From The Editor
Too often, science is abstract and disconnected - one way or another - from real life. We don't usually dissect frogs or smash atomic particles everyday. There are things, however, that are science-related that affect everyone. One of these is the weather.
The weather gives you a chance to learn science in a practical way that students can understand and relate to almost immediately. Will it be warm today, or cool? Will it rain or snow? Why is it cold in January and hot in July? These questions are weather studies in the making.
This month, the Free Science e-Newsletter looks at weather and how it affects us all, sometimes in ways we never expect. Take a look!
From all of us at The Old Schoolhouse Magazine, have a blessed Thanksgiving!
Steve Walden
Senior Editor, Free Science e-Newsletter
 | Steve Walden lives in Colorado and, together with his wife, homeschools their three children, ages 10, 7, and 3. He is a freelance writer and editor with articles appearing in The Old Schoolhouse Magazine, Focus On Your Child: Discovery Years, and Familymanweb.com. When he's not blogging at Walden's Wits on www.HomeschoolBlogger.com, he's searching for new opportunities to write about homeschooling, parenting, and connecting with God.
His dream is to operate a retreat center in Colorado that promotes the concept of rediscovering God as our first love and the source of our strength. |
What Causes The Seasons?
Courtesy of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)
The seasons have nothing to do with how far the Earth is from the Sun. If this were the case, it would be hotter in the northern hemisphere during January as opposed to July. Instead, the seasons are caused by the Earth being tilted on its axis by an average of 23.5 degrees (Earth's tilt on its axis actually varies from near 22 degrees to 24.5 degrees). Here's how it works…
Image courtesy NASA
The Earth has an elliptical orbit around our Sun. This being said, the Earth is at its closest point distance wise to the Sun in January (called the Perihelion) and the furthest in July (the Aphelion). But this distance change is not great enough to cause any substantial difference in our climate. This is why the Earth's 23.5 degree tilt is all important in changing our seasons. Near June 21st, the summer solstice, the Earth is tilted such that the Sun is positioned directly over the Tropic of Cancer at 23.5 degrees north latitude. This situates the northern hemisphere in a more direct path of the Sun's energy. What this means is less sunlight gets scattered before reaching the ground because it has less distance to travel through the atmosphere. In addition, the high sun angle produces long days. The opposite is true in the southern hemisphere, where the low sun angle produces short days. Furthermore, a large amount of the Sun's energy is scattered before reaching the ground because the energy has to travel through more of the atmosphere. Therefore near June 21st, the southern hemisphere is having its winter solstice because it "leans" away from the Sun.
Advancing 90 days, the Earth is at the autumnal equinox on or about September 21st. As the Earth revolves around the Sun, it gets positioned such that the Sun is directly over the equator. Basically, the Sun's energy is in balance between the northern and southern hemispheres. The same holds true on the spring equinox near March 21st, as the Sun is once again directly over the equator.
Lastly, on the winter solstice near December 21st, the Sun is positioned directly over the Tropic of Capricorn at 23.5 degrees south latitude. The southern hemisphere is therefore receiving the direct sunlight, with little scattering of the sun's rays and a high sun angle producing long days. The northern hemisphere is tipped away from the Sun, producing short days and a low sun angle.
What kind of effect does the earth's tilt and subsequent seasons have on our length of daylight (defined as sunrise to sunset). Over the equator, the answer is not much. If you live on or very close to the equator, your daylight would be basically within a few minutes of 12 hours the year around. Using the northern hemisphere as a reference, the daylight would lengthen/shorten during the summer/winter moving northward from the equator. The daylight difference is subtle in the tropics, but becomes extremely large in the northern latitudes. Where we live in the mid latitudes, daylight ranges from about 15 hours around the summer solstice to near nine hours close to the winter solstice. Moving to the arctic circle at 66.5 degrees north latitude, the Sun never sets from early June to early July. But around the winter solstice, the daylight only lasts slightly more than two hours. There becomes a profound difference in the length of daylight heading north of the arctic circle. Barrow, Alaska at slightly more than 71 degrees north latitude, lies just less than 300 nautical miles north of the arctic circle. Barrow sees two months of total darkness, as the Sun never rises for about a month on each side of the winter solstice. On the other hand, Barrow also has total light from mid May to early August. And what about the North Pole, or 90 degrees north latitude? The Sun rises in the early evening near the spring equinox and never sets again until just after the autumnal equinox, or six months of light. Conversely, after the Sun sets in the mid morning just after the autumnal equinox, it will not be seen again until the following spring equinox, equating to six months of darkness.
Are you a Subscriber to The Old Schoolhouse Magazine?
