and the Link between Oceans, Atmosphere, and Weather

Transcription

1 Geography Worksheet Instructions Using a map, atlas, or any other materials your teacher suggests, label the following on the blank map provided. 1. Label East, West, North, and South. 2. Label the following continents: South America North America Australia Africa 3. Label the Pacific Ocean and the Atlantic Ocean. 4. Label the following countries: Indonesia Brazil India Mexico Ecuador Peru United States of America 5. Label the Galapagos Islands. 6. Label the Equator. 7. Outline the warm pool in red and label it. 8. In green, indicate the area to which normal upwelling spreads in a non-el Niño year. Label the area or use a color key on your map. 9. With a blue arrow, illustrate and label the name and direction of winds across the southern Pacific. 10. Explain the difference between the winds in an El Niño year and winds in a non-el Niño year.

2 Geography Worksheet

3 Mathematical Conversions Worksheet Answer the problems using the following conversion formulas. Keep in mind that all figures in this worksheet are approximate. Round your answers to the nearest whole numbers. Unit Metric Conversion English Conversion C (Celsius) multiply by 1.8 and add 32 F (Fahrenheit) subtract 32 and divide by 1.8 Meter (1) 3.28 feet Foot (1) meter Centimeter (1) inch Inch (1) 2.54 centimeters Kilometer (1) mile Mile (1) 1.61 kilometers Other Unit Australian to U.S. dollars: A$1.35 = U.S.$1 1. The warm pool is an area in the tropical western Pacific ocean where the warmest ocean waters in the world are located. These warm waters extend to depths of more than 100 meters. How many feet is 100 meters? Extra credit: What other metric terms can be used to refer to 100 meters? 2. In an El Niño year, the sea level falls in the west and rises in the east by as much as 10 inches. How many centimeters is this? 3. Economic loss of production can continue long after an El Niño event. Losses brought on by the Australian drought that stemmed from the El Niño have been estimated at A$1 billion each year. How much is this in United States dollars? 4. During the El Niño, sea-surface temperatures at the Galapagos Islands and along the coast of Ecuador rose from typical average levels of 24 Celsius to an average of 29 Celsius. What are these temperatures in degrees Fahrenheit? 5. Temperatures in the warm pool average 88 Fahrenheit. What is this in degrees Celsius? 6. El Niño raises water temperatures in a belt across the equatorial Pacific that stretches 5,000 miles. How many kilometers is this? How many feet? 7. The Galapagos Islands are located about 1,000 kilometers off the coast of Ecuador. How many miles is this? 8. In a normal year, the annual average precipitation along the coast of South America is 25 centimeters; however, rainfall levels can rise by 40% in an El Niño year. How many inches of rain fall in a normal year? How many inches could fall in an El Niño year? 9. In El Niño years, rainfall in the central Pacific Christmas Islands rises to 47 inches per year from a normal average level of 5 inches per year. State these measurements in centimeters. 10. Average sea-surface temperature along the Pacific coast of Alaska is 4 Celsius in winter and 11 Celsius in summer. Convert these temperatures to degrees Fahrenheit.

4 Vocabulary Worksheet Fill in the blanks using words from the vocabulary list below. 1. During El Niño years, increases over South and North America and conditions prevail in the western Pacific. 2. The, an area of intense heating in the western Pacific, is located near the countries of and. 3. Although the number of hurricanes increases in the during El Niño years, hurricanes are less common in the. 4. the rising of warm, moist air and its subsequent cooling and falling in the western Pacific is one factor that determines the structure of the atmosphere. It can affect the wet seasons in places as far away as Brazil and South Africa. 5. Although it is what makes our planet livable, the has been intensifying as a result of industrialization, threatening the planet with. 6. There are patterns of motion known as in both the atmosphere and the ocean; the, named by merchant sailors, are an important factor in the formation of El Niño events. 7. Strong El Niño events dramatically impact the fishing industry in the countries of and ; these events cause problems for the fish, animals, and birds in the Islands. La Niña warm pool TOGA COARE food chain current climatological precipitation Brazil Galapagos Peru greenhouse effect Equator hurricane Atlantic Ocean Africa trade winds Ecuador tropical global warming Australia Indonesia drought Pacific Ocean convection Mexico

5 Upwelling and the Food Chain Worksheet 1. Diagram upwelling on a separate sheet of paper, showing the direction of movement for water and nutrients. Label the coastline, warm water, cold water, thermocline, and nutrients. Use colored pencils for clarity and make a legend or color key. 2. What causes upwelling? 3. Nutrients in the water, made available through upwelling, are the starting point for the food chain, or food web, off the South American west coast. a. What is a food chain or food web? b. On another sheet, diagram the food web of the eastern tropical Pacific, using the ocean nutrients as the start. 4. Choose one of the following regions and diagram the food web for the area. Be as detailed as possible. In a summary statement, mention ways that El Niño might affect the food web. Additional research will be needed to detail your diagram. Western Pacific coral reef African savannah Lake region (Australia or Equador and Peru) North American mountains Northern coastal rain forests (Alaska)

6 Quiz 1. What is El Niño? Discuss its causes and effects and use important geography terms and vocabulary words. Use the back of this page if necessary. 2. Draw a diagram of upwelling in the space below or on the back of this quiz. Label warm water, cold water, the coastline, and the thermocline. Use arrows to indicate the directions of trade winds and water currents. 3. a. Name three types of climates: b. Name three types of weather: 4. The is what makes our planet livable, but a dramatic increase in atmospheric gasses may cause. 5. What is TOGA COARE and what is its purpose?