On March 17, SpectrUM’s Science on Wheels program traveled from Missoula to bring a full day of interactive science exhibits to 145 K–6th grade students from Creston and West Glacier in northwestern Montana.
Among the SMART FIRES–related exhibits were the Extreme Heat Storymap, which helped students explore increasing summer temperatures in Montana and related impacts on health, drought, and wildfire risk, and the Air Quality Sonification exhibit, which turns air quality data from Montana’s 2017 fire season into sound to make complex data more accessible.
Students also engaged with the Cool Cities game, thinking like designers as they experimented with features that make communities more resilient to wildfire and learned about the wildland–urban interface, and the Cool It Houses exhibit, where they used infrared displays and thermometers to investigate how building design affects indoor temperatures.
Several students returned later that evening for Family Science Night, proudly teaching their families what they had learned. Adults were impressed by the students’ confidence and growing science knowledge, and school staff even brought their own families after hearing so much enthusiasm from students throughout the day.
Students sent adorable thank you notes to SpectrUM expressing their appreciation for the event.
Center left: The Cool It Houses exhibit shows how building design affects indoor temperature using infrared displays and thermometers.
Bottom right: The Cool Cities game lets players explore climate‑resilient urban design and wildfire protection in the wildland–urban interface.