El Nino is a disruption of the ocean-atmosphere system in the tropical Pacific with important climatic consequences around the globe. This NOAA theme page features links to widely distributed information. Includes data, graphics, forecasts, historical perspectives, and in-depth analysis. It is intended to be useful to scientists, administrators, students and the general public. Links include sites ... Full description.

Learn the basics about hurricane features including hurricane basics, structure and tracking. This site gives a nice overview of hurricanes and includes animations of some hurricane processes. Full description.

The BBC's weather center sketches out basic background information about hurricanes, providing terms and definitions, describing hurricane formation areas and energy, and explaining hurricane predictions and warnings. Full description.

FEMA newsletters packed with information about flood, hurricane, winter storm, wildfire and El Nino impacts and preparedness, in downloadable PDF format. Issues cover risks of the particular emergency and define terms or explain specific hazards. They outline emergency guidelines for both homes and businesses, with plans for planning, safety and conduct before, during and after the disaster. Each ... Full description.

Lesson plan on floods provides background information, compares the roles of wetlands and flood plains in a river's natural flood control with the pros and cons of engineered flood control. Includes glossary, resources and additional sources of information, discussion questions. Student activity demonstrates water movement on a wide flood plain and narrow channel. Full description.

Hurricane Floyd's record rainfall in fall of l999 caused massive flooding in North Carolina; sediment and waste washed into rivers of the Atlantic causing major ecological changes. This NASA website provides Landsat 7 & SeaWiFS satellite images of the flooding and the massive flows of sediment and waste runoff into rivers and the Pamlico Sound. Also provides description of Landsat and SEAWiFS ... Full description.

How do scientists gather data to determine whether global temperatures are warming? Past climatic conditions are recorded in tree rings, skeletons of tropical coral reefs, ice cores from glaciers and ice caps, and laminated sediments from lakes and oceans. Site provides an in-depth look at topics significant to climate change. Resources include slide sets, external links, a Climate TimeLine Information ... Full description.

On the Pacific Northwest an oceanic tectonic plate (Juan de Fuca) is being pulled and driven (subducted) beneath the North American continental plate. Earthquakes generated along that fault may produce local tsunamis. Local tsunamis are those generated by earthquakes near the coast. This site provides links to external webpages describing the physics behind a tsunami. Resources featured in the links ... Full description.

The Hurricane Education site from NOAA provides teachers with curriculum materials, multimeda visual information, an archive of previous hurricane seasons and several posters. By knowing what actions students can take, they can reduce the effects of hurricane disaster. Full description.

If one 10 year old girl could save a hundred lives during the 2004 tsunami, think about how many more lives could have been saved if the residents and tourists were more informed about tsunamis. NOAA has collected these educational resources on tsunamis for use in K-12 classrooms. These brochures, websites, hands-on activities, and visualizations can supplement an existing curricula. A tsunameter ... Full description.