Name ________________________________________Period ______ Date __________

Ocean Motion WebQuest

INSTRUCTIONS: Use the interactive activities at the following website(s) to answer the questions.
What is a Wave?
http://www.mos.org/oceans/motion/wind.html
1. The size of a wave depends on___________________________________________________________
2. Waves travel ____________ water, they do not take __________________ with them.
3. Describe the motion of the wave of the people and the string. What type of wave is being demonstrated
in these examples?

4. Under the "Demonstration" Tab, experiment with different medium densities and wave controls.
Describe the changes you observe as you adjust the different variables.

5. Under the "Water Waves" Tab, watch the water waves animation and then explain the motion of a water wave

On the transverse wave, label a crest, a trough, amplitude, wavelength, and explain frequency. On the longitudinal wave,
label a compression and a rarefaction and include an example.
Transverse wave Longitudinal wave
Illustrate Illustrate

What is frequency and what unit is it measured in?

What is one wavelength equal to in a transverse wave?
How many cycles/vibrations are there in 1 wavelength?
What is the period of a wave?

If the above wave completes about 6 cycles in 2 seconds, what is this waves period?

On the website, try adjusting the frequency on the animation. Then explain how frequency and wavelength are related.

Experiment with the waves frequency and amplitude. Observe what happens then record your observations

What is the relationship between the period of a wave and its frequency?

Click on the link:

http://www.enchantedlearning.com/subjects/ocean/Waves.shtml
Tsunamis are sometimes called tidal waves, and are different from surface waves: they are usually caused
by _________________________________________________________________________________.
ANATOMY OF A TSUNAMI
EPICENTER (Watch both videos as instructed)
1. Where was the epicenter for the wave that shook the world? ____________________________
2. What is the nearest trench? ______________________________________________________
3. The earthquake had a magnitude of __________ on the Richter Scale.
4. How much energy was estimated to result from the quake? _____________________________
5. How much does the Indian Plate subduct the Burma Plate each year? _____________________
 6. On Dec. 26, 2004 the plates snapped and shifted as much as _____________________________
7. Approximately how much seabed shifted during the 4 minute quake? ________________________
8. How big were the waves at generation? _______________________________________________
9. What is the depth of the ocean in this region? __________________________________________
OPEN OCEAN (Watch video, replay as needed)
1. The most powerful waves headed ______________ toward Sumatra & Thailand and
____________ toward Sri Lanka & India.
2. How fast did the waves travel? _____________________________________________
3. True / False Much of the seismic energy of the wave was lost due to gravity and friction.
4. Would this tsunami be noticed if you were in a boat in the open ocean? ________________
5. What was the wavelength (distance from crest to crest) of the tsunami? _______________

COLLISION
IMAGE 1
1. The shallower the water the _________ the waves travel & the ___________ they rise.
2. How high were the waves at Banda Aceh, Sumatra? _________________________
IMAGE 2
1. Why did the water dramatically recede as the tsunami reached the coast?

VIDEO 1
1. True / False Wind generated surf waves quickly lose energy and roll back out to sea.
2 a. Describe the appearance of a tsunami as it is coming ashore

b. How does it sound? _____________________________________________________

3. How far did water travel inland in Northern Sumatra? _____________________________
4. How does seafloor topography affect the impact of a tsunami?

Follow the direction on the site. Real world application Write 4-6 sentences about what you learned about waves.

Test your knowledge. Take the short quiz, record score. SCORE=________________
A wave is like