Download El Ni.o Geography Instruct

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Geography Worksheet Instructions
Using a map, atlas, or any other materials your teacher suggests, label the following on the blank
map provided.
1. Label East, West, North, and South.
2. Label the following continents:
South America
North America
Australia
Africa
3. Label the Pacific Ocean and the Atlantic Ocean.
4. Label the following countries:
Indonesia
Brazil
India
Mexico
Ecuador
Peru
United States of America
5. Label the Galapagos Islands.
6. Label the Equator.
7. Outline the warm pool in red and label it.
8. In green, indicate the area to which normal upwelling spreads in a non-El Niño year.
Label the area or use a color key on your map.
9. With a blue arrow, illustrate and label the name and direction of winds across the
southern Pacific.
10. Explain the difference between the winds in an El Niño year and winds in a non-El
Niño year.
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Geography Worksheet
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Mathematical Conversions Worksheet
Answer the problems using the following conversion formulas. Keep in mind that all figures in this
worksheet are approximate. Round your answers to the nearest whole numbers.
Unit
˚C (Celsius)
˚F (Fahrenheit)
Meter (1)
Foot (1)
Centimeter (1)
Inch (1)
Kilometer (1)
Mile (1)
Metric Conversion
—
subtract 32 and divide by 1.8
—
0.048 meter
—
2.54 centimeters
—
1.61 kilometers
English Conversion
multiply by 1.8 and add 32
—
3.28 feet
—
0.394 inch
—
0.621 mile
—
Other Unit
Australian to U.S. dollars: A$1.35 = U.S.$1
1. The warm pool is an area in the tropical western Pacific ocean where the warmest ocean waters
in the world are located. These warm waters extend to depths of more than 100 meters. How
many feet is 100 meters? Extra credit: What other metric terms can be used to refer to 100
meters?
2. In an El Niño year, the sea level falls in the west and rises in the east by as much as 10 inches.
How many centimeters is this?
3. Economic loss of production can continue long after an El Niño event. Losses brought on by the
Australian drought that stemmed from the 1982-83 El Niño have been estimated at A$1 billion
each year. How much is this in United States dollars?
4. During the 1982-83 El Niño, sea-surface temperatures at the Galapagos Islands and along the
coast of Ecuador rose from typical average levels of 24˚ Celsius to an average of 29˚ Celsius.
What are these temperatures in degrees Fahrenheit?
5. Temperatures in the warm pool average 88˚ Fahrenheit. What is this in degrees Celsius?
6. El Niño raises water temperatures in a belt across the equatorial Pacific that stretches 5,000
miles. How many kilometers is this? How many feet?
7. The Galapagos Islands are located about 1,000 kilometers off the coast of Ecuador. How many
miles is this?
8. In a normal year, the annual average precipitation along the coast of South America is 25
centimeters; however, rainfall levels can rise by 40% in an El Niño year. How many inches of rain
fall in a normal year? How many inches could fall in an El Niño year?
9. In El Niño years, rainfall in the central Pacific Christmas Islands rises to 47 inches per year from a
normal average level of 5 inches per year. State these measurements in centimeters.
10. Average sea-surface temperature along the Pacific coast of Alaska is 4˚ Celsius in winter and 11˚
Celsius in summer. Convert these temperatures to degrees Fahrenheit.
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Vocabulary Worksheet
Fill in the blanks using words from the vocabulary list below.
1. During El Niño years, ______________________ increases over South and North America
and _____________________ conditions prevail in the western Pacific.
2. The _________________________, an area of intense heating in the western Pacific, is
located near the countries of _________________ and _________________.
3. Although the number of hurricanes increases in the _____________________ during El Niño
years, hurricanes are less common in the _______________________.
4. _____________________—the rising of warm, moist air and its subsequent cooling and
falling—in the western Pacific is one factor that determines the __________________
structure of the atmosphere. It can affect the wet seasons in places as far away as Brazil
and South Africa.
5. Although it is what makes our planet livable, the _______________________ has been
intensifying as a result of industrialization, threatening the planet with
___________________________.
6. There are patterns of motion known as _____________________ in both the atmosphere and
the ocean; the _________________________, named by merchant sailors, are an important
factor in the formation of El Niño events.
7. Strong El Niño events dramatically impact the fishing industry in the countries of
___________________ and _____________________; these events cause problems for the fish,
animals, and birds in the _______________________ Islands.
La Niña
climatological
greenhouse effect
trade winds
Indonesia
warm pool
precipitation
Equator
Ecuador
drought
TOGA COARE
Brazil
hurricane
tropical
Pacific Ocean
food chain
Galapagos
Atlantic Ocean
global warming
convection
current
Peru
Africa
Australia
Mexico
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Upwelling and the Food Chain Worksheet
1. Diagram upwelling on a separate sheet of paper, showing the direction of movement for
water and nutrients. Label the coastline, warm water, cold water, thermocline, and
nutrients. Use colored pencils for clarity and make a legend or color key.
2. What causes upwelling?
3. Nutrients in the water, made available through upwelling, are the starting point for
the food chain, or food web, off the South American west coast.
a. What is a food chain or food web?
b. On another sheet, diagram the food web of the eastern tropical Pacific, using the
ocean nutrients as the start.
4. Choose one of the following regions and diagram the food web for the area. Be as
detailed as possible. In a summary statement, mention ways that El Niño might affect
the food web. Additional research will be needed to detail your diagram.
Western Pacific coral reef
African savannah
Lake region (Australia or Equador and Peru)
North American mountains
Northern coastal rain forests (Alaska)
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Quiz
1. What is El Niño? Discuss its causes and effects and use important geography terms
and vocabulary words. Use the back of this page if necessary.
2. Draw a diagram of upwelling in the space below or on the back of this quiz. Label
warm water, cold water, the coastline, and the thermocline. Use arrows to indicate the
directions of trade winds and water currents.
3. a. Name three types of climates: __________________________________________________
b. Name three types of weather: __________________________________________________
4. The __________________________ is what makes our planet livable, but a dramatic
increase in atmospheric gasses may cause _________________________________________.
5. What is TOGA COARE and what is its purpose?
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