Data Management
Lesson
Is it about to rain?
Rainfall is crucial to the ongoing sustainability of the water cycle. However, as more carbon has gone into the atmosphere, rainfall patterns have changed dramatically and the world has experienced more floods and droughts.
Knowing when it’s about to rain isn't just important for the weather person on TV. Going for a run, putting the washing out and having a BBQ are just some of the decision we make that are dependent on the weather. To help predict whether or not it’s going to rain, we must be able to interpret rainfall graphs like the one below.
Rainfall Graph (Source: http://www.environment.gov.au)
- In what year did Sydney experience its highest total annual rainfall?
- What was annual rainfall for Uluru in 2000?
- Which year has the largest difference in rainfall?
- Use the Internet to find last year’s annual rainfall in Australia.
- Use the Internet to find last year’s annual rainfall in Japan, Mexico and Brazil. Are they higher or lower than Australia?
- Go to http://www.bom.gov.au/climate/cdo/about/cdo-rainfall-feature.shtml and obtain rainfall history for your locality. What is the highest annual rainfall?
- Discuss the variation in rainfall, comparing excessive rain with drought periods. What are some explanations for the pattern of rainfall in Australia?