The Atmosphere in Motion
“Tracking Weather Accuracy”
(Lesson integrated into Glencoe Science Level Red Series, Ch. 12)
Objectives
• Students will be able to interpret a weather satellite image, use the internet to obtain
data from satellites, and compare data using charts and graphs.
Suggested Grade Levels
6th or higher
Subject Areas
Science
Technology
Timeline
3 - 50 minutes periods for introduction and wrap-up
5 consecutive days of at least 15-20 minutes
Extensions: 1 week of 10-15 minutes a day
Background
This lesson should be taught as after learning about the atmosphere, the things that make
it up, and what effects it has on our weather. Some of the knowledge students should
already know:
Vocabulary – atmosphere, troposphere, water cycle, weather, relative humidity, dew
point, precipitation, air mass, fronts
Concepts/Ideas – temperature, energy transfer, atmospheric pressure, cloud formations,
wind, pressure centers
Materials
Computer with internet access available for at least an entire week
Color printer or projector that hooks up to your computer to show images
Weather satellite images (make sure you have one for the United States)
Images can be obtained at www.noaa.gov
Taped television weather forecast
Atlases (to make group photocopies from)
Large World Map
Globe (if needed)
Copies of the “Group Forecast Table” for each group
Lesson
1. Getting Ready Discussion (1 – 50 minute period)
A) Ask: How does weather affect us? Think about all of your activities such as
camping, swimming, soccer practice, school closings, etc.
B) Ask: How do we measure and predict weather? Discuss the weather reports
they see on television.
C) Show a brief weather forecast. Discuss their previous knowledge of fronts and
pressure centers. What else did they see? Which way are things moving?
2. Satellite Discussion (during 50 minute period)
A) All the following information can be found at www.noaa.gov and is just to give
students background on the types of satellites they will be getting their
information.
B) State the facts: It has been 44 years since the National Oceanic Atmospheric
Administration (NOAA) launched the first weather satellite. It’s hard to imagine
when there weren’t any satellites, especially with today’s technology and the
images shown on TV.
C) NOAA’s operational environmental satellite system is composed of two types of
satellites.
1. (GOES) Geostationary Observational Environmental Satellite – this is a
short-range satellite that continuously monitors for intensive data
analysis. It orbits the equatorial plane at the same speed as the Earth’s
rotation, therefore collecting data from one position (35,800 km or 22,300
miles away). It comes in handy when severe weather is a threat.
2. (POES) Polar-Orbiting Environmental Satellite – this is a long-term
forecasting satellite that has nearly polar orbits that make their rounds
about 14 times a day. There are morning and afternoon satellites that
take in global coverage 4 times a day. These are mostly for daily weather
forecasting.
D) TRMM (Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission) – this was the first satellite to
measure precipitation with accuracy from a radar and other sensors.
E) Use AGI-Orbital Mechanics Presentation to show the students the visual orbits
of satellites. (Notes attached) Demonstrate with a globe if needed.
3. Reading a Satellite Image (1 -50 minute period)
A) Use a United States satellite image and ask the students to discuss what they
see. Make sure they know what each color represents; i.e. blue = water, white =
clouds. Lead the following discussion.
B) Identify the region. (U.S.A) Locate your state.
C) What areas are being affected?
a. Which areas have clear skies? Which areas have cloud cover? How do
you know? Predict.
D) What about our state? Infer what the weather conditions are during this satellite
image.
E) Do you see any tropical storms? Hint: look at the surrounding water. Does
anything look out of the ordinary?
F) Identify if there is a front. (stationary front- where warm and cold air meet).
G) List the areas that might receive rainfall if the front were to move. (Determine
direction according to your image)
H) Are there any low-pressure areas? (A counterclockwise movement)
4. Tracking the Weather (15-20 minutes/day for a week, can use part of 50 minute
period for explanations)
A) Group students in teams of 3-4.
B) Assign each team a region of the world.
C) Have each team familiarize themselves with the region; locating water sources,
mountain ranges, deserts, etc.
D) Each team will need a Group Forecast Table. And five copies of their region
from the atlas.
E) Each team will use the internet to find a 5-day forecast for their region. Record
Temperature (high/low), Clouds and Precipitation, Wind, and Pressure. They
need to draw the current satellite image onto one of their maps.
1. http://www.cnn.com/weather
2. www.weather.com (weather channel)
3. http://www.nws.noaa.gov
F) Have students record the actual weather and compare for the next five days.
1. Each group will have to record the new satellite image onto their maps
each day, but don’t erase their previous forecast!
G) Have each group choose 1-2 strands of their data and graph the forecast vs. the
actual. Double bar graphs or lines graphs would work best. This could be
homework.
5. Wrap Up (1 -50 minute period)
A) Let each group share their graphs and interesting data from their regions.
Everyone in the group must speak.
B) Lead class in discussion:
1. How accurate were the forecasts?
2. Were the temperatures or the cloud & precipitation more accurate?
3. Did the forecast’s accuracy drop off with time?
4. What do you think about the forecast in general?
5. How do you think satellites have helped with forecasting the weather?
Extensions
Have groups choose a different location or the same. Just look at the satellite images.
Predict what will happen, record predictions. Check predictions at
http://weather.noaa.gov/weather for a 24 hour summary
Have groups record forecasts for several different sources (newspaper, radio, different TV
stations, different websites). Compare to actual weather. Which forecast was more
accurate, which was the least accurate, why?
Evaluation
Students will be assessed throughout the lesson by teacher observation on how well they
work together, also on their ability to obtain information from the internet, and their ability to
give a small oral presentation. The presentation, forecast table, and graph will be taken as
a grade.
