Extreme Heat

Age Range: This unit has been designed specically for students in grades 5-8. It can easily be adapted for younger or older students.
Teaching Note: Depending on your time frame and student abilities and interests, have student groups complete each of the
activities below or assign groups to work on specic activities and share their information.
Vocabulary
extreme heat heat index heat stroke heat exhaustion humidity
isotherm relative humidity
Check The Weather Channel Education online glossary (http://www.weatherclassroom.com) for the
meanings of these weather terms.
Resources
For information on how to stay safe during extreme heat, see the
WeatherREADY materials that can be found online at
The Weather Channel.
Purpose: To have students investigate and demonstrate the science behind the development and
characteristics of extreme heat
1. Distribute The Science of Extreme Heat Student Handout to small groups of students. (Note: This
handout calls for some outdoor activities, one of which requires an extended amount of time to
complete. ) Have them follow the steps to demonstrate the science behind extreme heat. Encourage
them to consider:
a. What is the effect of high relative humidity during hot days?
b. Why is it said that 90 F in Miami feels like 112 F in Phoenix?
c. Why is extreme heat dangerous?
2. Have groups research to nd and develop other ways to demonstrate the science behind extreme
heat. Have them turn these demonstrations into lesson plans, complete with handouts for others in the
class.
Weather Note:
If a domeof high atmospheric
pressure traps hazy, damp air
near the ground, humid or
muggy conditions add to the
discomfort of high temperatures.
Science
Language Arts Extension:
Tall tales exaggerate the truth. In an old west tale, it was so hot that a trainload of corn popped in
the desert. Popcorn fell like a blanket of snow. Have students create their own hot tales. Remind
students that the more weather detail they include in their stories, the more truth to the tale.
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Weather Note:
People in urban areas are at greater risk of heat-related health problems during extreme heat because the
stagnant atmospheric conditions trap pollutants in the air.
Weather Note:
In the summer of 1995,
a stiing heat wave
in the Midwest killed
more than 500 people in
Chicago alone.
Research
Purpose: To guide students to understand and demonstrate extreme
heat patterns in the U.S.
1. Have student teams map temperature extremes and compare areas across
the U.S.
2. Have teams analyze their data and develop the best plans for illustrating the information about their
own area and comparing it with other areas. Guide students to use isotherms in their comparisons.
Health Extension:
Have students create rst aid posters for the community that include the health problems
associated with extreme heat and rst aid suggestions.
OR
Have students sponsor a Help Your Neighbor program to encourage the community to
remember those who require special assistance during periods of extreme heat, such as the elderly,
infants, people with disabilities, or pets.
Safety
Purpose: To guide students to research, devise, and distribute guidelines for staying safe during
extreme heat
1. Have student teams use the Safety...Extreme Heat Student Handout pages 1 and 2 and other
resources to nd and illustrate the best way to cope with extreme heat situations.
2. Teams should review the guidelines they discover in their research and create customized safety
brochures for coping with extreme heat events, or create skits that show what to and not to do during
extreme heat events.
Weather Note:
Sunburn slows the skins ability to release excess heat, making the body more susceptible to heat-related illness.
Men perspire more than women and therefore are more susceptible to illness during extreme heat because they
can become dehydrated more quickly.
Its Too Hot:
During periods of extreme heat, people are susceptible to health problems. Have students use the
Its Too Hot Student Handout to discover the symptoms and rst aid treatments for each health
problem. Then, working in teams, have students discuss ways they might handle the scenarios on
the second half of the handout.
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the Science of...
Extreme Heat
Temperature on Land and Water
Follow the steps below to determine some needed information about temperature on land and water.
1. On a sunny day, touch the surface of an area of soil or sand. Does the soil feel warm? Measure the
temperature.
2. Dig down several inches and touch the soil in the hole. How does it feel? Measure the temperature.
3. Fill a pail with cool water and measure the temperature. Place the water in a sunny spot for several
hours. Measure the temperature at the surface of the water. Is it warmer than water at the bottom of the
pail?
What do your observations tell you about heat absorption in soil and water? What accounts for the
difference?
Now try this:
1. Fill a tub or pail half full of warm water. Add cold water. Test the
temperature of the water without stirring. Do the warm and cold
waters mix?
2. What happens if you stir the water around?
How does this demonstration illustrate temperature transfer in bodies of
water vs. soil?
Challenge:
1. Heat Facts:
Due to conduction, air over land warms more quickly than air over
water.
Land loses heat faster than water.
Use these facts to explain sea breezes and land breezes.
Remember: Differences in temperature cause winds.
2. Explain the diagram at the right and the impact of the Heat Index on people in warm, humid climates.
STUDENT HANDOUT
Extreme Heat - Science
Heat Index
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Safety
Extreme Heat
In the peak summer months (typically June through August) when temperature and/or humidity have
been unusually high for several days in a row, you can anticipate an extreme heat emergency situation.
