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The Thermohaline Circulation - The Great Ocean Conveyor Belt
Provided by: CLEAN |Published on: March 20, 2021
Articles/Websites Grades 6-8, 9-12
Synopsis
- This video and article explain thermohaline circulation, or the movement of cold surface water into the deeper parts of the ocean, which occurs near polar regions.
- Students will also learn about the Antarctic Circumpolar Current, a current that flows around the Earth without encountering any land masses, allowing for thermohaline circulation.
Subjects: Earth and Space Sciences
Authors: NASA /Goddard Space Flight Center Scientific Visualization Studio
Region: Global
Languages: English
Teaching Materials
Positives
- The article does a good job of explaining thermohaline circulation.
- The video presents a simple animation of the ocean currents that will help students to visualize thermohaline circulation.
Additional Prerequisites
- Teachers may want to read the article with students before viewing the video because the video does not have any audio or text to describe the phenomenon.
- Teachers may want to pause the animation at intervals to discuss what is happening in the visualization.
Differentiation
- In advanced earth science classes, teachers could show the video to students without any context and ask them to form a hypothesis about what is happening.
- Classes could discuss why the thermohaline circulation is likened to an ocean conveyor belt and the effect that the circulation has on ocean ecosystems.
- Other resources on this topic include this TED-Ed video on ocean currents, this video on the ways that climate change impacts ocean currents, and this video on how oceans circulate.
Scientist Notes
Teaching Tips
Standards
Resource Type and Format
About the Partner Provider
CLEAN
The CLEAN Network is a professionally diverse community of over 630 members committed to improving climate and energy literacy locally, regionally, nationally, and globally in order to enable responsible decisions and actions. The CLEAN Network has been a dynamic group since 2008 and is now led by the CLEAN Leadership Board established in 2016.
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