SC.912.E.7.9

Cite evidence that the ocean has had a significant influence on climate change by absorbing, storing, and moving heat, carbon, and water.
General Information
Subject Area: Science
Grade: 912
Body of Knowledge: Earth and Space Science
Idea: Level 3: Strategic Thinking & Complex Reasoning
Standard: Earth Systems and Patterns - The scientific theory of the evolution of Earth states that changes in our planet are driven by the flow of energy and the cycling of matter through dynamic interactions among the atmosphere, hydrosphere, cryosphere, geosphere, and biosphere, and the resources used to sustain human civilization on Earth.
Date Adopted or Revised: 02/08
Date of Last Rating: 05/08
Status: State Board Approved

Related Courses

This benchmark is part of these courses.
2001320: Earth/Space Science Honors (Specifically in versions: 2014 - 2015, 2015 - 2022, 2022 and beyond (current))
2001340: Environmental Science (Specifically in versions: 2015 - 2022, 2022 and beyond (current))
2002440: Integrated Science 3 (Specifically in versions: 2014 - 2015, 2015 - 2022, 2022 and beyond (current))
2002450: Integrated Science 3 Honors (Specifically in versions: 2014 - 2015, 2015 - 2022, 2022 and beyond (current))
2002500: Marine Science 1 (Specifically in versions: 2014 - 2015, 2015 - 2022, 2022 and beyond (current))
2002510: Marine Science 1 Honors (Specifically in versions: 2014 - 2015, 2015 - 2022, 2022 and beyond (current))
2002520: Marine Science 2 (Specifically in versions: 2014 - 2015, 2015 - 2022, 2022 and beyond (current))
2002530: Marine Science 2 Honors (Specifically in versions: 2014 - 2015, 2015 - 2022, 2022 and beyond (current))
2002540: Solar Energy Honors (Specifically in versions: 2014 - 2015, 2015 - 2022, 2022 and beyond (current))
2002445: Integrated Science 3 for Credit Recovery (Specifically in versions: 2014 - 2015, 2015 - 2020 (course terminated))
2003500: Renewable Energy 1 Honors (Specifically in versions: 2014 - 2015, 2015 - 2022, 2022 - 2023, 2023 and beyond (current))
2001341: Environmental Science Honors (Specifically in versions: 2016 - 2022, 2022 and beyond (current))
2001330: Meteorology Honors (Specifically in versions: 2016 - 2019, 2019 - 2022, 2022 and beyond (current))

Related Access Points

Alternate version of this benchmark for students with significant cognitive disabilities.
SC.912.E.7.In.9: Recognize that the ocean absorbs most of the solar energy reaching Earth and loses heat primarily by evaporation.
SC.912.E.7.Su.9: Recognize that the ocean absorbs heat from the Sun and then warms the air.
SC.912.E.7.Pa.6: Recognize that the Sun heats the water in the ocean.

Related Resources

Vetted resources educators can use to teach the concepts and skills in this benchmark.

Lesson Plans

Lesson 4: Interannual Variability- El Nino & La Nina:

 This lesson covers:

•The El Niño-Southern Oscillation cycle

•How El Niño/La Niña events affect Florida

•How El Niño/La Niña events affect productivity off the coast of Peru

Type: Lesson Plan

Lesson 2: Currents and Temperature:

This lesson covers:

  • How wind influences ocean currents
  • How currents transport heat and water around the world
  • Florida specific currents and oceanography
  • How currents connect the world’s climate

Type: Lesson Plan

Sea Ice Analysis:

The changing climate is an important topic for both scientific analysis and worldly knowledge. This lesson uses data collected by the National Snow and Ice Data Center to create and use mathematical models as a predictive tool and do critical analysis of sea ice loss.

Type: Lesson Plan

Climate Change and Future Effects on Coral Reefs:

Students will learn about how the oceans absorb CO2 and because the oceans are absorbing CO2 at such an alarming rate, the oceans are acidifying. Students will learn about the effects of acidification on the oceans. Students will research on their own, using reliable websites given by teacher, the past, present, and possible future effects of acidification on coral reefs, and gather information about where this has taken place already and the effects. Students will create a poster of the past, present, and possible future amounts of CO2 absorbed in the ocean and discuss the effects on the health of coral reefs.

Type: Lesson Plan

Sea Ice Analysis:

The changing climate is an important topic for both scientific analysis and worldly knowledge. This lesson uses data collected by the National Snow and Ice Data Center to create and use statistical analysis as a tool to evaluate the sea ice loss. Students will use technology to quickly generate graphs for each month looking for trends, patterns or deviations over time.

