Forecasting storms and earthquakes, and how warnings keep people safe
Grade 6 Science Worksheet - Challenge Me
Circle the best answer.
Forecast cone reaching the coast near Esme's town at day four. The forecast shows a hurricane may reach Esme's coast in about four days. What is the best plan now?
- Watch just the center line of the cone
- Check the kit and evacuation plan while it is calm
- Wait until the warning is issued, then start a plan
- Ignore it if it is a low category
USGS-style hazard map with Kira's town in a dark-red, high-chance area. Kira lives where USGS maps a high chance of strong shaking in coming decades, but no date can be given. What is the best plan?
- Secure heavy furniture and practice Drop, Cover, and Hold On
- Wait for a forecast that names the day
- Do nothing, since no date is known for it yet
- Plan to leave town the week before it happens
"Can you predict earthquakes?" (USGS question page). Luz's friend says scientists predicted the exact day of a big earthquake. Which response is best?
- Disagree: earthquakes are forecast days ahead, like hurricanes
- Agree: animals usually act strangely about a day before
- Disagree: USGS says no one has predicted a major earthquake
- Agree: seismometers show the date ahead
TORNADO WATCH and TORNADO WARNING. Noah's cousin says a tornado watch means a tornado has already been seen. Which response is best?
- Agree: a watch means a tornado has already been spotted somewhere nearby
- Disagree: a watch means conditions are right; a warning means act now
- Agree: a watch and a warning mean exactly the same
- Disagree: a watch means the danger has passed
6 a.m., 12 ft; 8 a.m., 14 ft; 10 a.m., 16 ft; flood stage, 20 ft. A river gauge reads 12 ft at 6 a.m., 14 ft at 8 a.m. and 16 ft at 10 a.m. Flood stage is 20 ft. At this pace, when does Pia expect flood stage?
- About 6 p.m.
- About 2 p.m.
- It won't; the rise will stop by itself
- About 11 a.m.
Read this first
Table (NHC, Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale), with columns Category and Sustained wind
Category 1, 74–95 mph; Category 2, 96–110 mph; Category 3, 111–129 mph; Category 4, 130–156 mph; Category 5, 157 mph or higher.
A storm's sustained winds are 65 mph on Monday, 80 mph on Tuesday and 105 mph on Wednesday. Using the NHC scale, what change does Ren report?
- It reached Category 5 by Wednesday
- It weakened from Category 3 to Category 1
- It became a hurricane Tuesday and reached Category 2 Wednesday
- It stayed a tropical storm for the whole time, without a category
Week 1, 5, ground steady; week 2, 20, ground steady; week 3, 60, ground swelling. Small earthquakes under a volcano rise from 5 a week to 20, then 60, and the ground starts to swell. What should USGS likely do, by Tala's reasoning?
- Lower the alert level, since small earthquakes are normal
- Raise the alert level and tell nearby people to be ready
- Wait until lava appears before saying anything
- Announce the exact day of the eruption
Why can hurricanes be forecast days ahead while earthquakes cannot, as Zee explains?
- Hurricanes are smaller than earthquakes
- Earthquakes are rarer, so no scientist ever tries to forecast them
- Both can be forecast days ahead
- Hurricanes can be seen and tracked; faults give no reliable sign of when they will slip
Why does a flash flood often give less warning than a slow river flood, by Ari's reasoning?
- Flash floods are forecast weeks ahead
- Very heavy rain can fill small streams within hours
- Flash floods come from earthquakes shaking the riverbanks loose
- River floods give no warning of any kind
Tsunami warning centers watch earthquakes and ocean gauges. Why do people near the shore still move to high ground after strong shaking, without waiting, as Bo learns?
- It is better to wait and see the wave first
- A nearby tsunami can arrive before an official warning
- Warning centers do not exist
- Strong shaking means the tsunami has already passed by