Teaching Notes

Example Output - SST anomalies for Dec 1997 displayed in My World GIS. Red indicates above average temperatures compared to average SST temperatures for December data averaged over the years 1982-1998.

Grades 7-12
This activity can be used as a professional development activity or assigned directly to students. It is appropriate conceptually for students in grades 7-12. It could also be used in an introductory undergraduate course.

• Describe the sea surface temperature (SST) pattern observed during normal, El Niño and La Niña years in the equatorial Pacific Ocean.
• Download, install and use My World GIS to analyze SST data.
• Download gridded SST and other datasets from the PMEL online THREDDS data server.
• Create SST anomaly maps for any given time period from 1982 - 1998.
• Use My World child windows to visualize and compare normal, El Niño and La Niña years.
• Determine the presence/absence of an El Niño/La Niña event for any given year from 1982-1998.

What is "normal" sea surface temperature?

In the opening section of the lesson, users have the opportunity to look at data from broad range of years and over a large area. From this examination users will to develop an understanding of the SST associated with a "normal" year before contrasting that pattern with either an El Niño or La Niña year.

The region of the pacific ocean that is most closely monitored for El Niño.

What part of the Pacific Ocean is monitored for El Niño patterns?

The most important section of the ocean to monitor is near the equator where there are strong currents that control weather patterns on both sides of the Pacific basin.

What is an anomaly and how is it detected?

When viewing many types of continuous datasets like temperature, precipitation, or pressure for any one day, month, season or year it is difficult to sometimes "see" the bigger trends in the data or understand how a specific period of time departs from the average for an area.

El Niño Theme page has more details and images.

SST anomalies for the years 1965-2003. Red indicates warmer than average temperatures and blue is colder than average.

Prerequisite knowledge

• Students should know how to read a map and how to locate latitude and longitude.
• Students should have general idea of how the ocean is heated and what causes the seasons (insolation).
• Students should have general idea of the impacts of El Niño.

In order to catch the students attention, begin the lesson with either a brief excerpt from a news event or video clip of an El Niño impact. Following this opening event, discuss with students their understandings of sea surface temperature variations, both spatially (across the ocean) and temporally (over time). Another option, depending on the level of the student audience, would be to begin the lesson with a simple demonstration or lab to illustrate the important oceanic concepts of the thermocline and convection currents.

Pre-Activity Assessment
The following questions can be used in a pre-activity assessment. How does the ocean temperature vary seasonally? How does the ocean influence precipitation patterns? What heats the ocean? What have you heard about El Niño?

Post-Activity Assessment
This chapter concludes with students seeking out other El Niño and La Niña patterns in the dataset. Successful students will be able to identify at least one additional El Niño year. ('82-'83) Students will also be able to verbalize the term anomaly and to apply the concept to other data sets such as precipitation.

8ASI1.3 Use appropriate tools and techniques to gather, analyze, and interpret data. The use of tools and techniques, including mathematics, will be guided by the question asked and the investigations students design. The use of computers for the collection, summary, and display of evidence is part of this standard. Students should be able to access, gather, store, retrieve, and organize data, using hardware and software designed for these purposes.

8ASI1.4 Develop descriptions, explanations, predictions, and models using evidence. Students should base their explanation on what they observed, and as they develop cognitive skills, they should be able to differentiate explanation from description - providing causes for effects and establishing relationships based on evidence and logical argument. This standards requires a subject knowledge base so the students can effectively conduct investigations, because developing explanations establishes connections between the content of science and the contexts within which students develop new knowledge.

12ASI1.3 Use technology and mathematics to improve investigations and communications. A variety of technologies, such as hand tools, measuring instruments, and calculators, should be an integral component of scientific investigations. The use of computers for the collection, analysis, and display of data is also a part of this standard. Mathematics plays an essential role in all aspects of an inquiry. For example, measurement is used for posing questions, formulas are used for developing explanations, and charts and graphs are used for communicating results.

12ASI1.4 Formulate and revise scientific explanations and models using logic and evidence. Student inquiries should culminate in formulating an explanation or model. Models should be physical, conceptual, and mathematical. In the process of answering the questions, the students should engage in discussions and arguments that result in the revision of their explanations. These discussions should be based on scientific knowledge, the use of logic, and evidence from their investigation.

12DESS3.3 Interactions among the solid earth, the oceans, the atmosphere, and organisms have resulted in the ongoing evolution of the earth system. We can observe some changes such as earthquakes and volcanic eruptions on a human time scale, but many processes such as mountain building and plate movements take place over hundreds of millions of years.

12DESS1.3 Energy in the Earth System "Driven by sunlight and earth's internal heat, a variety of cycles connect and continually circulate energy and material through the components of the earth system. Together, these cycles establish the structure of the earth system and regulate earth's climate. In grades 9-12, students review the water cycle as a carrier of material, and deepen their understanding of this key cycle to see that it is also an important agent for energy transfer."

Physical Systems
7. The physical processes that shape the patterns of Earth's surface