1. ESSEA Sarah Brumberg
A Hurricane is Coming! A Hurricane is Coming!
It is time to
evacuate!
Every time this warning goes out, some do not heed the call! In every major storm, life is
lost along with the countless dollars in property damage. In every storm rescue workers
put their own lives at risk,
trying to save people
who haven’t heard or
haven’t heeded the call
to go. Even in the after
math of a storm it can be
difficult to keep people QuickTimeª and a
safe in an area with no decompressor
are needed to see this picture.
communication, no clean
water, no power.
Hurricanes are an
increasing threat to our Before Hurricane Ike
costal regions. Weather http://geology.com/usgs/hurricane-ike-pictures.shtml
goes through long time
cycles or
phases and we have
entered a more intense
phase for hurricanes
seasons. Beyond that,
the severities of the
recent storms are still
http://geology.com/usgs/hurricane-ike-pictures.shtml unprecedented. There
QuickTimeª and a
is strong evidence that
decompressor
are needed to see this picture. this is due to global
warming which can
increase the intensity
of a hurricane storm.
This puts our coastal
After Hurricane Ike communities in
increasing jeopardy.
http://geology.com/usgs/hurricane-ike-pictures.shtml
Now more than ever,
we must make people understand how important it is for them to evacuate. Citizens need
to know how much we understand about how hurricanes develop and why we think the
upcoming season will have intense storms. Your team’s job is to create a PowerPoint
presentation to deliver to the communities about how the decision to evacuate is
formulated. You need to teach them how hurricanes form and how scientists estimate the
intensity from the conditions in which the storm forms. For people to take evacuation
seriously, they need to know what goes into the decision. Your job as a team is to make
sure people understand. When the time comes they will understand the severity of the

2. situation. They will be ready and they will go to safety, keep rescue workers safe as well!
Your job is to explore
your understanding of
hurricanes, collaborate
with your teammates,
learn through research
and discussion,
collaborate more and
then communicate
your team’s
understand through a
PowerPoint
presentation to a
community group.
Here are the 6 steps to
follow:
Read the entire
description of the project including the rubric before beginning
One: Brainstorm. Every person should first make a write what s/he knows about the
following list of questions. Write all the sphere to sphere connections, event to sphere
connections and causal chains. As you go, create a list of things you need to know or
questions that you have.
• What is a hurricane? How are hurricanes created?
• What conditions intensify hurricanes?
• How do hurricanes move? What happens when they make landfall?
Two: Collaborate by brainstorming with your teammates. Do this by sharing your lists
with each other. Choose a note-taker and a question-writer. Give a written version of
your brainstorm to the note-taker and keep one for yourself. Share you understanding
through discussion. How does your ESS analysis compare to others? Try to answer
others questions as a group. As you go have the question-writer keep a list of questions
the group needs to research.
Three: Research by dividing up the research questions between teammates. Research
using from the list given or from trusted sites. Answer the questions as fully as you can.
Four: Collaborate more by sharing your research and deciding what points and
information need to be included in your PowerPoint. Create a list of questions that the
group still has which may be extension questions. Reevaluate your group list of
connections and chains. Add our new understanding.
Five: Create a PowerPoint that describes your scientific understanding of hurricanes
development and the effect of interconnectedness of the ES systems. Include what you
have learned about the path of hurricanes and development of hurricane intensity. Make
sure that you use images, charts and /or graphs to help your explanation and hold interest.
Also, create a bulleted list of the important information you are including. Share this list

3. with your instructor and the other groups to get feedback to prepare yourselves for the
presentation. Give feedback to other groups on their lists. Revise your PowerPoint if
needed.
Six: Present it to a group of “community members” (This may include parents, school
staff and students.) Ask your Audience for feedback. Do they understand how
hurricanes are formed? Do they have a sense of how interconnected Does this knowledge
help them to understand why evacuation is necessary?
Rubric follows
Extensions:
Wetland extension- What kind of effect do national and local wetland policies have
extent of the destruction that hurricanes have on the land? How is local wetland policy
influenced by industry? What effect does the upper Mississippi River Basin have on the
wetlands and shorelines that are likely to be vulnerable to hurricanes?
Websites:
Movie- brief overview of what is a hurricane development:
http://dsc.discovery.com/videos/hurricane-development.html
Straight-forward description of Hurricanes with interactive pieces. Very cool
GoogleEarth Hurricane tracker with NASA info. Click around to multiple pages. Lots of
info.
http://ww2010.atmos.uiuc.edu/(Gh)/guides/mtr/hurr/home.rxml
Categorizing Hurricane intensity
http://www.cotf.edu/ete/modules/sevweath/swintensity.html
from part of a NASA partnered project called Center for Educational Technologies
NOAA description of The Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Scale
http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/aboutsshs.shtml
NG article on the effects of global warming on Hurricanes:
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2005/08/0804_050804_hurricanewarming_2.ht
ml Useful liks from this page to
Global Warming and Hurricanes. GFDL Model Simulations: Atlantic Hurricane Activity.
http://www.gfdl.noaa.gov/~tk/glob_warm_hurr.html NOAA scientist study presented.
Regular fluctuation of temperatures and hurricanes
http://www.aoml.noaa.gov/phod/amo_faq.php
Coral like tree rings as evidence of our past (It must be in two lines as seen to connect)
http://www.gsajournals.org/perlserv/?request=get-
abstract&doi=10.1130%2FG24321A.1&ct=1

4. Hurricane Research Division-Frequently asked questions/Hurricane awareness
http://www.aoml.noaa.gov/hrd/tcfaq/tcfaqHED.html
Hurricanes general info
http://www.fema.gov/kids/hurr.htm
Hurricanes...Unleashing Natures Fury, A preparedness guide. Useful generalized list
http://www.nws.noaa.gov/om/brochures/hurr.pdf