Weather Maps

Topic: Weather

Type of Web activity: obtaining current data

Materials / Software needed: Web browser

Audience: Student / Teacher

Grade Level: 8 - 12

Time involved: 2 - 3 days

Created on: 8/3/00

The Web Science Workshop lessons were created in cooperation with the Exploratorium Teacher Institute .

This site developed and maintained by Deborah Hunt and Eric Muller .

3601 Lyon St.
San Francisco, CA 94123

©2000 The Exploratorium

Looking at weaher maps is a good way to get students to see all of the different variables of weather at once. No matter where you live, there is measureable weather. Having students look at their own are mapped ou always brings it a little closer to home.

The University of Illinois has a great weather lesson site set up. Towards the end of a weather unit is a good time culminate it all into weather maps to reinforce what they learned, plot isobars or even make forecasts. The site has a weather symbol lesson which ends with an optional extension, interpreting a weather map.

The type of map needed is a map of surface data . There are a variety of things that can be done with this:

• Create a US weather map: split up the class so that each student finds a weather symbol from a city in one or two states. Have each student fill in a blank US map to create a ull US weather map!
• Students print out the map and draw in the isobars.
• Students print out the map and draw the air masses
• You could give them a handout of guiding questions: ex. Which city has the highest dew point? Name three cloudy cities, etc.

The CoVis site makes the best maps, but it seems to not have enough data a little too often.

Surface Map Maker sites 

CoVis project map maker (first choice, but it tends to be testy)

Florida SU map maker

RAP real-time weather maps

UNISYS (very convoluted maps)

The world of weather can be yours!