Type: Lesson Plan

Researching Remote Regions: Role of the Southern Ocean:

In this lesson, students will analyze an informational text on the carbon dioxide/oxygen exchange in the Southern Ocean. The extent to which massive Southern Ocean currents, other biotic and abiotic factors, and ocean color impacts global warming is currently not known. Scientists will use a modified plane set up as a laboratory to gather this data. The lesson is designed to support reading in the content area and includes a note-taking guide, text-dependent questions, a writing prompt, answer keys, and a writing rubric.

Type: Lesson Plan

What Lies Beneath: Coastal Blue Carbon:

In this lesson, students will analyze an informational text that addresses the issue of releasing carbon dioxide into the atmosphere from carbon sink sites located in coastal habitats. This informational text is designed to support reading in the content area. The text describes how carbon that has been stored for potentially thousands of years is getting released into the atmosphere due to coastal habitat destruction of mangrove forests, salt marshes, and sea grass beds. The lesson plan includes text-dependent questions, a writing prompt, answer keys, and a writing rubric.

Type: Lesson Plan

Climate and Ocean Currents:

Students will research climate and current conditions and try to establish correlations. They then will draw conclusions and make predictions as to the role of ocean currents in climate.

Type: Lesson Plan

Ocean Heat and a Warming World:

Students will reinforce previously taught concepts, such as water taking longer to heat up (and longer to cool down) than land, but extend their understanding using the NOAA link "Ten Signs of a Warming World." They will focus on the tab "Ocean Heat Content," and explore the ways in which scientists are measuring ocean temperatures. They will examine the data concerning ocean heat content and obsere the large effects that oceans are having in a warming world.

Type: Lesson Plan

Global Climate Change and Sea Level Rise:

In this activity, students will practice the steps involved in a scientific investigation as they learn why ice formations on land (and not those on water) will cause a rise in sea level upon melting. This is a discovery lesson in ice and water density and displacement of water by ice floating on the surface as it relates to global climate change.

Type: Lesson Plan

Perspectives Video: Experts

Past Climate Change:

Angela Dial discusses the geologic and scientific evidence related to climate change in the past.

Download the CPALMS Perspectives video student note taking guide.

Type: Perspectives Video: Expert

Earth's Past Climate:

Angela Dial talks about using ocean core proxy data to investigate Earth's climate from the past.

Download the CPALMS Perspectives video student note taking guide.

Type: Perspectives Video: Expert

Satellite Technology for Investigating Ice Sheet Mass and Sea Level Changes:

In this video, Don Chambers explains how satellite technology is essential for assessment of sea level changes. Video funded by NSF grant #: OCE-1502753.

Download the CPALMS Perspectives video student note taking guide.

Type: Perspectives Video: Expert

Remote Measurement of Ice Sheet Mass via Satellite:

Watch as Don Chambers explains the role of satellites in measuring the mass of ice sheets and the connections between ice sheet mass changes and sea level. Video funded by NSF grant #: OCE-1502753.

Download the CPALMS Perspectives video student note taking guide.

Type: Perspectives Video: Expert

Assessment of Sea Level by Sediment Core Sampling and Analysis:

Watch as Brad Rosenheim, a geological oceanographer, explains how modern technology and sampling methods are used for sea level research. Video funded by NSF grant #: OCE-1502753.

Download the CPALMS Perspectives video student note taking guide.

Type: Perspectives Video: Expert

Assessment of Past and Present Rates of Sea Level Change:

<p>In this video, Brad Rosenheim describes how Louisiana sediment cores are used to estimate sea level changes over the last 10,000 years.&nbsp;Video funded by&nbsp;NSF&nbsp;grant #:&nbsp;OCE-1502753.</p>

Type: Perspectives Video: Expert

Assessment of Antarctic Ice Sheet Movement Rate by Sediment Core Sampling:

<p>Eugene Domack, a geological oceanographer, describes how sediment cores are collected and used to estimate rates of&nbsp;ice sheet movement in Antarctica.&nbsp;Video funded by&nbsp;NSF&nbsp;grant #:&nbsp;OCE-1502753.</p>

Type: Perspectives Video: Expert

Analyzing Antarctic Ice Sheet Movement to Understand Sea Level Changes:

In this video, Eugene Domack explains how past Antarctic ice sheet movement rates allow us to understand sea level changes. Video funded by NSF grant #: OCE-1502753.

Download the CPALMS Perspectives video student note taking guide.

Type: Perspectives Video: Expert

El Niño and La Niña:

Learn how the ocean pressures the climate into changing.

Download the CPALMS Perspectives video student note taking guide.

Type: Perspectives Video: Expert

How Himalayan Monsoons Melt Arctic Ice:

In the Earth's systems, everything is connected! This meteorologist explains the relationship between monsoonal heat columns and polar ice-melt.

