Natural Disasters
What's with the Atmosphere?
The Atlantic
The Pressure's On
Travel Back in Time
100

These fast‑spinning columns of air stretch from a thunderstorm cloud down to the ground and are rated on the 0 to 5 on a scale created by Tetsu "Ted" Fujita.

What is a tornado?

100

Find the surface area of a cube with a side length of 4 centimeters.

96 square centimeters

100

Often having the warmest water, this body of water, connected to the Atlantic Ocean, is prime fuel for hurricanes.

What is the Gulf of Mexico?

100

On a weather map, high-pressure systems are marked with this letter.

What is H?

100

In 2011, an EF5 tornado devastated the families of over 600 people's lives who were killed. The tornado especially ripped apart the downtown area of this suburban city.

What is Joplin?

200

These mountains are still growing due to plate collision near the equator of the eastern hemisphere.

What are the Himalayas?

200

Will a 6 in. cube have the same numerical value for its volume and its surface area? What is the Volume? What is the SA?

yes V=216 in cubed SA=216 in squared

200

Hurricanes are major blows to areas when they are violent. Sometimes, they can bring extreme this, sending tsunami-like waves crashing to the coastline.

What is storm surge?

200

Air pressure is caused by the weight of this surrounding us, pressing down on Earth's surface.

What is the atmosphere?

200

In 1888, this "great" blizzard buried the U.S. East Coast under snow and shut down New York City for days.

What is the Great Blizzard of 1888?

300

Forming over warm ocean water, these rotating storms bring strong winds, heavy rain, and storm surge.

What is a hurricane?

300

What is the surface area of a rectangular prism with a length of 8yd, a width of 5yd, and a height of 3yd?

158 square yards

300

This is the time of year, from June 1 to November 30, when hurricanes are most likely to form in the Atlantic Ocean.

What is the Atlantic hurricane season?

300
In the Northern Hemisphere, the air around a high-pressure system sinks and spins in this direction, helping bring sunny, dry conditions.

What is clockwise?

300

In 1999, Oklahoma had seemingly been on a tornado drought, as a violent tornado hadn't occured in six years. In May of that year, an EF5 tornado devastated the communities of Moore and this.

What is Bridge Creek?

400

Triggered by powerful undersea earthquakes, landslides, or volcanic eruptions, this series of large ocean waves can race across entire oceans and flood coastlines.

What is a tsunami?

400

What is the surface area of a rectangular prism with a length of 11in, a width of 8in, and a height of 7in?

442 square inches

400

This scale is used to rate Atlantic hurricanes from Category 1 to Category 5 based on their sustained wind speeds.

What is the Saffir-Simpson scale?

400

When air moves from an area of high pressure to an area of low pressure over a short distance, we experience stronger winds. The difference in pressure over a distance has this scientific name.

What is a pressure gradient?

400

In 1871, America's deadliest wildfire broke out in Wisconsin, with this rare weather phenomenon being the main killer of over 1,200 lives.

What is a firenado?

500

This powerful type of thunderstorm has a rotating updraft, can produce giant hail and strong tornadoes, and is often the source of the most violent twisters.

What is a supercell thunderstorm?

500

The surface area of a rectangular prism is 200 square meters.  It has a length of 5 cm and a width of 4 cm.  The areas of the faces are 30 cm squared, 24 cm squared, and 20 cm squared.  What is the height of the prism?

6 cm

500

This large high‑pressure system over the Atlantic Ocean can steer hurricanes, often helping determine whether storms curve out to sea or head toward land.

What is the Bermuda High?

500

This instrument measures air pressure. A rising reading usually signals improving or fair weather, while a falling reading often warns that stormy weather is coming.

What is a barometer?

500

In 1812, a massive earthquake impacted areas along the central Mississippi, on this ancient fault line.

What is the New Madrid Fault Line?

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