)
Taking the Pulse of Yellowstone’s “Breathing” Volcano: Problem-Based Learning in America’s First National Park | Lessons on Plate Tectonics
Index
Goal
Students are able to explain how scientists monitor volcanoes and to analyze geological data in order to select a site for a field research station.
Context
Audience
This activity was developed for high school and middle school students. However, its focus on data makes it adaptable for introductory college courses.
Skills and concepts that students must have mastered
Students should be able to work in a team.
How the module is
situated in the course
This activity can be used at any time in an earth science class. However, in the sequence of lessons about plate tectonics, it fits well after activities on divergent, convergent, and transform plate boundaries as an open-ended lesson about hotspot volcanism.
-
Figure 1. Yellowstone Park with topography shown with LiDAR, Geyers shown with water icon, and recent earthquakes as yellow dots displayed on a Google Earth map. See Google Earth files below for KMZs and...Read more » -
Figure 2. The Firehole River in Yellowstone National Park. Painted by Thomas Moran in 1871 on the first official survey of the park, the Ferdinand Vandeveer Hayden Survey. Yellowstone Digital Slide Collection. ...Read more » -
Figure 3. High precision GPS stations in Yellowstone National Park measure the caldera moving up and down through time. See animation in presentation: Taking the Pulse of Yellowstone’s Breathing Caldera:...Read more » -
Figure 4. InSAR image overlaying Yellowstone calderas show the comparison of two radar images of the area taken at different times (2004 and 2006) and show changes in elevation with the colors. Each repetition of a...Read more » -
Figure 5. Students are asked to located a site for a permanent field camp within Yellowstone National Park. This shows a survey camp during the Hayden Survey. William Henry Jackson. 1872. Yellowstone Digital Slide...Read more » -
Figure 6. Vertical changes through time for many Yellowstone GPS stations shown as Time Series plots. Source: Christine Puskas, UNAVCO....Read more »
Summary
Students learn about volcanism in Yellowstone National Park. They focus on the park’s history of eruption, current seismicity, hydrothermal events, and ground deformation. They learn how scientists monitor volcanoes (using Mount St. Helens as an example) and then apply that knowledge to Yellowstone as an open-ended problem. Their task is to identify a site for a research station.
Download Materials
All teacher and student files bundled
67 MB • v: February 25, 2015
Individual files for the module: Taking the pulse of Yellowstone’s "Breathing Volcano": Problem-Based Learning in America’s First National Park.
2.7 MB • v: February 25, 2015
Word version [docx] for editing
2.6 MB • v: February 25, 2015
Student Worksheet with base map of Yellowstone [pdf]
2 MB • v: February 25, 2015
Word version [docx] for editing
4.1 MB • v: February 25, 2015
The Science of Prediction: Monitoring Volcanic Activity [pptx]
14 MB • v: February 25, 2015
PDF version with instructor notes
3.5 MB • v: February 25, 2015
This presentation can be provided either as full class or in student teams to learn about the signs of volcanic activity and how geologists monitor volcanoes, using the example of Mount St. Helens.
Jigsaw: There are three jigsaw pieces: eruption history, hydrothermal activity, and seismic activity. Students re-join their original teams to work together on the ground formation activity.
The Powerpoint and PDF files are designed to be used together. Download both versions of each jigsaw. The presentations have interactive data & content that leads the student teams to additional information, animations, and data. The PDF's include activity instructions & explanations of the content in the Slides. Alternatively, in non-computer classrooms, student teams can use the PDF's for a solid experience.
Eruption History Interactive Jigsaw Presentation [pptx]
4.8 MB • v: February 25, 2015
2.3 MB • v: February 25, 2015
Hydrothermal Activity Interactive Jigsaw Presentation [pptx]
13.1 MB • v: February 25, 2015
2.5 MB • v: February 25, 2015
Seismic Activity Interactive Jigsaw Presentation [pptx]
4.8 MB • v: February 25, 2015
2.1 MB • v: February 25, 2015
Ground Deformation Interactive Presentation [pptx]
7.4 MB • v: February 25, 2015
2 MB • v: February 25, 2015
All student teams work together on this activity to learn how ground deformation is measured with Global Positioning Systems (GPS) stations installed in and around Yellowstone.
Supplementary Files
Flour Box Volcano Lesson Plan [pdf]: Sand or spackle can be substituted for the flour. Courtesy Volcano Video Productions
859 KB • v: February 25, 2015
Hands-on Demonstration: Measure a changing volcano
Link to Caldera Box directions for teachers: from Oregon State University
Instructions for building a volcano out of a balloon, tubing, and a box of flour.
59 KB • v: February 25, 2015
Excel version for editing
68 KB • v: February 25, 2015
Links to many additional resources about Yellowstone, including art, videos, data, and more.
Supplementary Files
697 KB • v: February 25, 2015
Extra map of Yellowstone for students to draw their data and notes.
Animated GIF of Yellowstone's inflation and deflation 2004 - 2011 [gif] as measured by PBO GPS
1 MB • v: February 25, 2015
Google Earth Files
KMZ bundle with all of the Google Earth files for this module
319 KB • v: November 19, 2018
KMZ maps: Yellowstone NPS map, caldera, lidar, geysers, earthquakes, leveling line, hydrothermal, and vertical displacement. **Note: Due to continual Google Earth upgrades some layers might appear as x's and will be updated on a yearly basis.**
Instructions for showing places and data on Google Earth [pdf]
417 KB • v: February 25, 2015
Word version [docx] for editing
536 KB • v: February 25, 2015
Module Development
This work is based on materials provided by the UNAVCO Education and Community Engagement Program, Plate Boundary Observatory, and the GAGE Facility supported by the National Science Foundation (NSF) and National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) under NSF award: EAR 1261833 and the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. Authors are Denise Thompson (Orting Middle School), Shelley Olds (UNAVCO), and Nancy West (Quarter Dome Consulting).
Send questions or comments about this page to education
unavco.org
Last modified: 2020-04-16 04:16:32 America/Denver