Boston Harbor Temperatures by Seasons

Project #1345 on iSENSEProject.org

Ocean Water Temperatures at Boston Harbor

Objective: Students will make observations about the varying temperatures of ocean water at Boston Harbor over the course of a year; they will correlate the changes in seasons (changes in the sun's direct energy) over the ocean which affects the ocean water temperature.

Standard: NGSS MS-ESS2-6 Describe how interactions involving the ocean affect weather and climate on a regional scale, including the influence of the ocean temperature as mediated by energy input from the sun and energy loss due to evaporation or redistribution via ocean currents.

Guiding Questions:

1. BEFORE you look at the data, in what month do you think the ocean water at the beach is the coldest? The warmest? Why?

2. During what month is the water the coldest? Does this match your prediction? Why or why not?

3. During what month is the water the warmest? Does this match your prediction? Why or why not?

4. Go to the summary page -- what is the range of ocean temperatures (highest - lowest) over the course of the year?

5. Group the data by season. Explain why the water is colder in the winter and warmer in the summer. 

Data Set: https://www.nodc.noaa.gov/dsdt/cwtg/all_meanT.html (I used Boston Harbor, and used the average temperature for the months that had two temperatures.)