Here's what our readers are saying:
"A mind banquet! I am in awe of how much you put together in one issue, and in such a pleasant and inviting way. I will feast and dine at this banquet repeatedly, for there always seems to be something fresh to savor upon each return."
--Glenna Grant, Loxley, AL
US Subscriptions:
Whether you are new to our magazine or a long-time subscriber, The Old Schoolhouse® Magazine has an incredible offer that you won't want to pass up!
In the past, we couldn't offer the renewing subscribers the 19 free gifts - those were only for new customers. But for a limited time only, RENEWING subscribers get all 19 gifts, too!
I'm a new subscriber…what do I get?
With your two-year subscription to TOS you'll receive:
- A 2-year/3-year subscription to The Old Schoolhouse® Magazine
- 19 FREE gifts for you (over $200 value)
All this for ONLY $39 for 2 years and $59 for 3 years
Click Here to Purchase Online
Or, call 1-888-718-HOME
Already a subscriber?
Renew now and receive your choice of either Two or Three more years of your favorite homeschool magazine and 19 FREE gifts.
All this for ONLY $39 for 2 years and $59 for 3 years
Click Here to Purchase!
Or, call 1-888-718-HOME
The first 3,000 two-year or three-year new subscriber or renewing your two or three year subscription, you will receive (by USPS mail) NINETEEN free homeschooling gifts. But you don't get four gifts - you get 19! Even the shipping is paid for, and you are not required to buy anything again.
Hurry! Promotion will sell out fast! - TOS Staff
(US Residents Only)
Click Here to View the FREE Gifts |
 |
International Subscriptions:
Whether you view your subscription as a gift for yourself, a homeschool conference delivered to your door, a professional journal, or simply a wonderful opportunity to fellowship with other homeschool families around the world, subscribe now to insure that you are in the first 2,000 and receive this incredible International Subscription Homeschool Gift Pack!
One-Year International Subscription:
Receive four issues of The Old Schoolhouse® Magazine delivered directly to your door and 19 FREE gifts from our generous sponsors. Subscribe now! Only $38!
And we have an additional gift for two-year and three-year subscribers!
Two-Year or Three-Year International Subscription:
Receive 8 issues of The Old Schoolhouse® Magazine, the 19 free gifts, AND our Secrets of Successful Homeschooling e-book! Subscribe now! Only $69 for 2 years and $83 for 3 years!
These special offers will expire soon, though. Subscribe or renew today so you don't miss out on this opportunity!
We have three easy ways to subscribe!
- Subscribe online
- Call 1-888-718-HOME
- Mail your order to:
The Old Schoolhouse® Magazine, LLC
PO Box 10
White Pine, TN 37890
Hurry! Promotion will sell out fast! - TOS Staff
(International Residents Only)
Click Here to View the FREE Gifts
|
Inside El Nino By Steve Walden
This winter is predicted to see the return of El Nino, a weather pattern that has a significant effect on the Americas and Australia. It brings a change, sometimes a severe change, to our weather. For some, it may mean heavy snows and for others, it may mean warm and balmy weather.
|
| What is El Nino?
El Nino is known in scientific circles as El Nino/Southern Oscillation or ENSO for short. Translated from Spanish, El Nino means "child" and refers to the Christ child because the weather pattern typically shows itself around Christmas time. The northeastern United States as well as Australia typically suffers drought during El Nino years while the southern US receives more precipitation than normal. It also affects temperatures, with the northwestern US experiencing much warmer temperatures and the extreme southeast US enduring colder temperatures. Its effects are nearly global, but it hits South America hardest, often causing flooding in Peru and Ecuador.
|
What causes El Nino?
ENSO is linked to a periodic warming of sea temperatures across the central and eastern Pacific Ocean along the equator. Although the temperature is only a few degrees warmer, it impacts the air pressure over these areas and makes the weather change. Like placing a rock in a stream, it has a ripple effect for the areas around it. A bigger rock means bigger ripples and warmer water means a bigger effect for our weather.
|
|
|
| Why is El Nino so important?
El Nino has a much bigger effect than whether you can go outside and play or whether you'll shovel snow more often this winter. For example, in 1982, a strong El Nino effect caught many people by surprise. Fish populations were reduced or changed their patterns because of a lack of nutrients in the Pacific waters. In turn, this affects birds and sea mammals that depend on these fish to survive. South American fishing industries took a big hit when their regular harvests of fish failed at a cost of over $8 Billion. Similar changes affected farming and harvests worldwide, causing food shortages.
|
These changes affect not only the agriculture, but the economy. A flood can wipe out entire industries in a region. If an area is determined to be unreliable in the amounts of rainfall it receives, it could hinder the economic development of not only the area, but the country as well. Snowmelt from the mountains can also damage towns and cities if it melts too quickly from a sudden El Nino-induced warm-up.