A= completion of forecast table, accurate graph, solid understanding of presentation,
B= completion of forecast table, semi-accurate graph, basic understanding of presentation,
C= semi-complete forecast table, average graph, slight understanding of presentation, D=
slightly complete forecast table, less than average graph, little understanding of
presentation, F= didn’t contribute, no understanding.
Resources:
AGI-Orbital Mechanics Presentation by Tina Cox. The U.S. Space Foundation, Colorado
Springs. Summer 2005
Investigating the Climate System, NASA TRMM Education Modules/Weather
(http://trmm.gsfc.nasa.gov/education_dir/weather_04.pdf)
Glencoe Science, Level Red. The McGraw Hill Companies, Inc. New York, 2005.
(red.msscience.com)
http://www.earthkam.ucsd.edu
http://www.cde.state.co.us/cdeassess/standards/pdf (Colorado Standards)
Satellite images and information
www.noaa.gov
Weather sites
http://www.cnn.com/weather
www.weather.com (weather channel)
http://www.nws.noaa.gov
Other
http://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov
Addendums
(3)
Addendum 1
Tracking Weather Accuracy
Group Forecast Table
Group Members ________________________________________
Website Used __________________________________________
Location: _______________________________________
Date
1
Forecast
1
Actual
2
Forecast
2
Actual
3
Forecast
3
Actual
4
Forecast
4
Actual
5
Forecast
5
Actual
High
Temp
Low
Temp
Clouds &
Precipitation
Wind
Pressure
Addendum 2
Satellite Information
From (www.noaa.gov/satellites.html)
NOAA's Environmental Satellites: A History
On April 1, 2000, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration celebrated the
40th anniversary of the launch of the world's first weather satellite. With today's advanced
technology, and with images of clouds shown daily on television weather forecasts, it may
be difficult to remember the days when there were no weather satellites.
Today, the nation's environmental satellites are operated by NOAA's National
Environmental Satellite, Data, and Information Service in Suitland, Maryland. NOAA's
operational environmental satellite system is composed of two types of satellites:
geostationary operational environmental satellites (GOES) for national, regional, shortrange warning and "now-casting," and polar-orbiting environmental satellites (POES) for
global, long-term forecasting and environmental monitoring. Both types of satellites are
necessary for providing a complete global weather monitoring system. In addition, NOAA
operates satellites in the Defense Meteorological Satellite Program (DMSP), which are
also polar-orbiting satellites. NESDIS also manages the processing and distribution of the
millions of bits of data and images the satellites produce each day.
Geostationary Satellites
GOES satellites provide the kind of continuous monitoring necessary for intensive data
analysis. They circle the Earth in a geosynchronous orbit, which means they orbit the
equatorial plane of the Earth at a speed matching the Earth's rotation. This allows them to
hover continuously over one position on the surface. The geosynchronous plane is about
35,800 km (22,300 miles) above the Earth, high enough to allow the satellites a full-disc
view of the Earth. Because they stay above a fixed spot on the surface, they provide a
constant vigil for the atmospheric "triggers" for severe weather conditions such as
tornadoes, flash floods, hailstorms, and hurricanes. When these conditions develop the
GOES satellites are able to monitor storm development and track their movements.
GOES satellite imagery is also used to estimate rainfall during the thunderstorms and
hurricanes for flash flood warnings, as well as estimates snowfall accumulations and
overall extent of snow cover. Such data help meteorologists issue winter storm warnings
and spring snowmelt advisories. Satellite sensors also detect ice fields and map the
movements of sea and lake ice.
Polar Orbiting Satellites
The POES satellite system offers the advantage of daily global coverage, by making nearly
polar orbits roughly 14.1 times daily. Since the number of orbits per day is not an integer
the sub orbital tracks do not repeat on a daily basis, although the local solar time of each
satellite's passage is essentially unchanged for any latitude. Currently in orbit we have a
morning and afternoon satellite, which provide global coverage four times daily. The POES
system includes the Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer (AVHRR) and the Tiros
Operational Vertical Sounder (TOVS).
Because of the polar orbiting nature of the POES series satellites, these satellites are able
to collect global data on a daily basis for a variety of land, ocean, and atmospheric
applications. Data from the POES series supports a broad range of environmental
monitoring applications including weather analysis and forecasting, climate research and
prediction, global sea surface temperature measurements, atmospheric soundings of
temperature and humidity, ocean dynamics research, volcanic eruption monitoring, forest
fire detection, global vegetation analysis, search and rescue, and many other applications.
Defense Meteorological Satellite Program
Since the mid-1960's, when the Department of Defense (DOD) initiated the Defense
Meteorological Satellite Program (DMSP), low, earth-orbiting satellites have provided the
military with important environmental information.
The DMSP satellites "see" such environmental features as clouds, bodies of water, snow,
fire, and pollution in the visual and infrared spectra. Scanning radiometers record
information which can help determine cloud type and height, land and surface water
temperatures, water currents, ocean surface features, ice, and snow. Communicated to
ground-based terminals, the data is processed, interpreted by meteorologists, and
ultimately used in planning and conducting U.S. military operations worldwide.
Addendum 3
Satellite Orbits
Taken from: AGI – Orbital Mechanics Presentation by Tina Cox
What are orbits?
A closed “path” around which a planet or satellite travels
1) Orbits can be very diverse
2) Eccentricity describes the “roundness” of an orbit.
3) Orbits may have the same eccentricity but be different sizes.
4) Orbits may have the same size and shape, but different orientations.
5) Inclination is the angle between the earth’s equatorial plane and the plane of the
orbit.