Science.8.10.A
The student is expected to describe how energy from the Sun, hydrosphere, and atmosphere interact and influence weather and climate;
Knowledge and Skills Statement
Earth and space. The student knows that interactions between Earth, ocean, and weather systems impact climate.
Further Explanation
One example of a way in which the Sun, hydrosphere, and atmosphere interact is through cloud formation.
Many types of clouds are shown, including combinations of the four main types and the types most likely to produce rain. Four types of clouds that students may know are:
Cirrus
The Latin word cirro means lock of hair or fringe. Composed of ice crystals, cirrus clouds are whitish and horsetail-like. There are high, wispy clouds that first appear in advance of a storm system.
Cumulus
The Latin word cumulo means heap or pile, as in accumulate. They look like white fluffy cotton balls and are usually dense in appearance with sharp outlines. They show vertical motion when there is a thermal uplift of air in the atmosphere. The base of cumulus clouds is generally flat and sits at the altitude where the moisture in rising air condenses.
Stratus
From the Latin word for layer, as in rock or cake strata, these clouds are usually broad and widespread like a blanket. They result from rising air that is not circulating and tends to occur along warm fronts. The edges of strato-form clouds are diffuse and fuzzy.
Nimbus
A special rain cloud category that combines cumulus + cirrus + stratus, nimbus is the Latin word for rain. The vast majority of precipitation occurs from nimbus clouds, therefore, these clouds are generally the thickest.
Supporting Information
Research
Vermette, Stephen. “Five Guiding Principles of Meteorology.” Science Scope 26, no. 2 (2002): 36–37. https://www.proquest.com/docview/226000958?pq-origsite=gscholar&fromopenview=true&sourcetype=Scholarly%20Journals
Summary: "Five Guiding Principles of Meteorology" provides information on the basic processes of meteorology, including hot air rising, rising air expands and cools, rising air lowers surface pressure, air traveling from high pressure to low pressure, and cool air holding less moisture than warm air. Activities to assist students in understanding these guiding principles are incorporated.
Research
Hoenigman, Rhonda, and David Crowder. “Clever with Weather.” Science Scope 34, no. 6 (February 2011): 46–51. https://www.jstor.org/stable/i40124527
Summary: "Clever with Weather" provides a correlating activity between local weather conditions and larger global patterns. Students work to collect weather data, including temperature, wind speed, wind direction, relative humidity, and barometric pressure at various locations around a school. Data is collected over several days and analyzed.