The effects of extreme heat can undermine your physical well being so slowly and subtly that the dangers
arent immediately apparent, but they can be deadly.
Two kinds of extreme heat alerts are issued:
Heat Advisory
The heat, or combination of heat and humidity, is expected to become an inconvenience for much of
the population and a problem for some.
Excessive Heat Warning
The heat, or combination of heat and humidity, is expected to be dangerous for a large part of the
population.
Before the Heat Wave
Keep heat outside and cool air inside
Install temporary reectors, such as aluminum foil-covered cardboard, to reect any heat back outside.
Keep the cool air inside by weather-stripping doors and windowsills.
Consider keeping storm windows up all year
Storm windows can keep the heat out of a house in the summer the same way they keep the cold out in
the winter.
Check air-conditioning
Central air: Be sure ducts are clear and properly installed.
Window air-conditioning: Be sure that heat registers nearby are closed, that spaces around air
conditioners are insulated, and use fans to help spread the cool air.
Protect windows
Hang shades, draperies, awnings, or louvers on windows that receive morning or afternoon sun.
Outdoor awnings or louvers can reduce the heat entering the house by as much as 80%.
Stay Safe Inside
Get weather updates from The Weather Channel or your local TV or radio station.
Stay indoors and avoid extreme temperature changes.
If air conditioning is not available, stay on the lowest oor, out of the sunshine. Remember, electric fans
do not cool, they just blow hot air around.
Drink uids often particularly water or juice even if you do not feel thirsty. This helps your bodys
thermostat stay cool. Note: Remind adults that all alcoholic beverages dehydrate the body and should
not be consumed during periods of extreme heat.
Eat small, frequent meals. Avoid foods that are high in protein, which increase metabolic heat.
Keep pets indoors and rell their water bowls frequently.
Obey heat advisories promptly.
STUDENT HANDOUT
Extreme Heat - Safety: pg 1
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STUDENT HANDOUT
Extreme Heat - Safety: pg 2
Stay Safe Outside
If you must go out, wear loose-tting, lightweight, light-colored clothing to reect the suns energy.
Slow down. Avoid strenuous outdoor activity. If you must engage in strenuous activity, do it during the
coolest part of the day, between 4:00am and 7:00am.
Allow your body to get acclimated to hot temperatures for the rst two or three days of a heat wave.
Cover all exposed skin with a 30+SPF sunscreen and wear a wide-brimmed hat to protect your face and
head. Sunburn slows the skins ability to cool itself.
Wear sunglasses to protect your eyes.
Drink plenty of uids.
After Exposure
Continue drinking plenty of water and juice.
Avoid extreme temperature changes. Never take a cool shower immediately after becoming
overheated. You may cool too quickly and become ill, nauseated, or dizzy.
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Safety
Its Too Hot!
During periods of extreme heat, we are susceptible to heat cramps, heat exhaustion, and heatstroke.
Symptoms and First Aid
Sunburn: Redness, pain, possible swelling, blisters, fever, headaches
First Aid: Shower with soap to remove oils that could prevent pores from cooling the body naturally; if
blistering occurs, apply dry sterile dressings and get medical attention.
Heat Cramps: Painful spasms in leg and abdominal muscles, heavy sweating.
First Aid: Press on cramping muscles or use gentle massage; take sips of water unless nausea occurs.
Heat Exhaustion: Heavy sweating, weakness, cold, clammy skin; weak pulse; fainting, vomiting.
First Aid: Place victim in a cool place, loosen clothing, and apply cool, wet cloths; give sips of water unless
nausea occurs; if vomiting occurs, seek medical attention.
Heat Stroke: High body temperature (over 106); hot, dry skin; rapid pulse; possible
unconsciousness; no sweating.
First Aid: Call 911 immediately to seek medical emergency services; fan the victim and give a cool sponge
bath to reduce body temperature; remove clothing. DO NOT GIVE FLUIDS!
Test your Heat Sense
Your area is suffering a severe heat wave. You are presented with the following situations:
Scenario: A pet dog is in a car with one window open about 1 inch.
Scenario: An elderly neighbor does not have air conditioning.
Scenario: A power outage occurs and electricity wont be restored for at least 12 hours.
Scenario: A member of your family has an outdoor job.
Scenario: Your car breaks down on the side of the road, 10 miles from home.
What are the possible dangers in each situation?
What are possible suggestions for each situation?
Whats the best solution for each situation?
STUDENT HANDOUT
Extreme Heat - Safety
the Science of...
Extreme Heat
Temperature on Land and Water
Follow the steps below to determine some needed information about temperature on land and water.
