+ Salinity Basics + Classroom Activities + Concept Map + Salinity Data & Tools + Student Outcomes + Resources + Resources in Other Languages + Educators Workshop + Webinars + Posters + Inspire Chat + Links

Click here to search for other assets

Climate Change and the Global Ocean: Monitoring Climate Change Impacts By Satellite

Grade level: 9-12
Theme: water cycle
Video: global_ocean_04.flv

Soon a new satellite will even help us see tiny particles on the ocean's surface - like salt, which drives huge conveyor belts of water through the world's oceans, connecting currents and moving heat from pole to pole. Climate change could mean big changes for oceans. And that in turn would make life very different for those of us on dry land.

Paula Bontempi: "If the climate actually changes, and the oceans change or respond to that change, it most definitely will impact life as we know it, and especially humans."

David Adamec: "To understand exactly how we stay here and how we're going to survive both within the climate, and even our life cycle, it requires understanding what the water is doing."

Our climate is changing... in some places, faster than predicted. By using science to understand those changes, we can find ways of protecting our oceans - and ourselves - that make a world of difference.
 
Student Outcomes 
After viewing this video, students should be able to:

Explain how new technology can enhance the gathering and manipulation of oceanic data. (T: 9-12)

Determine if global precipitation, evaporation, and the cycling of water are changing. (W: 9-12)

Key:  C = climate / O = ocean circulation / T = 21st century technology / W = water cycle