Educational Product Educators Grades 5–8 Investigating the Climate System WINDSWINDS Winds at Work PROBLEM-BASED CLASSROOM MODULES Responding to National Education Standards in: English Language Arts ◆ Geography ◆ Mathematics Science ◆ Social Studies Investigating the Climate System WINDSWINDS Winds at Work Authored by: CONTENTS Phil Astwood, University of South Carolina, Columbia, SC Grade Levels; Time Required; Objectives; Disciplines Encompassed; Key Terms; Prepared by: Stacey Rudolph, Senior Science Resources . 2 Education Specialist, Institute for Part 1: What determines where fish Global Environmental Strategies (IGES), Arlington, Virginia are found in the ocean? . 3 Background; Activity One. 3 John Theon, Former Program Scientist for NASA TRMM Activity Two; Activity Three . 4 Editorial Assistance, Dan Stillman, Part 2: How do upwelling zones form Science Communications Specialist, in the equatorial area?. 4 Institute for Global Environmental Background . 4 Strategies (IGES), Arlington, Virginia Activity One; Activity Two; Activity Three . 5 Graphic Design by: Susie Duckworth Graphic Design & Part 3: What creates the winds that Illustration, Falls Church, Virginia control El Niño? . 5 Funded by: Background . 5 NASA TRMM Grant #NAG5-9641 Activity One; Activity Set Two . 7 Activity Three. 8 Give us your feedback: To provide feedback on the modules Part 4: How do winds affect the ocean? . 9 online, go to: Background . 9 https://ehb2.gsfc.nasa.gov/edcats/ educational_product Activity One; Activity Two; Activity Three . 9 and click on “Investigating the Part 5: Can the use of satellite data Climate System.” improve your fishing results? . 10 NOTE: This module was developed as part Appendix A: Bibliography . 11 of the series “Investigating the Climate System.”The series includes five modules: Appendix B: Assessment Rubric & Answer Keys. 12 Clouds, Energy, Precipitation, Weather, and Winds. While these materials were Appendix C: National Education Standards. 15 developed under one series title, they were designed so that each module could Appendix D: Problem-Based Learning . 17 be used independently. They can be freely downloaded at: Appendix E: TRMM Introduction/Instruments . 19 http://www.strategies.org/CLASS.html Appendix F: Glossary . 21 June 2003 1 Investigating the Climate System: WINDS Investigating the Climate System WINDSWINDS Winds at Work GRADE LEVELS nutrients Grades 5–8 photosynthesis phytoplankton TIME REQUIRED polar easterlies pressure gradient force Three to five days for each of Parts 1–5 producers Southern Oscillation OBJECTIVES trade winds ● Define, identify and compare different trophic lev­ trophic level els in the open ocean. upwelling ● Interpret the effects of temperature change and westerly winds the Earth’s rotation on water movement. wind belts ● Research and apply knowledge of the effect of zooplankton winds on ocean currents. ● Demonstrate knowledge of upwelling. RESOURCES ● Build meteorological instruments and collect and American Oceans Campaign: apply data. http://www.americanoceans.org ● Apply knowledge gained to worldwide ocean CERES instrument information: http://eosweb.larc. patterns. nasa.gov/PRODOCS/ceres/table_ceres.html ● Identify the relationship between productivity in Earth Observatory: http://trmm.gsfc.nasa.gov the open oceans and fish populations. Global Wind Patterns: http://kids.earth.nasa.gov/ ● Interpret TRMM satellite data. archive/nino/global.html ● Apply TRMM satellite data to determine the loca­ GSFC Scientific Visualization Studio: tion of fish populations in the open ocean. http://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov Marine Modeling and Analysis: DISCIPLINES ENCOMPASSED http://polar.wwb.noaa.gov/omb/products.html Earth science, meteorology, physical NASA GOES Project Science: oceanography, biology, mathematics, http://rsd.gsfc.nasa.gov/goes technology, English/language arts, geography NASA TRMM Satellite: http://trmm.gsfc.nasa.gov National Oceanographic Data Center: KEY TERMS http://www.ngdc.noaa.gov Ocean Planet: air pressure http://seawifs.gsfc.nasa.gov/ocean_planet.html barometer Ocean Surface Topography from Space: banks http://topex-www.jpl.nasa.gov/index.html consumers Ocean World: http://oceanworld.tamu.edu Coriolis effect Pressure and Wind: http://geology.csupomona.edu/ differential heating drjessey/class/Gsc101/Pressure.html divergence QuikSCAT mission information: http://winds.jpl.nasa. downwelling gov/missions/quikscat/quikindex.html easterly trade winds Terra: http://terra.nasa.gov food chain U.S. Bathymetric & Fishing Maps: http://www.ngdc. Gulf Stream noaa.gov/mgg/bathymetry/maps/nos.html Hadley circulation high pressure Winds: Measuring Ocean Winds from Space: http://winds.jpl.nasa.gov low pressure 2 Investigating the Climate System: WINDS SCENARIO You work for a fishing company that is seeking investors. You believe that one of your company’s strengths is that you use TRMM data to locate fishing areas. You must convince the investors that this gives your company a significant advantage. PART 1 What determines where fish are