Modeling The Coriolis Effect
Materials:
- 1 Balloon
- 2 Permanent Markers
Questions:
1.As you look down from the North Pole toward the equator, which way is the balloon spinning, clockwise or counterclockwise? Explain what you see and why.
From looking from the north pole perspective ,the balloon is spinning in a clockwise direction because that is the direction it is going from right to left.
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2.As you look up from the South Pole toward the equator, which way is the balloon spinning, clockwise or counterclockwise? Explain what you see and why.
From looking down to the perspective of the South pole, the balloon is going in a counterclockwise direction which causes the curve to go left to right.
3.What happened when you tried to draw a straight line from the North Pole to the equator? Explain what you see and why.
The line went from East to west or right to left which will makes it a counterclockwise direction. Also, the line curves right because of the Coriolis effect.
4.What happened when you tried to draw a straight line from the South Pole to the equator? Explain what you see and why.
As I drew the line, my partner spun the balloon from West to East which is a counterclockwise direction.
5.Predict what would happen if you again drew lines in the Northern and Southern Hemispheres but with the earth rotating in the opposite direction.
The results will appear to be the opposite . So if from the Northern Hemisphere took a Clockwise direction,the Southern Hemisphere will go the opposite direction. That is why the curves would switch.