Barrett notes that aviation has "positive effects on society." You can use his opinion to start a discussion with your social studies or economics students.
- Math students could use their multiplication skills, graphing expertise, and data analysis know-how to answer questions about the greenhouse gas data presented in the worksheet.
- To explore more about the aviation industry, your students can read the following fact sheets from the Stay Grounded Network: efficiency improvements, electric flight, hydrogen flight, biofuels, and synthetic electro-fuels.
This resource includes a podcast in which an MIT expert is interviewed and describes the emissions and impacts of aviation emissions on the Earth's climate. The interview introduces observational and modeling efforts and presents the latest understanding of the total impact of the aviation industry on our changing climate. A transcript and educator's guide, along with additional resource links, are provided. This resource is recommended for teaching.
Teaching Tips
Standards
Resource Type and Format
Scientist Reviewed
This resource has been reviewed by SubjectToClimate's climate scientists and verified for scientific accuracy and up-to-date information. Our review process ensures that every resource in our library reflects the current state of climate science.
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