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What's Causing Sea Level Rise? Land Ice vs. Sea Ice

Provided by: NASA |Published on: November 14, 2023

Videos

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Synopsis

In this experiment, students construct models to determine if land or sea ice contributes more to sea level rise.
Students monitor melting ice cubes and rising water levels in their models. Then, they record data and evaluate their predictions.

Subjects: Earth and Space Sciences, Engineering

Authors: NASA

Region: Polar Regions, Global

Languages: English

Positives

There is a student project page to walk students through the experiment with a helpful video tutorial.
This experiment requires minimal materials.

Additional Prerequisites

The teacher will need to freeze ice cubes ahead of time and use a tray that ensures they are uniform.
Students should understand climate change and how it contributes to melting ice and sea level rise.
It may benefit students to discuss how sea level rise impacts coastal communities.
Spanish subtitles are available for the video tutorial.
Students should know how to use a ruler and keep track of time in minutes.

Differentiation

Teachers can discuss other implications caused by fast-melting ice, such as flooding, drought, and positive feedback loops.
To make writing connections, have students write down their hypotheses and support them with evidence and reasoning.
Teachers can make math connections by having students graph their data from the student worksheet.

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.