Which way the wind blows

Explain what causes Earth's uneven heating, and contrast angled light rays with direct light rays. 

The earth has uneven heating because the earth is on an axis. The earth is tilted so that causes the sun to hit the earths surface unevenly. We did an assignment using a flashlight that referenced how the sun hit the earth. We titled the flashed causing the light from the flashlight to hit the paper having some parts have less light. I enjoyed doing this project because it helped me understand and visualize how the suns light actually hits the earth.

 Describe prevailing global wind patterns. Put perspective into the trade winds, the doldrums, the horse latitudes, and the westerlies by describing actual events. Write an opinion statement about what you learned from the "Global Wind Patterns" activity.

Trade winds are winds that come from the 30 degree line and move into the equator. The doldrum winds are the winds that blow horizontally on the 0 degree line or the equator.      

Loggerhead Island Report

Tori Coberly

1. What special considerations did you have to make for the nesting sea turtle sites located on the barrier island?

• When building our resort we had to make sure our buildings were far away from the sea turtles so that they would not be harmed.  

2. What special considerations had to be made when determining a good site for the proposed fishing pier?

• We wanted to have our fishing pier in a safe and easily accessible area so we put it in the middle of the lagoon. 

3. What could be some of the potential problems that might arise from the proposed golf course? Propose some of the ways in which the impacts can be reduced.

• All the digging in the ground could harm some wildlife. To reduce having a problem like that we could not do so much digging and have a more wildlife safe environment 

4. What are the economic benefits to the community of Loggerhead County if the development was done with the least amount of environmental impact?

• There would be less damage to the wildlife . Which would better the lives of the sea turtles, scrub jay and the other animals that are living on the island. 

5. Describe three ways in which humans negatively impact coastal ecosystems such as the one you are working on with Loggerhead Barrier Island.

• trash and littering 
• pollution from the cars and houses 
• not respect the boundaries that are set to protect wildlife 

6. How can maintaining natural vegetation help us to reduce the damage caused by oceanic events such as hurricanes, tsunami and continued beach erosion?

• You could make a wall in the ocean to prevent the waves from crashing in and damaging the island

7. After listening to the other groups make their presentations, were there any ideas they had you would have used if you had though about it before-hand? You should list at least three different ideas and indicate why their idea is actually better for the environment than yours. 

• We should of spaced our buildings out better. Most groups spread there building out so that no building were all pushed together and close. 
• We should of put our golf course near where the sea turtles are instead of building our Villas there. Having the golf course in place of the Villas, it is a more safe environment for the turtles. They would not be as disturbed because a golf course is a calm place. 
• We could of have our research center farther away from the town and have it be in a more private place.  

Coastal Classification

A.Volcanic coast, primary
B.Primary, glacier
C.Primary, glacial  erosion
D.Secondary, coastal erosion
E.Primary, barrial island
F.Secondary, coastal plain
G.Secondary, costal plain
H.Primary, nonmarine
I.Secondary, mangrove coast
J.Secondary, fault line coast 
K.Primary, decomposition
L.Primary shore lines
M.Primary coastal plain
N.Primary, earthquakes
O.Secondary, land erosion 
P.Secondary, wave cut beach
Q.Secondary, land fall 
R.Primary, steep glaciers 

Sand Reflection

1.Hampton beach

• color is clear
• not magnectic
• the size is small
• texture is angular
• very well sorted
• mineral 

2.Bonaire

• color is white and pink
• not magnetic
• size is small
• texture is subangular 
• moderatley sorted 
• mineral 

3.Bahamas

• color was clear and white
• not magnetic
• size was small
• texture is angular
• very well sorted
• mineral

4.Red Rock Canyon

• color is orange and clear 
• not magnetic
• size is small
• texture is subangular 
• very well sorted 
• mineral 

5.P.E.I

•  color is orange, yellow and clear
• not magnetic
• size is small
• texture is angular
• very well sorted
• mineral

6.Key West

• color is clear
• not magnetic
• size is very small
• texture is subrounded
• poorly sorted
• mineral

7.Miles Beach

• color is white, yellow, and clear
• not magnetic 
• very small
• texture is angular
•  poorly sorted
• mineral

8.Maui

• color is orange, white, and gray
• magnetic
• size is small
• texture is well rounded
• very well sorted
• rock

Maui and Miles Beach were the two sands i was most intrested in. Maui's sand was very well rounded and was very pretty. The sand is very small rocks. The sand is also very smooth. Under the microscope the sand was very very well sorted.
Miles Beach was very different from Maui's sand. The texture was very different. It was small but very rocky and sharp. The sorting was also very different. The sorting was poorly sorted. It was also much smaller than Maui's sand. Also Miles beach is not magnetic but Maui's sand is magnetic.  

