Earth Science: Geology, the Environment, and the Universe

Unit 4: The Atmosphere and the Oceans

WebQuest Projects 1

Introduction

In this WebQuest, students conduct research into why and how hurricane hunters use aircraft and special equipment to study hurricanes. They investigate conditions inside hurricanes, and learn how hurricanes are classified based on their intensity and potential to do damage. Students learn how hurricane hunters collect data while flying through a hurricane , and examine how this data is used to increase the accuracy of forecasts made by meteorologists about the path and intensity of a storm. Students answer a series of questions based on their research, focusing on the important job performed by pilots and crew members who fly hurricane reconnaissance missions on a regular basis.

Task

Students will answer eight questions which will help guide them through their Internet research. Each Web site has some of the answers, but none of the Web sites alone will address all of the questions. Students should be able to compile information to answer the questions as they investigate each Web site.

By researching the Web sites to find answers to the questions, students will gain an understanding of the role played by hurricane hunters in forecasting the path, potential to cause property damage or loss of life, and intensity of a developing hurricane. They will learn how various instruments are used to collect weather data. They will also develop an understanding of what it is like to fly through a hurricane by reading personal accounts and quotes from hurricane hunters. Students will use the information they gather to create a scrapbook which chronicles what it is like to be a hurricane hunter.

Objectives

• Explain why aircraft are used to gather information about weather conditions inside of hurricanes.
• Describe the role played by hurricane hunters in making accurate forecasts about the track and intensity of hurricanes.
• Identify specific weather information collected by instruments flown into hurricanes aboard hurricane hunting aircraft.
• Give examples of the types of equipment used on hurricane hunting aircraft.
• Give examples of how aircraft are modified to fly through the study conditions inside hurricanes.
• Differentiate between categories of the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Rating Scale.
• Describe conditions inside of a hurricane, including weather conditions in the eyewall as well as the eye of a storm.
• Describe what it is like, as a crew member on a hurricane hunting mission, to fly through a hurricane.
• Design and create a scrapbook that illustrates what it is like to be a hurricane hunter.

Resources

Students will use the Internet links provided to research the challenges faced by pilots and crew who serve as hurricane hunters. They will learn about the characteristics of hurricanes, as well as why the measurements crew members make are so important in producing accurate forecasts of the path and intensity of hurricanes. They will discover the identity and motivation of the first person to intentionally fly through a hurricane, and compare his motivation to that of those who pilot hurricane hunting aircraft today. They will identify the types of equipment used by crew members, as well as the specific atmospheric measurements made. Students will also describe what it is like to fly into the calm, clear eye of a hurricane from the stormy eyewall surrounding it.

The resources provided will enable students to design and create a scrapbook that chronicles what it is like to be a hurricane hunter. The scrapbook will use diagrams, photographs, quotes, and personal anecdotes to demonstrate the unique nature of this fascinating job.

Time

1-2 weeks to answer the question set and design and produce the scrapbook.

Process

As students conduct research by investigating the Web sites provided, help them focus on the information in the questions. This will provide students a sense of direction as they approach each site. Remind students that they will use the information they are gathering to create a scrapbook which should have visual appeal while presenting key information about the job of a hurricane hunter and the challenges faced in this vocation. As students conduct research, remind them to catalog any images they would like to include, as well as the specific information they would like to present on each page of the scrapbook. Give students examples of ways to give credit for any quotes, anecdotes, images, or photographs they use. For example, credit can be given on a particular scrapbook page, or compiled on a single page at the end of the book. Students should understand, however, the importance of giving credit for any information they use while creating the final product.

As students conduct research, encourage them to develop a skeletal outline for the scrapbook. What information should come first? What is a logical order in which to present information about hurricanes and hurricane hunting?

Be available to provide guidance and answer questions as students design and create their scrapbooks. Students should include as much of the suggested information as possible. The finished product should be visually appealing, including clearly labeled photographs or other graphic displays, as well as concise and descriptive written material.

Have students review the rubric. Make sure they understand how the final product will be evaluated.

If time permits, allow students to share their scrapbooks in pairs or small groups of classmates. Encourage students to share their scrapbooks with school staff and family members. Selected books could be added to existing career information in the school Guidance Department.

Evaluation

You may assign ten points to each of the eight questions for a total of 80 possible points. The answers to the questions are given below. Rate the answer to each question using the following scale: Excellent – 9-10 points; Very Good – 7-8 points; Good – 5-6 points; Satisfactory – 3-4 points; Poor – 1-2 points; and Unsatisfactory – 0 points.

