global windsand ocean currents- indianapolis public schools（全球洋流windsand——印第安纳波利斯公立学校）（5页）.docVIP

Name___________________________ Date __________ Period____ Group____ Winds, Currents and Temperature Part 1: Global Winds and Ocean Currents Purpose: To demonstrate how winds influence surface currents. Background Information: The surface currents of the major ocean basins show similarities to the prevailing wind systems that drive them. Contained by continental boundaries and deflected by the rotation of the Earth (Coriolis Effect), these surface currents flow in large, roughly circular patterns called gyres. Gyres play an important role in redistributing heat from the low to middle and high latitudes, thus influencing air temperature, weather, and climate. Procedure: Fill the pie pan with water about half way. Let the water sit for about a minute so that it is completely still. Sprinkle a few (15-20) of the paper circles on the top of the water. Have two people, one from the left and one from the right, blow through the straw as shown below. You want to create a clockwise gyre. (Movement of the paper circles is clockwise). Repeat step 3 so that you produce a counterclockwise gyre. Now move your straw to new locations until you find the best position to create two gyres simultaneously in the dish. When you are finished, DO NOT DUMP WATER DOWN THE DRAIN. Return water to the front of the room to be filtered. Questions: Draw a picture of the locations of the straws, wind movement and water movement below: Based on the following map showing global wind patterns, predict the location of gyres in the North and South Atlantic Oceans. Draw and label your prediction on the map below. At what latitude are your ocean gyres centered? What direction, clockwise or counterclockwise, does the gyre rotate in the Northern Hemisphere? What direction, clockwise or counterclockwise, does the gyre rotate in the Southern Hemisphere? In both the North and South Pacific Oceans, the gyre circulation transports warm water from the equatorial reg