Sounding the Sea; A study in Bathymetric Mapping

Research Question: How can the ocean  floor features be measured and mapped  using current acoustical technology? How can ocean floor maps be used in the commercial, military,  and/ or private sector? 

Flat abyssal plain: normally refers to the flat areas of a deep ocean floor 

Underwater sea-mount or guyot: A flat-topped submarine mountain   

Continental shelf: the underwater extension of the continental land mass 

Submarine canyon on the continental shelf: canyon formations that are a result of water flow scouring typically due to river outlet with the canyons normally found on the continental shelf 

Mid-ocean ridge: A series of mountain ranges on the ocean floor, more than 84,000 kilometers (52,000 miles) in length, extending through the North and South Atlantic, the Indian Ocean, and the South Pacific.   

Island arch system:  The volcanic chain parallels the ocean trench and at sea forms a string of volcanic islands


Analysis: 
Our Topography of our surveyed area was mostly within a range of 2 centimeters with a few bumps that were less. By using remote sensing technology is an advantage because it is easier and gives more accurate readings. Using a Y-axis that is stretched out makes the informationn easier to read by having the numbers at a closer range. 

New Questions: 
what is the best way to measure the ocean floor?
which way of measuring the ocean floor is most used by researchers? 

Importance of This Activity: 
the importance of this was to know how the ocean floor is measured. It is good to know how researchers find out the information they share with us. Knowing how they do things helps us understand how the science of it really works  


RESOURCES:                                                                                                               walrus.wr.usgs.gov/infobank/programs/html/school/.../05.02.11.htm
 http://www.thefreedictionary.com/mid-ocean+ridge
 http://www.eu-hermione.net/science/submarine-canyons
 http://www.le.ac.uk/gl/art/gl209/lecture6/image78.gif - island arch picture link 

People explore the oceans for many reasons. They explore the ocean to discover new things and to get more knowledge on ocean life. But the ocean is still largely unexplored. The compass had a big impact on the world.

Oceanography fieldtrip

Oceanography fieldtrip


On this fieldtrip I learned a lot of new interesting facts. I learned things about the ocean that are very important. We did labs that tested different things about the oceans water. We found out the temperature of the water. We also did a lab to figure out the pH. In one of the labs I found out that plankton produce 60 to 80% of the oxygen that we breathe. They also can grow up to 6-8 feet. We also learned about flounder. When they are babies they have an eye on each side of their head. Over a period of time one eye moves to one side because they live at the bottom of the ocean. I also touched a skate. Learning about the skate was so interesting because they are so cute and so squishy. I had a really good time on this fieldtrip learning about the ocean and the life inside of it.

molasses spill hawaii

The molasses spill was very shocking to everyone. A ship that was carrying molasses leaked as much  as 233,000 gallons of molasses. This ship was carrying the molasses from Hawaii all the way to California. 

 

Thoughts on the effects of the molasses spill 



 "This is the worst environmental damage to sea life that I have come across, and its fair to say this is a biggie, if not the biggest that we've had to confront in the state of Hawaii," said Gary Gill, deputy director for the Environmental Health Division of the Health Department. (http://www.hawaiinewsnow.com)

The molasses damaged the life under water, killing all of the ocean life. There is not much people can do to clean the water that has been affected by the molasses. Hawaii's people are in shock and very upset to see that their water is contaminated and all the life under water has been killed. All the fish, reefs, and other ocean life lie dead at the bottom of the sea.

I personally think that this molasses spill could have been prevented. The people working on the ship and working on the ship should have had a back up plan to prevent a spill. There are many smart people that could have came up with a plan B to prevent such a tragic problem. All they can do now is fix the problem and find a way for this to never happen again. They need to improve the ships so that there will not be another spill that will kill the ocean life and contaminate the water.   

  

    

tori oceanography

     I took this class because it looks interesting. I am  curious about ocean life and I would like to learn about it. I hope I find new interesting facts about the ocean and the life inside the ocean.

     I hope to gain a lot of knowledge about the ocean and how important it is to the world. I also want to know more about the animals in the ocean.
   
     Learning about science is important because people need to learn and understand how things work and just understand life.