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Our Changing Atmosphere

Provided by: Exploratorium |Published on: November 16, 2023

Data, Graphs, and Maps

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Synopsis

In this activity, students will look at seasonal fluctuations and graph the monthly Mauna Loa CO2 atmospheric data.
Students will interpret the data and evaluate the upward trend in the data over time.

Subjects: Earth and Space Sciences, Mathematics

Authors: Exploratorium

Region: North America, Polar Regions, USA - West, United States, Global, Hawai'i

Languages: English

Positives

Students can practice the meaningful skill of interpreting data.
There is enough data for students to work in small groups and have each group contribute a different graph to the class.

Additional Prerequisites

Differentiation

Younger students may need to graph the data or interpret the graphs as a whole class.
After looking at the data, students in science classes can discuss the effect CO2 and other greenhouse gases have on the atmosphere and our planet.
Language arts students can use their observations of the data as evidence in an informative essay about atmospheric CO2 levels.
Students can graph other climate-related datasets, such as global temperature rise, sea level rise, or phenological data.

Scientist Notes

Teaching Tips

Standards

Resource Type and Format

All resources can be used for your educational purposes with proper attribution to the content provider.