Although this year El Nino is expected to be less than severe, it's always possible for predictions to fail. Scientists and mathematicians have always battled for accuracy but random elements and variables make accurate predictions difficult. Still, with more research and study, the work that goes into predicting these weather patterns yields better results. Who knows? Perhaps your child will become an oceanographer or a meteorologist and help improve this developing science. If your child loves weather, you might want to check out A Career Guide for the Atmospheric Sciences.
Reference Articles:
• http://www.atmos.washington.edu/gcg/RTN/rtnt.html
• http://www.cpc.ncep.noaa.gov/products/analysis_monitoring/ensostuff/ensofaq.shtml
• http://www.spacedaily.com/news/pacific-02g.html
What are your favorite homeschool resources?
We want to know!
Every year The Old Schoolhouse Magazine presents Excellence in Education Awards to companies who offer homeschoolers’ favorite curriculum and resources.
We need your vote!
Please tell us your picks for 2006 today!
NOAAs Ark of Educational Resources Compiled by Steve Walden
Many homeschooling parents don't know about the wonderful resources offered to teachers by NOAA, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. There is a boatload of information just waiting to be used by homeschooling parents in educating their children about the weather, something that happens every day, rain or shine.
The first place to get started is NOAA's Educational Resources page. This site gives over 30 links to information designed for students and their teachers. Be sure to check out the Classroom Materials and Student Sites.
Student Activities in Meteorology has plenty of ready-to-use activities for your student. The Teachers Information section has the answer key.
|
 |
Student Activities in Meteorology II has more activities, including an investigation of El Nino. Additionally, if you're looking for the facts on El Nino/ENSO, the Climate Prediction Center is the place to get started.
Not technical enough? Try the NSSL. For most people, the first time they ever heard of the National Severe Storms Laboratory (NSSL) was a reference in the movie Twister. There's more to NSSL than the glamorous job of predicting tornadoes. Just ask Daphne, as she has quite a few ideas about Using Weather To Teach Science and Math. NSSL also has coloring books for the younger set. Clearly, the emphasis of these coloring books is on education, not artistry or realism.
Looking for something for your 12 to 15 year old? Try the University of South Alabama's NOAA site. They have a lot of workbooks in PDF format that you can print up with a few clicks.
The National Climatic Data Center is the place for your prep student to help them produce that prize-winning report on the greenhouse effect. It has all the raw data you could think to ask for.
Teach your children about the water cycle with this game.
Drought doesn't just mean stunted crops and dry weather. Help your kids learn about drought and how it affects us at this site.
As you can see, there's more than enough information to make an entire month of studying the weather. Have your kids do a project or give a report on weather to their relatives at Thanksgiving or around Christmas. It may open some eyes, and not just to the science of weather!
The Schoolhouse Store Spotlight
From Steve Walden and the rest of The Old Schoolhouse® Magazine team, thank you for subscribing to the FREE Science e-Newsletter! As Senior Editor, I welcome your feedback and comments. Please e-mail me at FreeScience@TheHomeschoolMagazine.com. Don't forget to check out our website and magazine. Have a great Thanksgiving!
Disclaimer and Warning:
Activities, projects and experiments presented or contained in this newsletter ("Activities") are intended for educational and entertainment purposes only. Some Activities may involve health risks or other hazards, including a risk of serious injury. Responsible adults should investigate and evaluate all potential health risks and other hazards prior to engaging in Activities alone or with minor children. Please exercise caution and take appropriate safety measures to avoid or lessen the risk of injury to people or property. Activities are not appropriate for children and teens of all ages. Children and teenagers should attempt Activities only under direct, appropriate parental supervision. The Old Schoolhouse Magazine, LLC accepts no responsibility or liability, express or implied, for injury, loss, or damage of any kind resulting from the use or misuse of Activities or other information contained in this newsletter.
|
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The following information is a reminder of your current
mailing list subscription:
You are subscribed to the following list:
The Old Schoolhouse® Magazine Newsletters - Free Science using the following
email: freescience@tosmagazine.com
You may automatically
unsubscribe from this list at any time by visiting the following URL:
http://www.tosmagazine.com/cgi-bin/dada/mail.cgi/u/freescience/
If the above URL is inoperable, make sure that you have copied the
entire address.
Some mail readers will wrap a long URL and thus break this
automatic unsubscribe mechanism.
You may also change your subscription
by visiting this list's main screen:
http://www.tosmagazine.com/cgi-bin/dada/mail.cgi/list/freescience
If you're still having trouble, please contact the list owner at: freescience@tosmagazine.com
The following physical address is associated with this mailing list:
http://www.theoldhomeschoolhouse.com/
|
