Discovering Plate Boundaries is based on 5 world maps containing earthquake, volcano, topography, satellite gravity, and seafloor age data. The novel aspect of the exercise is the "jigsaw" manner in which student groups access the maps and use them to discover, classify, and describe plate boundary types. The exercise is based only on observation and description, which makes it useful at a wide variety ... Full description.

This site is a joint effort of NOAA Research and the College of Education at the University of South Alabama. The goal of the site is to provide middle school science students and teachers with research and investigation experiences using on-line resources. In this unit students explore what El Nino is, where it is located, how it is created, and weather changes that El Nino causes. Students analyze ... Full description.

Since large fault ruptures require the build-up of a great deal of stress, many years pass between repeated surface ruptures on a single fault. The average time between such ruptures, known as the recurrence interval of that fault, is a useful measurement for assessing both the slip rate of the fault and the risk the fault presents. This activity contains three exercises. In the first, students study ... Full description.

In this activity, students observe what happens to filled land when an earthquake shakes it up. They will fill a pan with sand, add water and place a brick in it to simulate a building, then tap the pan with a mallet and see what happens. A materials list, instructions, and background information are included. Full description.

This collection of basic definitions and answers to questions about hurricanes and tropical cyclones includes how they form, how they are named, how intensities are measured, and how storms are forecast. Historical information, information on myths surrounding these storms, links to sites displaying real-time storm information, and safety tips are also included. Full description.

This homework exercise, which was designed for an undergraduate level geology class at Tulane University, asks the student to make evaluations about the Loma Prieta Earthquake and other earthquakes using seismograms, time travel curves, maps and other information. Full description.

This site provides access to Community Internet Intensity Maps (CIIM), made from citizen reports of ground shaking following significant earthquakes. CIIMs are available for the 50 United States and territories, as well as for some significant events outside the U.S. Intensity maps are also available for some historic earthquakes. There is also information on fast moment tensor solutions, PAGER (Prompt ... Full description.

This Thinkquest offers an encyclopedic look at plate tectonics and volcanoes. Reference sections describe the interior of the Earth, continental drift, sea floor spreading, subduction, volcano types and eruptions, lava flow, and famous volcanoes. Lesson plans cover the internal structure of Earth, plate tectonic theory, and how volcanic eruptions and earthquakes affect the human environment. There ... Full description.

The National Hurricane Center contains news of active tropical systems; a hurricane awareness section about the hazards of hurricanes and what you can do to help protect yourself, your family, and your property; links to regional tropical cyclone centers; tropical weather outlooks, marine forecasts, and Sea Surface Temperature analyses; blank hurricane tracking charts; and current season summaries ... Full description.

This resource presents a brief overview of these violent tropical ocean storms. It covers the science, phenomenon, and effects of hurricanes, and includes videos clips that depict how hurricanes form, what they look like, and what kind of damage they can do. Full description.