Lesson 3: Where will your home be in a million years?

Objectives
Students will:

Locate stations on the Global Velocities map Interpret the information on Global Velocities map Determine the speed at which the locations are moving Draw conclusions and identify a trend from collected data

Time:
One 45 minute class period.

Materials

Musical Plates journal/notebook OR Student Activity 3 Worksheet Computers with Internet access

Teacher Preparation

Remind students to bring notebooks or journals in which they will record their answers to the lesson questions. Bookmark and become familiar with the features of the Global Velocities Map. Background Information on the Global Positioning System (GPS) system GPS Virtual Reference Book International GPS Service website

Procedure

Direct students to Student Activity 3 in the Student Activities of this project. After students have gone through the lesson on their own, have them share their answers to the lesson questions.

Assessment Suggestions

• The answers in the students' project journals / notebooks OR worksheets can be used for assessment (e.g. Are the answers complete, accurate, and do they show an understanding of the lesson concepts?).

Student Activity

	Where will your home be in a million years?
	Materials GPS Time Series Global Velocities Map 'Musical Plates' journal/notebook OR Activity 3 printable worksheet Instructions: Your teacher will tell you to record your answers in your 'Musical Plates' journal/notebook OR on the printable worksheet. Locate the station HILO in Hawaii on the GPS Time Series Global Velocities Map.   Use the scaling arrow at the bottom of the left-side of Global Velocities map to determine the speed at which station HILO is moving ("5 cm/yr --->"). See if you can answer these questions: How fast is it moving in one year? How far will it move in 10 years? 100 years? 1,000 years? 100,000 years? a million years?   Determine the plate on which station HILO is located. What plates are touching it?   Use the "direction arrow" for station HILO to determine the direction that that station will move in. Assuming that station HILO remains moving in that direction, use the scale on your map to determine where station HILO will be in for each of the time periods above.   Do the same activity for station AUCK in Auckland, New Zealand.   See if you can answer these questions: How would the movement of either station affect the climate that plants and animals located on the land mass would experience? How might this change in climate affect the habitat on the land mass? How might this habitat affect the animals? What animals living in the region might become extinct and which might be able to survive? EXTENSION Scroll down past the Global Velocities Map Click on the station you would like to view You can access the geodetic position measurements from that station from 1990 to the present day to determine its direction and movement for the last 10 years.