The Windy Pirate
You are a pirate crew preparing to set sail to plunder and pillage a far-off village! You know that you will
not get very far, though, if you do not understand how the wind works. Visit each station around the
room to obtain as much information about the wind as possible. Remember, everything that you
discover may help you on your journey. Good luck!
Station/Topic
Windy Facts I Discovered
Answer to Question
Station 1- The Coriolis Effect (Part 1)
The Coriolis effect makes moving objects appear to curve
toward the right in the northern hemisphere and toward
the left in the southern hemisphere. Why? Because of
the rotation of the earth from the east toward the west.
It affects the way things that travel a far distance, such as
wind or currents, move.
Question- If you were to fire a cannon ball from your ship
to the ship directly south of you, in which direction should
your pirate crew aim the cannon?
Station 2- The Coriolis Effect (part 2)
The entire earth rotates once each day, but since the
earth is wider at the equator than at other parts, the
equator must rotate faster. When global winds blow
across the earth, they turn to the west when blowing
from the poles toward the equator and they blow to the
east when blowing from the equator toward the poles.
Question- Have your partner slowly turn the Aztec gold
treasure clockwise. Draw a line straight down from the
top to the bottom as it turns. Now examine your line.
Explain how the line that you made across the coin was
similar to the way the wind moves across the earth.
Station 3- The Wind-less Zones
Station 4- The Trade Winds
Early sailors learned that the wind blew in particular
patterns, especially in areas near the equator. Sailors
used these windy paths through the sea to travel to other
areas of the world so that they could buy and trade their
goods, which is how they got the name, “trade winds”.
Question- You and your crew are in the Sahara desert.
You use your map to find and dig up a buried treasure
chest. When you open the chest, you find only gold dust
inside and it blows away quicker than you can blink!
Examine the map with your crew and determine where
you could go to try to find the gold dust.
Station 5- Easterlies and Westerlies
The Westerlies are winds that blow from the west toward
the east. They are located from 30 to 60 degrees latitude
in both hemispheres. In the westerlies, warm air begins
to sink and causes a pressure change which leaves clear
skies and a dry, hot climate. Most of the world’s deserts
are found in these areas. The Easterlies are located in the
area near the poles. These winds are intensely freezing
and dry.
There are two areas of the earth where very little wind
blows. One of these areas is known as the doldrums. A
person is in the “doldrums” if they are sluggish and don’t
feel like doing anything. In the doldrums the air is actually
warm and rising, but seems as if it is not moving at all.
Question- What supplies should you be sure to pack on
your pirate ship if you were travelling through the
Easterlies or Westerlies?
The horse latitudes is also an area of the earth where
sailing ships could get stuck for weeks due to the fact that
there is very little wind that blows there. The air in the
horse latitudes is actually sinking straight down due to it
becoming cooler.
Station 6- Jet Streams
Question- Wind-powered ships should avoid the doldrums
at all costs. What could you do if your pirate ship were
stuck in the doldrums or horse latitudes?
The jets streams are narrow belts of high-speed winds
that blow from west to east, about 10 km above the
surface of the earth. Jet streams are very helpful to pilots
and can help them to save time and fuel when travelling
along with them. The jet stream can bring cold air down
from the north to the southern part of the country.
Question- If you and your crew want to sail your pirate
ship to the west, would the jet stream help you? Explain.
Station 7- Wind and Breezes
Wind is air that is moving. Wind is caused by differences
in air pressure. Air pressure changes as air is heated and
cooled. Wind is always blowing across the earth because
its surface heats up unevenly, especially over land and
water. Water takes longer to heat up than the land, so
during the day along the coast a sea breeze forms as air
moves from the water over the land. Since the water also
takes longer to cool off, at night a land breeze will form as
air moves from the land out over the water.
Question- Squeeze the bottle of “Pirate Grog” hard using
both hands. How is the moving dropper similar to the
wind?
Teacher Prep:
Station 1: Aim to the southwest.
Station 2: Make a large yellow circle, label it “Aztec Gold” and laminate it. I have students write on it with dry erase marker,
then wipe it after use. I got my lazy susan for 3 bucks at IKEA, but the activity will still work without one.
