A hurricane warning has been issued and communities must be informed of the need to evacuate. Teams will create presentations explaining how hurricanes form and intensify, how scientists forecast storm strength, and how climate change is increasing hurricane risks. By understanding hurricane science and threats, communities will recognize the importance of heeding evacuation orders to stay safe.

1. 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 safe in an area
with no
communication, no
clean water, no power.
Before Hurricane Ike Hurricanes are an
http://geology.com/usgs/hurricane-ike-pictures.shtml increasing threat to
our costal regions.
(Images: Oblique aerial photography of Bolivar Peninsula, TX, on September 9, 2008 (top) and September 15, 2008,
two days after landfall of Hurricane Ike (bottom). Yellow arrows mark features that appear in each image. In addition
to the loss of houses, the evidence of inundation here includes eroded dune face and sand deposited well inland of the
shoreline.)
Weather 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
unprecedented.
After Hurricane Ike There is strong After Hurricane Ike
evidence that this
http://geology.com/usgs/hurricane-ike-pictures.shtmlhttp://geology.com/usgs/hurricane-ike-pictures.shtml
is due to global
warming which
can increase the intensity of a hurricane storm. This puts our coastal communities in
increasing jeopardy.
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 an informational movie or PowerPoint presentation to deliver to the communities

2. 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. How this intense phase of hurricane seasons are being effected by global
warming. 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 the threat. When the
time comes they will understand the severity of the 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, climate and
global warming,
collaborate with your
teammates, learn
through research and
discussion, collaborate
more and then
communicate your
team’s understanding
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? What effect do warming temperature
have?
• 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

3. 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
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.

4. 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
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