Take a Virtual Hike! Take a virtual hike through the Black Rock Forest and learn about its ecosystems and role in the global carbon cycle! The Black Rock Forest Consortium provided information and access to the forest to develop this hike to the Goddard Institute for Space Studies (GISS) Institute on Climate and Planets (ICP). The ICP was a research and education program for teachers and students led by NASA and Columbia scientists from 1994 to 2004. The ICP web site offers a variety of tools and information to integrate research experiences into science learning. The Black Rock Forest is featured in one of the ICP modules called “The Carbon Question.” In this module, the fundamental science question, "How much carbon is being stored in the terrestrial part of the earth?" is explored from many vantage points. These include studies in local environmental settings and ecosystems and global biomes, as well as measurements from ground- based and satellite instruments. This module was field tested in an experimental course run at Columbia Teachers College starting in 2004. The Virtual Hike (click on Topic E) takes you along the Ecosystem Study Trail from Black Rock’s Center for Science and Education up to and over Black Rock Mountain, ending at the White Oak Tree in the center of the Forest. The hike can be taken from four different environmental perspectives: plant life, wildlife, geology and soils, and human impacts. Virtual hikers get to view rock samples, animals such as turtles and salamanders, plants, and a variety of different habitats. You can take the entire hike in sequence or skip to any particular location by clicking on that spot on a map. The accompanying pages provide background information and in many cases give suggestions for further activities.
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