Huachuca Astronomy Club—Speakers

Glenn Minuth


Glenn Minuth speaks at the April 18, 2008 meeting of the Huachuca Astronomy Club.


Bio: Glenn Minuth is a Department of Army Civilian employed at Fort Huachuca as a technical integrator for the Network Enterprise Technology Command. During the past 26 years, his civil service assignments have been as a: cartographer for the Defense Mapping Agency Aerospace and Hydro-Topographic Centers, instructor of acquisition law and project management in the National Defense University, and US Air Force information management specialist.

His bachelors and graduate degrees are in geography with concentrations in cartography, geomorphology, remote sensing, and geology. Others areas of academic focus were biogeography (flora/fauna), weather/climate, and pedology (soils). His graduate research focused in the area of geomorphology and geology examining mound micro-relief (Mima-type mounds) on volcanic mudflows in the central Sierra Nevada foothills, California.

Glenn was an instructor in geography, geology, physical science, and biology in the Life and Physical Science Department of American River College , Sacramento for seven years. He was an instructor in geography and geology for 10 years at Cochise College for credit and non-credit programs. He now leads field trips and lectures for the City of Sierra Vista Parks and Recreation Department in the areas of--military history, ecology, weather/climate, geography, and geology.

He enjoys canoeing, snowshoeing, downhill skiing as a member of the National Ski Patrol for 38 years performing winter mountain rescue work and is a proficiency instructor in the areas of outdoor emergency care, avalanche rescue, and toboggan handling.

His local academic interests in the greater southeastern Arizona area involve geology (ancient (fossilized) coral reefs, metamorphic core complexes, industrial copper mining, speleology (cave study), volcanic terrains); regional agriculture; forest fire ecology; sky island biogeography; monsoon season dynamics; and military history (such as the Apache Campaign).



The Earth's Energy Budget: Introduction to Heat Fluxes

The following talk was given to the Huachuca Astronomy Club on Friday, April 18, 2008.

Synopsis: The surface of the Sun is so hot (the temperature is 5500 °C) that it gives off an amount of light equal to more than 6 million, 100-watt light bulbs in every square meter. Why doesn't the Earth just keep get hotter and hotter? To comprehend the Earth's complex patterns of radiative heating we begin by exploring the relationship between Earth and the Sun throughout the year, learn about the physical laws governing energy transfer, develop the concept of a radiation balance, and explore the implications of all these for the Earth as a whole. The "budget" is an analogy between conservation of energy and household budgeting. The spatially and seasonally varying elements of the Earth radiation budget are also investigated, and the energy balances on some other bodies in the solar system are also considered.

The Electromagnetic Spectrum.
The electromagnetic spectrum. (Click image for larger version.)



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