found in the ocean? BACKGROUND plankton provide food for zooplankton (very small he location of fish in the open ocean is deter­ animals). The zooplankton are food for larger animals, mined primarily by the temperature of the that are food for even larger animals, and so on up the water and the availability of food. In a broad food chain. Each level in a food chain is referred to as a sense, the temperature of the water at the trophic level. The first trophic level is made up of pro­ surface depends on the latitude—with ducers, plants that can obtain energy directly from the Twarmer waters near the equator and colder waters at sun via photosynthesis. The producers on the first higher latitudes. Even at lower latitudes, however, cool­ level provide food for consumers on the next level er water and nutrients from deeper layers can be that must obtain their energy by eating plants. brought to the surface by an overturning process Consumers on the third level obtain their energy by called upwelling. Cold water will hold more dissolved eating animals on the second level, and so on up the oxygen than warm water; as a result, many large and chain. active fish seek the oxygen-rich cooler water. At the In this way, energy originally obtained from the Sun is same time, however, because most chemical reactions passed from one trophic level to the next. However, proceed more slowly at low temperatures, the growth the transfer is very inefficient, with only about 10% of of plants and animals may be slower. the energy at one level making it to the next. As one Because plants are at the base of the food chain, the might expect, this process is most efficient in rate at which they grow determines the rate at which upwelling areas where nutrients are abundant and an all other living things can grow. To survive, plants organism does not have to travel far to find food. require sunlight for energy and nutrients to build their Areas of upwelling have traditionally been highly pro­ structures. Nutrients are elements such as sulfur, ductive fishing grounds. potassium, and nitrogen that are essential for the growth of plants, but are not readily available in water. Activity One: Exploration On land, plants can receive direct sunlight from above Brainstorm: and derive most nutrients from the soil, where they ● “What do animals need to survive?” have accumulated following the decay of prior gener­ ● “Fish are animals. What do they need to ations of plants. In the ocean, dying organisms sink to survive in the open ocean?” the bottom and their decay products accumulate ● “How do fish get food?” there, whereas sunlight can only penetrate the upper Have your students research current world ocean fish­ 200 meters of the ocean water. Thus, nutrients and ing patterns and develop a complete world map. sunlight may be separated vertically by thousands of Using this map, ask the students to determine where meters. most fish are caught and what is unique about these As a result, ocean plants, such as microscopic phyto­ areas. plankton (algae), near the ocean surface must depend on upwelling for the nutrients they need. The phyto­ 3 Investigating the Climate System: WINDS Part 1: What determines where fish are found in the ocean? Activity Two: Concept Development Activity Three: Application & Assessment Trophic Levels: Math Problem Some people believe that large-scale fishing should be One way to show trophic levels is in the form of a limited to areas where the target fish are eating no pyramid. This shape is not correct for all ocean areas, higher than the third trophic level. Do you agree with but it shows how the system works. Draw a pyramid this? Why or why not? with a human at the top and phytoplankton at the The majority of the food people eat comes from land base. The pyramid should represent the sea life need­ (vegetables and meat). When we eat seafood, we often ed to support one human who is eating 1 kg. of fish select large animals such as tuna and swordfish. Which each day from the fourth trophic level. Remembering type of food is more “efficient” in terms of the trophic that only 10% is passed from one level to the next, cal­ level at which we are operating? culate the weight of small fish at the third trophic level, weight of zooplankton at the second trophic level, and weight of phytoplankton at the first trophic level that are needed to support this “pyramid.” PART 2 How do upwelling zones form in the equatorial area? BACKGROUND ind creates horizontal currents along the ocean surface (See Part 3). Under certain circumstances, these horizontal currents can cause vertical currents. For example, in the diagram below, wind is pushing Wocean water at the surface toward a landmass. Some of the moving water will be turned to the left or right, but some will be forced downward. This process of water from the surface being pushed toward the bot­ tom is known as downwelling. Since water at the sur­ face is generally warmer and contains more oxygen, the effect of downwelling is to warm the deeper water UPWELLING and increase its oxygen content.