Weather Web Activity

By Mariana Garcia-Serrato

Last updated over 5 years ago

22 Questions

Note from the author:

Formative adaptation of a webquest I've been using for a while. It is long, but covers all the basics. The plan is to give students about a week to complete it taking advantage of the "enable edits after submission" feature in GoFormative

 (adapted from: cmsbjoyce.pbworks.com/f/Weather+WebQuest.doc) 

Wind
Wind is air in motion.

 What causes the wind to blow? Write down the answer in your own words. 

 Where does the energy that creates wind come from? 

gravity

the rotation of the Earth

the Earth's core

the Sun

 
Humidity
Humidity measures the amount of moisture in the air.  It can be measured with a hygrometer or a sling psychrometer.

 What is humidity?  Write down your answer in your own words

 What is the difference between absolute humidity and relative humidity? 

Absolute humidity tells you the exact amount of water in the air, while relative humidity compares how much water is in the air with how much could be in the air.

Absolute humidity  compares how much water is in the air with how much could be in the air, while relative humidity tells you the exact amount of water in the air.

Absolute humidity tells you the number of water molecules there are in the air, while relative humidity tells you how much water there is in different places in the country.

Both absolute and relative humidity tell you how much water there is in the air

 What is the most common way we measure humidity? 

We use absolute humidity

We use a measuring gauge

We use relative humidity

We use a calculator

Temperature
Temperature measures the hot or coldness of the air.  
There are 3 scales:  Kelvin, Celsius, and Fahrenheit.  The units are degrees.

Use the Temperature Conversion Calculator above to  convert 55°F to Celsius 

131 °F  

131 °C   

 12 °C  

12 °F 

Use the Temperature Conversion Calculator above to  convert 25°C to  Fahrenheit 

 77 °F  

-3 °F 

77 °C   

-3 °C  

Use the Wind Chill Factor calculator to determine the wind chill factor if the temperature is 35 ° F and the wind speed is 10 MPH. 

27 °F  

-14 °F  

-14 °C  

27 °C 

Wind speed and direction
Wind speed and direction are measured with an anemometer and a weather vane.  It tells the direction the wind is blowing and the speed.  The units are miles per hour.

Complete the following chart using a wind speed of 22 MPH. 
Use the TEXT tool and make sure you add the units.

Air Pressure
Air pressure is force exerted on you by the weight of the air.  It is measured with a barometer.  Barometers are used to measure the current air pressure at a particular location in “inches of mercury” or in “millibars” (mb).

If the video above does not play, use this link. After you watch the video, answer these questions

10.

What role does air pressure play in weather conditions?

Its force determines the strength of the wind

It creates downdrafts that blow from the shore

It is the primary source of Trade Winds

It determines how high or low the tide is

11.

 What gives wind its mass? 

barometric pressure

air molecules

air pressure

the convection cell

12.

 What three elements affect air pressure? 

wind, Earth's distance from the Sun and clouds

amount of plants, wind and level of water in the ocean

height above sea level, temperature and amount of water vapor

temperature, wind and how much plant or animal life is around

13.

Why does air rise at the beach?

Cold air gets warmer over land, which makes it lighter, so it rises

Warm air over the sea moves inland and gets cooler, and then rises

Trade winds around the equator blow the air higher at the beach

land is cooler than water at the beach, so the air repels away from it

 The Coriollis Effect 

14.

The Coriollis effect is caused by

The Earth's currents

The rotation of the Earth

The gravitational pull of the Sun

The gravitational pull of the Moon

 
Precipitation
Five main forms of precipitation:  rain, sleet, snow, freezing rain and hail.  The following website outlines the atmospheric conditions that allow each type of precipitation to form.  Precipitation can be measured with a rain gauge.

Read through each section of this website, then answer the question that follows using evidence from your reading.

15.

 What form of precipitation do you think would have the most significant impact in our area.  Why? 

 Tornados
Tornados are funnels of high speed, spinning air.  A tornado watch means that one is possible; a tornado warning means that one has been spotted nearby.  Tornadoes can be classified with the Fujita scale.

16.

 Read all information on the website and choose the two most interesting facts about twisters. 

Hurricanes
Hurricanes are severe tropical storm that forms over water.  Hurricanes rotate in a counterclockwise direction around an “eye.”  A hurricane is classified when winds reach 74 mph.  The Saffir-Simpson scale can be used to classify hurricanes.

17.

Visit the interactive found at http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/outreach/games/canelab.htm . What conditions allowed you to creat a hurricane AND reach the score of 80 

18.

Take a screenshot of your "Killer Hurricane". This tells me whether you answered the questions correctly.

Drought
A drought is a deficiency of precipitation over an extended period of time, usually one season or more.  A drought is a prolonged, abnormally dry period when there is not enough water for users’ normal needs.

 This is a US drought monitor comparison slider. https://droughtmonitor.unl.edu/Maps/ComparisonSlider.aspx
 
Select 
Area Type: State
Area: California
Left: (choose any date at least one year from today) 
Right: (leave as close to today’s date as possible)

19.

Move the slider left and right to see how the conditions have changed. Click on Legend to help you understand what the colors mean. How have the drought conditions changed in the last year? 

Floods
Floods are caused by stationary or slow-moving thunderstorms that produce heavy rain over a small area.  Flash floods can strike anytime and any place with little or no warning.  Natural processes, such as hurricanes, weather systems, and snowmelt, can cause floods.  Failure of levees or dams and inadequate drainage can also result in flooding.

20.

Read the information found here - https://www.ready.gov/floods.  How would you or your family use this information? 

 Tsunami
A tsunami is a series of waves generated by an undersea disturbance such as an earthquake.  From the area of the disturbance, the waves will travel outward in all directions, almost like the ripples caused by throwing a rock into a pond.  The tsunami is proportional to the intensity of the earthquake.

21.

 List 2 facts about a tsunami. 

 
Conclusion
Go over your answers. 
What are the three things you consider the most important to know after completing this web activity. 

22.

Write a three paragraph blog post where you explain each of the three things you consider the most important to know after completing this activity (i.e. one paragraph for each). Once you are done, and have published, paste the PUBLISHED link to your blog post here