Answers to Questions About Hurricanes and Hurricane Hunters

1. While information provided by satellites is crucial in hurricane forecasting, satellite imagery cannot give forecasters all the data they need to accurately predict when and where a storm will make landfall, nor how intense it will be when it comes ashore. Some information, like surface pressure, cannot be detected by satellite. In addition, airplanes can find the precise center of a hurricane, which may be different than it appears on a satellite image. Millions of dollars can be spent preparing property to weather a hurricane and evacuating people from the storm’s path. The financial and human cost of making accurate, credible forecasts is high. A combination of data collected by satellite and aircraft provides the best possible picture of how a hurricane is developing.
2. On July 27, 1943, Colonel Joseph Duckworth was the first pilot to intentionally fly an aircraft into a hurricane. Colonel Duckworth was teaching a group of British pilots training in the United States during World War II how to fly planes in conditions of poor visibility using instruments rather than visual cues. As a hurricane approached, the pilots teased Duckworth when special preparations were made to protect his aircraft. To silence their teasing, and to prove the durability of the aircraft, Colonel Duckworth successfully made the first recorded flight directly into a hurricane.
3. There are two groups of hurricane hunters who are responsible for relaying information to the National Hurricane Center. One group makes up the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Association Corps. At roughly 300 individuals stationed in Florida, this is the nation’s smallest uniformed service. The other group is the Air Force Reserve’s 53rd Weather Reconnaissance Squadron, based on Mississippi.
4. Hurricane hunters gather information including temperature, dewpoint, barometric pressure, humidity, and wind speed, as well as data about electrical fields and other properties of clouds. GPS dropsondes connect this information to a specific position. Other instruments used by hurricane hunters include Doppler radar, precipitation probes, cloud particle probes, barometers, sea surface and air temperature radiometers, and hygrometers.
5. A dropsonde is a canister that contains a variety of weather-sensing and directional equipment. One crew member is responsible for periodically releasing dropsondes from the plane. Carried by parachute, they fall to the sea surface, collecting and radioing back to the aircraft the exact position from which temperature, humidity, barometric pressure, and wind speed measurements are taken. These instruments allow hurricane hunters to match data with a specific GPS (Global Positioning System) location, and allow data collection at many altitudes and locations within a storm.
6. The Saffir Simpson Hurricane Rating Scale ranks hurricanes in five categories based primarily on wind speed. The scale is used to estimate potential property damage and flooding which could occur in coastal areas when a storm makes landfall. Category One hurricanes have wind speeds from 74 to 95 miles per hour (119 to153 kilometers per hour). No real damage to structures is done by these storms. Category Two hurricanes have wind speeds from 96 to 110 miles per hour (154 to 177 kilometers per hour). The roofs, doors, and windows of buildings can be damaged, while considerable damage is typically done to plants, mobile homes, signs, and piers. Category Three hurricanes have wind speeds from 111 to 130 miles per hour (178 to 209 kilometers per hour). Leaves are blown off of trees, and large trees can be blown down. Mobile homes and poorly constructed signs are typically destroyed, and well-built structures near the coast can suffer damage from battering by storm debris. Evacuation within several blocks of the shoreline may be required. Category Four hurricanes have wind speeds from 131 to 155 miles per hour (210 to 249 kilometers per hour). Roofs can be blown off, and shrubs, trees, and all signs are blown down. Mobile homes are destroyed, and doors and windows on other structures can suffer extreme damage. Major damage is typically done to the lower floors of structures near the shore. Evacuation as far as six miles (10 kilometers) inland may be required. A Category Five hurricane has wind speeds greater than 155 miles per hour (249 kilometers per hour). Roofs are blown off of many structures, and some buildings fail completely. All shrubs, trees, and signs are blown down, and mobile homes are destroyed. There is typically major damage to all structures along the shoreline, and evacuations as far as 5 to 10 miles (8 – 16 kilometers) inland may be required.
7. Answers will vary. Descriptions may include high winds, thick cloud cover, blinding rainfall, intense lightning, and deafening noise as the plane moves through the eyewall, or ring of strong thunderstorms surrounding the eye of the storm. The plane experiences extreme turbulence, freefall drops, and violent upswings as it encounters unstable air around the storm center. Once inside the eye, the weather becomes calm and clear. Winds die down, rain stops, and skies clear.
8. Between 1952 and 1974, four flights crashed during hurricane reconnaissance missions. 36 people on board these flights were killed.

Evaluating the Scrapbook

Assess each student’s scrapbook using the evaluation rubric or some other tool. Evaluation of the scrapbook should include both self-assessment and teacher assessment.

Conclusion

Based on their Internet research, students should be able to answer questions about hurricanes and how hurricane hunters gather information about conditions inside them. Students should be able to identify instruments used on hurricane reconnaissance aircraft, and describe the types of atmospheric data collected. They should be able to differentiate between hurricane categories within the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Rating Scale, and should be able to describe a typical hurricane reconnaissance mission. After completing their research, students should apply their knowledge to create a scrapbook which chronicles the job of a hurricane hunter.

Hurricane Hunter Scrapbook Rubric

Rate each category according to the following scale:
Excellent – 9-10 points; Very Good – 7-8 points; Good – 5-6 points; Satisfactory – 3-4 points; Poor – 1-2 points; and Unsatisfactory – 0 points.