Download the CPALMS Perspectives video student note taking guide.

Type: Perspectives Video: Expert

Perspectives Video: Professional/Enthusiasts

Solving Systems of Equations, Oceans & Climate:

<p>Angela Dial discusses how she solves systems of equations to determine how the composition&nbsp;of ocean floor sediment has changed over 65 million years to help reveal more information&nbsp;regarding&nbsp;climate change.</p>

Type: Perspectives Video: Professional/Enthusiast

Hurricane Dennis & Failed Math Models:

What happens when math models go wrong in forecasting hurricanes?

Download the CPALMS Perspectives video student note taking guide.

Type: Perspectives Video: Professional/Enthusiast

Isotopes and Paleoclimates:

Let this researcher explain how studying fossils and isotopes can help us understand ancient climate conditions!

Download the CPALMS Perspectives video student note taking guide.

Type: Perspectives Video: Professional/Enthusiast

Text Resources

Coastal Blue Carbon:

This informational text resource is designed to support reading in the content area. The text describes different ecosystems that store carbon, like forests, and goes into how carbon is stored more efficiently in coastal ecosystems. The text goes on to advocate for conserving and protecting our coastal ecosystems to keep the carbon stored and prevent the carbon from being released into the atmosphere to further impact the planet through climate change. The text also explores other benefits for conserving coastal ecosystems.

Type: Text Resource

Flying Lab to Investigate Southern Ocean's Appetite for Carbon:

This informational text resource is designed to support reading in the content area. The text describes how scientists led by the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) are set to launch a series of flights over the Southern Ocean in order to collect data on how the air and seas surrounding Antarctica exchange oxygen and carbon dioxide. It is hoped that this data will help us with future predictions about climate change, and maybe even lead to new insights on how the ocean works.

Type: Text Resource

Climate's Troublesome Kids:

This informational text resource is intended to support reading in the content area. Did you know that climate has two not-so-nice children? Meet El Niño and La Niña, the "boy" and "girl" spawned by the global climate every 3-7 years. They can give the world a climate that's quite troublesome, depending on which one is causing the disturbance.

Type: Text Resource

Warming Arctic May Be Causing Jet Stream to Lose Its Way:

This informational text resource is intended to support reading in the content area. The text explains that changing weather patterns can be linked to a weakening of the jet stream. It is known that the jet stream is responsible for changeable weather patterns, and the weakening of the stream is causing weather conditions to stay in locations for longer periods of time. The article concludes that the fuel source of the jet stream (the differences in temperature between the tropics and the arctic) is becoming less dramatic, which in turn is weakening the winds.

Type: Text Resource

Video/Audio/Animation

Will an Ice Cube Melt Faster in Freshwater or Saltwater?:

With an often unexpected outcome from a simple experiment, students can discover the factors that cause and influence thermohaline circulation in our oceans. In two 45-minute class periods, students complete activities where they observe the melting of ice cubes in saltwater and freshwater, using basic materials: clear plastic cups, ice cubes, water, salt, food coloring, and thermometers. There are no prerequisites for this lesson but it is helpful if students are familiar with the concepts of density and buoyancy as well as the salinity of seawater. It is also helpful if students understand that dissolving salt in water will lower the freezing point of water. There are additional follow up investigations that help students appreciate and understand the importance of the ocean's influence on Earth's climate.

Type: Video/Audio/Animation

Student Resources

Vetted resources students can use to learn the concepts and skills in this benchmark.

Perspectives Video: Expert

El Niño and La Niña:

Learn how the ocean pressures the climate into changing.

Download the CPALMS Perspectives video student note taking guide.

Type: Perspectives Video: Expert

Video/Audio/Animation

Will an Ice Cube Melt Faster in Freshwater or Saltwater?:

With an often unexpected outcome from a simple experiment, students can discover the factors that cause and influence thermohaline circulation in our oceans. In two 45-minute class periods, students complete activities where they observe the melting of ice cubes in saltwater and freshwater, using basic materials: clear plastic cups, ice cubes, water, salt, food coloring, and thermometers. There are no prerequisites for this lesson but it is helpful if students are familiar with the concepts of density and buoyancy as well as the salinity of seawater. It is also helpful if students understand that dissolving salt in water will lower the freezing point of water. There are additional follow up investigations that help students appreciate and understand the importance of the ocean's influence on Earth's climate.

Type: Video/Audio/Animation

Parent Resources

Vetted resources caregivers can use to help students learn the concepts and skills in this benchmark.

Perspectives Video: Expert

El Niño and La Niña:

Learn how the ocean pressures the climate into changing.

Download the CPALMS Perspectives video student note taking guide.

Type: Perspectives Video: Expert