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"Weather or Not": AP ES and the Atmosphere
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by Susan Postawko
University of Oklahoma
Norman, Oklahoma
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| | Understanding the Basics
AP Environmental Science is a broad subject, involving study of the interactions among the atmosphere, hydrosphere, biosphere, and lithosphere. Certainly topics such as air pollution, the ozone hole, and climate change are an important part of any environmental science course. But in order to truly understand and appreciate these topics, as well as interactions with other portions of the Earth system, students need to have a basic understanding of the atmosphere itself. The question then becomes, just how much do students need to know about the characteristics of the atmosphere as part of AP ES?
Clearly there isn't time within AP Environmental Science to fit in an entire introductory meteorology course. Because of the recommended background for students taking AP Environmental Science, it is assumed that students already have a background in basic physical concepts such as temperature, pressure, density, etc. Armed with these fundamentals, students are then ready to understand the basics about the atmosphere.
Students need to know the basic composition and temperature structure of the atmosphere. Without knowledge of the major gases and their relative abundances in the atmosphere, students can have difficulty reasoning out problems relating to topics such as air pollution, the ozone hole, and global warming. As for nearly all subjects, there is a plethora of books and Web sites for information on the origin, evolution, and current composition of the Earth's atmosphere. A good, simple Web site is maintained by Florida State University's Department of Meteorology as part of their Florida EXPLORES! program. At their Web site you will find links to topics such as atmospheric composition and the hydrologic cycle, and even a little information about the history of meteorology.
 EXPLORES!
Because the layers of the atmosphere are typically referred to by their names based on temperature structure (troposphere, stratosphere, mesosphere, and thermosphere), a student who is not familiar with this terminology will be at a disadvantage when answering questions on exams. Along with the names of the layers of the atmosphere, the general temperature trend in each layer is important to understand. That is, students should know not only that temperature generally decreases or increases in a given layer, but also why it does so. Professor Michael Ritter, at the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point (UWSP), has an online physical geography text that can be accessed free of charge. His Earth System and Atmosphere Outline section has some nice modules on atmospheric composition and structure.
The Earth System and Atmosphere
Outline
Temperature Structure of the Atmosphere (written by another UWSP professor) is a good discussion of why and how temperature changes with height in the atmosphere.
Temperature Structure of the Atmosphere
Finally, at least in terms of general atmosphere topics, students need to be familiar with the general circulation of the atmosphere and basic atmosphere-ocean interactions. Knowledge of the large-scale motions of the atmosphere will help students to understand issues such as why industrial activity in the central U.S. can result in acid precipitation in the northeast U.S. and Canada, and why a warming of the waters in the central and eastern Pacific Ocean (the El Niño phenomenon) can affect weather patterns around the world. The fundamentals of global circulation can be found on PhysicalGeography.net.
PhysicalGeography.net
There are obviously many specific atmosphere-related topics that are relevant in environmental science classes. A short list of topics and a Web site or two that can be helpful in obtaining more information about these topics are given below.
Global warming:
EPA's Global Warming Site
Stratospheric ozone:
USA TODAY Article: "Understanding the Antarctic ozone hole"
United Nations Environment Programme
Acid precipitation:
EPA's Clean Air Markets -- Acid Rain Program
El Niño (also known as El Niño-Southern Oscillation, and ENSO):
ThinkQuest: El Niño Information and Lesson Plans
More technical sites can be found through CyberSleuth Kids.
CyberSleuth Kids
It isn't always easy to find good lab exercises relating to the general properties of the atmosphere, and most instructors would be hard-pressed to fit a lot of introductory meteorology labs into their already crowded curriculum. However, the GLOBE (Global Learning and Observations to Benefit the Environment) program Web site offers not only meteorological information and experiments but also information on soils, water, and the biosphere. The GLOBE program is an international science and education program, currently being administered by the National Center for Atmospheric Research in Boulder, Colorado. Teachers who attend a GLOBE training workshop can then obtain a GLOBE ID, and their students will be permitted to submit various environmental measurements to the GLOBE site. However, even without becoming "GLOBE certified," you can freely access educational information on their Web site. In the GLOBE Teacher's Guide, you can find individual measurement protocols, learning activities, data sheets, and field guides, available in PDF format for online viewing, printing, or downloading.
GLOBE
Susan Postawko is an associate professor of meteorology at the University of Oklahoma. She is the current AP Environmental Science Chief Reader and was formerly a member of the AP Environmental Science Development Committee. She is also the co-director of the Schools of the Pacific Rainfall-Climate Experiment, an interdisciplinary program involving students on islands around the Pacific Ocean in making various environmental measurements.
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