Station 4: A map of wind patterns would help students see that the wind could blow the dust from Africa to the east coast of
Florida. I used this one from “How Stuff Works” http://maps.howstuffworks.com/world-prevailing-winds-map.htm
Station 7: Fill a water bottle all the way. Fill a dropper only 1/3 full. Place the dropper upright in the water bottle. Be sure
the lid is on tight and remove the label so students can see inside of it. When students squeeze the bottle hard with both
hands, the dropper should sink due to pressure change. It is also called a Cartesian diver.
Station 7- Wind and Breezes
Wind is air that is moving. Wind is caused by differences in air pressure. Air
pressure changes as air is heated and cooled. Wind is always blowing
across the earth because its surface heats up unevenly, especially over land
and water. Water takes longer to heat up than the land, so during the day
along the coast a sea breeze forms as air moves from the water over the
land. Since the water also takes longer to cool off, at night a land breeze
will form as air moves from the land out over the water.
Question- Squeeze the bottle of “Pirate Grog” hard using both hands. How
is the moving dropper similar to the wind?
Station 6- Jet Streams
The jets streams are narrow belts of high-speed winds that blow from west
to east, about 10 km above the surface of the earth. Jet streams are very
helpful to pilots and can help them to save time and fuel when travelling
along with them. The jet stream can bring cold air down from the north to
the southern part of the country.
Question- If you and your crew want to sail your pirate ship to the west,
would the jet stream help you? Explain.
Station 5- Easterlies and Westerlies
The Westerlies are winds that blow from the west toward the east. They
are located from 30 to 60 degrees latitude in both hemispheres. In the
Westerlies, warm air begins to sink and causes a pressure change which
leaves clear skies and a dry, hot climate. Most of the world’s deserts are
found in these areas. The Easterlies are located in the area near the poles.
These winds are intensely freezing and dry.
Question- What supplies should you be sure to pack on your pirate ship if
you were travelling through the Easterlies or Westerlies?
Station 4- The Trade Winds
Early sailors learned that the wind blew in particular patterns, especially in
areas near the equator. Sailors used these windy paths through the sea to
travel to other areas of the world so that they could buy and trade their
goods, which is how they got the name, “trade winds”.
Question- You and your crew are in the Sahara desert. You use your map to
find and dig up a buried treasure chest. When you open the chest, you find
only gold dust inside and it blows away quicker than you can blink! Examine
the map with your crew and determine where you could go to try to find
the gold dust.
Station 3- The Wind-less Zones
There are two areas of the earth where very little wind blows. One of these
areas is known as the doldrums. A person is in the “doldrums” if they are
sluggish and don’t feel like doing anything. In the doldrums the air is
actually warm and rising, but seems as if it is not moving at all.
The horse latitudes is also an area of the earth where sailing ships could get
stuck for weeks due to the fact that there is very little wind that blows
there. The air in the horse latitudes is actually sinking straight down due to
it becoming cooler.
Question- Wind-powered ships should avoid the doldrums at all costs.
What could you do if your pirate ship were stuck in the doldrums or horse
latitudes?
Station 2- The Coriolis Effect (part 2)
The entire earth rotates once each day, but since the earth is wider at the
equator than at other parts, the equator must rotate faster. When global
winds blow across the earth, they turn to the west when blowing from the
poles toward the equator and they blow to the east when blowing from the
equator toward the poles.
Question- Have your partner slowly turn the Aztec gold treasure clockwise.
Draw a line straight down from the top to the bottom as it turns. Now
examine your line. Explain how the line that you made across the coin was
similar to the way the wind moves across the earth.
Station 1- The Coriolis Effect (Part 1)
The Coriolis effect makes moving objects appear to curve toward the right
in the northern hemisphere and toward the left in the southern
hemisphere. Why? Because of the rotation of the earth from the east
toward the west. It affects the way things that travel a far distance, such as
wind or currents, move.
Question- If you were to fire a cannon ball from your ship to the ship
directly south of you, in which direction should your pirate crew aim the
cannon?