Sun-Driven Weather Systems · seed 1 · A4, ink-friendly. The answer key prints on its own page for grown-ups.

How the Sun Drives Wind and Weather

Science · Weather & Climate · ages 9-11
Name ______________________   Date ____________

  1. On a hot afternoon, which is usually true?

    • The ocean water is hotter than the sand
    • The sand is hotter than the ocean water
    • The sand and the ocean are always the same temperature

  2. Which usually heats up faster under similar sunlight: land or the ocean?

    • Land
    • The ocean
    • They heat up the same

  3. In a daytime sea breeze, surface air pressure becomes higher over the hot land than over the cooler sea.

    Circle one:   True   False

  4. Since air moves from high pressure to low pressure, which way does the sea breeze blow on a hot afternoon?

    • From the ocean toward the land
    • From the land toward the ocean
    • It does not move in any direction

  5. A daytime sea breeze is forming beside hot sand and cooler ocean water. Where is air pressure higher near the surface?

    • Over the hot sand
    • Pressure is the same in both places
    • Over the cool ocean

  6. These example surface temperatures are in °C. Land and ocean received the same sunshine. Why is the land hotter?

    Land32Ocean20
    • The ocean got less sunlight that day
    • Land heats up faster than water in sunlight
    • The land is closer to the Sun

  7. Zoe says weather and ocean currents have nothing to do with the Sun. What does her idea miss?

    • Uneven solar heating helps drive them
    • Weather only depends on the Water Cycle, not the Sun
    • She is right, weather really is random

  8. Why is the equator hotter than the North and South Poles?

    • The equator is closer to the Sun than the poles
    • The equator has warmer oceans, and warm oceans make the air hotter
    • More direct sunlight warms the equator
LightMySky · lightmysky.comW1-mt_-YYnLLIZh5-s1

Answer key

For grown-ups. Fold this page away before handing over the rest.

How the Sun Drives Wind and Weather W1-mt_-YYnLLIZh5-s1

  1. The sand is hotter than the ocean water · Land heats fast in sunlight, so by afternoon the sand is much hotter than the slow-warming ocean.
  2. Land · Land heats up quickly, while water takes much longer to warm up.
  3. False · In this circulation, surface pressure is lower over the warmer land than over the sea.
  4. From the ocean toward the land · Higher pressure over the cool ocean pushes air toward the lower pressure over the hot land.
  5. Over the cool ocean · In a daytime sea breeze, surface pressure is higher over the cooler sea than over land.
  6. Land heats up faster than water in sunlight · Land and ocean got the same sunlight, but land heats up much faster than water.
  7. Uneven solar heating helps drive them · Solar heating helps drive winds, which push many surface currents. Other factors also matter.
  8. More direct sunlight warms the equator · Low-angle sunlight near the poles spreads its energy over more ground than sunlight near the Equator.
Worksheet · LightMySky