1. On a sunny day, touch the surface of an area of soil or sand. Does the soil feel warm? Measure the
temperature.
The soil should feel warm.or even hotas it conducts heat energy from the sun.
2. Dig down several inches and touch the soil in the hole. How does it feel? Measure the temperature.
The soil should be much cooler. An experience some students may relate to is digging a hole in sand
on the beach.
3. Fill a pail with cool water and measure the temperature. Place the water in a sunny spot for several
hours. Measure the temperature at the surface of the water. Is it warmer than water at the bottom of the
pail? The surface temperature should be warmer than the temperature at the bottom of the pail. A good
experience to help relate this point to students may be swimming in a pool or lake. Ask students from
their experiences swimming, where is the water warmest? Where is the water the coldest
What do your observations tell you about heat absorption in soil and water? What accounts for the
difference?
Both water and soil will absorb heat energy. As an object absorbs heat energy, the objects temperature
will increase. A basic law of heat transfer is that heat energy will ow from areas of higher temperature
to areas of cooler temperatures. In other words, heat energy ows from hot to cold. In both the soil
and water, heat ows from the surface to lower levels. Observations should show that there is less of a
difference in surface and bottom temperatures of the soil than the water. Thats because water IS NOT a
good conductor of heat! What accounts for the difference between soils and water is due to a property
of materials called conductivity. In simple terms, conductivity is a measure of how easily the material
allows heat energy to travel through it. Metals, such as steel, copper, and iron have high conductivities;
materials such as soils, water, paper, etc. have lower conductivities.
Now try this:
1. Fill a tub or pail half full of warm water. Add cold water. Test the temperature of the water without
stirring. Do the warm and cold waters mix?
Yes! The waters will mix and the temperature of the mixture will be less than the temperature of the
warm water and greater than the temperature of the cold water. Although you cannot see the heat
energy being transferred, heat is owing from hot to cold. Heat energy will continue to ow until a nal
temperature, called the equilibrium temperature, is achieved.
2. What happens if you stir the water around?
Stirring the water will cause the equilibrium temperature to be reached quicker. The concept here is
how heat is transferred. The three major ways to transfer heat energy are conduction, convection, and
radiation. Conduction is when heat transfer due to one object physically touching another object. For
example, sitting on a chair, a person transfers heat energy to the chair by conduction. (Ask students to
sit on a chair and then feel the temperature of the chair when they stand. Ask them why it
feels warm.) Convection is transferring heat by moving uids such as air or currents. When
the water is stirred, both conduction and convection help heat energy to be transferred
ANSWER KEY
Extreme Heat - Science 1a
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the Science of...
Extreme Heat
ANSWER KEY
Extreme Heat - Science 1b
from the hot water to the cold water. Radiation is sort of complicated to explain and can be an excellent
topic for the more advanced students to research.
How does this demonstration illustrate temperature transfer in bodies of water vs. soil?
Challenge:
1. Heat Facts:
Due to conduction, air over land warms more quickly than air over water.
Land loses heat faster than water.
Use these facts to explain sea breezes and land breezes.
Remember: Differences in temperature cause winds.
A sea breeze is a cool wind that blows from the water towards land usually in the afternoon of a sunny,
calm day. The reason the sea breeze occurs is unequal heating of the land and water by the sun. In the
morning, both the land and water are near the same temperature. But as the sun rises, it transfers heat
energy to the land more quickly than it transfers heat energy to the water. As air moves over land, the
land loses heat and causes the air to warm and rise. This heating of the air causes a high pressure area
over the land and a lower pressure area over the water. This will cause the air mass over land to rise
and ow out towards the water. To replace this air mass, cool air from the water, known as a sea breeze,
blows in towards the land.
A land breeze is a cool wind that blows from the land towards the water
usually at night. Rather than unequal heating of the land and water, its
unequal cooling that is the driving force behind a land breeze. After
sunset, the land cools at a faster rate than the water cools. By cooling,
we mean the material is losing heat energy. Just the opposite of a sea
breeze, a land breeze occurs because warm air over the water rises
and travels towards the land. As it passes over the land the air cools,
becomes denser, and falls back to the surface of the Earth. A pressure
difference then causes the cool air to rush back out towards the water to
replace the air that traveled towards the land.
2. Explain the diagram at the right and the impact of the Heat Index on
people in warm, humid climates.
The heat index is a measure of the apparent air temperature when the
effect of relative humidity is factored in with the actual air temperature.
In general, as the relative humidity increases, the apparent air
temperature is greater than the actual air temperature. For example,
look at the chart for an air temperature of 90 degrees. If the humidity is 90%, it feels like 115 degrees!
But if the humidity is 20%, the apparent air temperature is approximately 85 degrees. This is why
people who live in warm, humid climates need to be extra careful when the weather report is hot,
humid and hazy.
Heat Index