Background Information for Teachers

We've gathered here digital resources that will help you to teach middle school students about the relationships between oceans, weather, and climate and reinforce your content knowledge of these topics.

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Exploratorium: Global Climate Change http://www.exploratorium.edu/climate/index.html

Through the exploration of scientific data, users can discover the changes in global climate through geologic time at this Exploratorium website. Users can find an introduction to the research of the atmosphere, hydrosphere, cryosphere, and biosphere to better understand climate change. Then, visitors can explore more in-depth descriptions and datasets related to these four spheres. Each section offers a few thought-provoking questions and links to more information. Individuals can also discover how scientists interpret past and present climate data and the difficulties associated with these predictions. MSP full record

Ocean Surface Topography from Space http://topex-www.jpl.nasa.gov/overview/overview.html

This site provides information on many aspects of the study of the sea surface from space. Measuring the ocean surface topography provides data on global ocean circulation and the oceans’ heat budget. MSP full record

Climate Watch http://www.climatewatch.net/index.html

Climate Watch is an audio series organized around four areas: origins of climate, climate change, impacts of climate change, and action. Information is provided via the voices of scientists working in the atmospheric sciences. MSP full record

Ocean and Climate http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Library/OceanClimate/

This web page, one of NASA's fact sheets, describes the role of the oceans, clouds, and aerosols in moderating climate. It describes how the oceans interact with the atmosphere, physically exchanging heat, water, and momentum. This site also explains the chemical link between the ocean and the atmosphere. The emphasis is on the ocean's ability to store and release water vapor and carbon dioxide, both of which contribute to the greenhouse effect. The site also describes the efforts of scientists to construct computer models of the interactions between the atmosphere and ocean and to perform space-based oceanography using the Earth Observing System (EOS). MSP full record

TOPEX/Poseidon—Overview http://www.tsgc.utexas.edu/topex/activities/topex_basics/

This resource presents an overview of how the TOPEX/Poseidon satellite works, what factors affect ocean topography, and how ocean circulation affects the earth's climate. MSP full record

Weather and Climate http://serc.carleton.edu/NAGTWorkshops/visualization/collections/WeathClim.html

This site features visual resources and supporting data that illustrate the relationship between weather and climate. Resources are divided by topics, such as weather forecasting, warnings and data, and evidence for global warming. Visualizations and data sets include GIS-based animated maps, static maps, simple animations, and links to real-time stream gauge data. This site provides an array of visual resources that help demonstrate the difference between weather and climate and may be incorporated into lectures, labs, or other activities. MSP full record

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Copyright October 2006 — The Ohio State University. This material is based upon work supported by the National Science Foundation under Grant No. 0424671. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation.

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons License.