This module was taught in an environmental statistics class in a computer lab as a means of teaching map and wind rose plot interpretation. In Activity D, students will visualize and explain the effects of upwelling on primary productivity. In Activity C, students will identify when upwelling occurs and describe how upwelling is driven by wind direction and intensity. In Activity B, students will create a wind rose plot in Excel and describe how the dominant wind direction at a buoy station in the Gulf Stream impacts the direction and strength of the Gulf Stream. In Activity A, after the presentation of discussions and readings, students will be able to find a location on a map using latitude and longitude. convert between wind direction in degrees and wind direction using the cardinal and ordinal directions.explain the relationships between wind bearing and direction.find a location on a map using latitude and longitude.be able to explain how wind direction and strength influence physical and biological ocean processes.What does success look likeīy the end of the module students should be able to: This module also introduces students to wind rose plot interpretation, which exposes them to other types of plots and data visualization. The module also connects the physical processes of the ocean that are essential for marine science students to understand with the biological processes of the ocean that students typically care more about.
By having students engage with data to figure out for themselves the concepts of Ekman transport and upwelling, it forces them to apply those concepts throughout the module.
This module introduces students to physical ocean processes in an inquiry-based way using real data. Project EDDIE modules are designed with an A-B-C structure to make them flexible and adaptable to a range of student levels and course structures.
This module introduces students to the concepts of Ekman transport, eastern boundary currents, and upwelling, while learning how to find a location on a map using latitude and longitude, how to build and interpret a wind rose plot in Excel, and how to access and view relevant data from oceanographic satellites. To understand the interdisciplinary nature of marine processes, students need to have an understanding of not just these physical processes, but also geolocation, mapping, and directional data. Upwelling brings nutrient-rich deep water to the surface where it drives primary productivity, mainly of phytoplankton. Currents transport heat to northern latitudes, regulating the climate of those ecosystems. These physical processes, in turn, have cascading impacts on the chemistry and biology of various marine ecosystems. Wind drives physical processes, including current development and upwelling through Ekman transport. Wind has a fundamental impact on ocean ecosystems.