Unit Title : Weather & Atmosphere

1. Unit Title: Weather & Atmosphere

2. Essential concepts (major goals & learning outcomes) • What do you think air is made of? • What is the composition of air? • Is ozone good or bad for you, or both? • What essential gases make up the atmosphere? • What are the characteristics of each layer of the atmosphere? • What are point sources air pollution? • What are and non-point sources of pollution? • How does weather affect our daily lives? • What evidence do we have that supports the concept of global warming? • How do people effect the climate?

3. 11. What are the various ways we study weather? 12. How is air quality monitored and measured? 13. How is air quality communicated to the public? 14. How do humans impact air quality? 15. What are some ways to reduce air pollution? 16. What are the financial and economic trade-offs affecting air quality? 17. How does technology help us better predict weather conditions? 18. How do humans impact the atmosphere and natural resources? 19. Why is it necessary to study, collect data, and communicate information about the atmosphere?

4. EQ: What do you think air is made of? • In your Interactive notebook, make a KWL Chart and answer this question.

5. Notes to take---Cornell Style • Atmosphere- a blanket of air that surrounds the earth. • Air is made up of 78% nitrogen, 21% oxygen and 1% trace gases (the 1% is a combination of several gases). • We breathe air that is 21% oxygen, and we require oxygen to breathe. (You might think that breathing 100% oxygen would be good for us, but actually it can be very harmful. It can cause nausea, dizziness and chest pains.)

6. http://www.videojug.com/expertanswer/fun-science-space/what-is-air-made-up-ofhttp://www.videojug.com/expertanswer/fun-science-space/what-is-air-made-up-of • What is air? Let’s here what a scientists says…..

7. The atmosphere is divided into four distinct layers: 1.TROPOSPHERE, 2. STRATOSPHERE, 3. MESOSPHERE, 4. THERMOSPHERE

8. 1. Draw a picture in your interactive notebook showing the four layers of air. Be colorful and neat! Work Time! • 2. Next complete the Brace Map Handout. This will be pasted into your Interactive Notebooks. • You may use your book as a reference for each activity

9. What are some of your answers from the Brace Map? • troposphere- layer nearest Earth, where weather occurs and airplanes fly, temperature drops as altitude increases, where people live, known as lower layer of atmosphere • stratosphere- where most jets fly, where the ozone layer is found, atmosphere is drier, ozone here absorbs and scatters UV radiation • mesosphere- called the middle atmosphere, it is the coldest layer of the atmosphere, radio waves are reflected to Earth and meteors burn up in this layer, temperature continues to decrease with altitude • thermosphere- temperatures can be very hot in this layer, known as upper atmosphere, temperature increases with altitude- it is the hottest layer, aurora lights occur here, may also be called the ionosphere

10. What about Ultra-violet rays and Ozone? • Ultraviolet Radiation background information: • Sunlight is the greatest source of UV radiation. Man-made ultraviolet sources include several types of UV lamps. UV radiation is commonly used in industrial processes and in medical and dental practices for a variety of purposes, such as killing bacteria, creating fluorescent effects, welding, phototherapy and sun tanning.

11. The sun radiates energy in a wide range of wavelengths, most of which are invisible to human eyes. The shorter the wavelength, the more energetic the radiation, and the greater the potential for harm. Living things(us) and the cells they are made of are protected from large amounts of UV radiation by a chemical called ozone.

12. Ozone • A layer of ozone in the upper atmosphere absorbs UV radiation and prevents most of it from reaching the Earth. Without the layer of ozone in the stratosphere to protect us from excessive amounts of UV-B radiation, life as we know it would not be the same. Ozone can be good or bad, depending on where it is found.

13. Ozone • Good ozone (stratospheric ozone)- shields us from the suns UV rays. It is found 10-30 miles above Earth’s surface in the stratosphere. • Bad ozone (troposphericozone)- found in the lower atmosphere, near the ground, is formed by cars, power plants, chemical plants and other sources that react in the presence of sunlight. It is a greater concern in areas with higher temperatures and higher pollution. • Ozone layer protects us from the ultraviolet rays.But a very large ozone hole was discovered in the ozone layer over Antarctic. It is as large as 3 times the area of Australia

14. Who is at the highest risk for damage from the ozone? • Children who spend a lot of time playing outdoors in the summer. • Anyone who has asthma or other respiratory disorders. • Adults of all ages who work vigorously outside. • Ozone is like sunburn for the lungs. The only difference is that the lungs have no nerves, so you can’t feel the pain!

15. (There is no such thing as a safe tan.) (There is no such thing as a safe tan.) It’s not all bad news!!!!! • Radiation is good because it keeps Earth warm. Some UV exposure is essential for good health because it stimulates vitamin D production in the body. • In medical practice, UV lamps are used for treating psoriasis and for treating jaundice in newborn babies. • However, ultraviolet radiation can also be harmful because too much exposure can lead to cancer. There is no such thing as a safe tan!!!!!

16. Accuweather.com Weather videos:A person who predicts and studies the weather is called a METEROLOGIST! • http://www.accuweather.com/media-player.asp?partner=accuweather&myadc=0&traveler=0&vidcode=undefined&issub=undefined&subindex=undefined&adfirst=undefined