Station 6
Satitoa, Samoa

As an island in the Pacific, Samoa is particularly vulnerable to changes in sea surface temperatures in the Pacific Ocean. The coral reefs are also suffering from ocean acidification.

Students will watch the video on Satitoa, Samoa and read Station 6: Satitoa from the Companion Reader below.
 

Students will:

1. Use Google Earth to develop a sense of place.
2. Use the data and information on the climograph in the Companion Reader to observe patterns in rainfall and temperature.
3. Find out more about coral bleaching by watching What Is Coral Bleaching? (Time, 2016).
4. Read Everything You Need to Know about Coral Bleaching and How We Can Stop It (Hancock, n.d.).
5. Find out more about sea-level rise by reading Sea Level Rise on the Smithsonian: Ocean Find Your Blue website.
6. Identify factors that influence climate.
7. Identify sources of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gas emissions.

Engineering Challenge
Students will design and construct a physical model that demonstrates thermal expansion of saltwater. Their model must demonstrate thermal expansion within a class period time frame. The expansion must be the result of warming only. Expansion must be measurable.

Students will:

• Identify the criteria and constraints.
• Consider the types of materials that could be used to create a working model.
• Propose two or three possible design solutions.
• Draw the final design solution, indicating the materials to be used and how the system works.

Instructions for this activity can be found in the Companion Reader Station 6: Satitoa.
 

Materials Needed

• 500-ml Erlenmeyer flask
• Rubber stopper with glass tube and flexible tubing
• Test tube or small beaker
• Salt
• Water
• Baking soda
• Vinegar
• Bromothymol blue

Instructions

1. Make a saltwater solution of 35 grams of salt in 1,000 ml of distilled water.
2. Pour saltwater into the test tube or beaker to about three-fourths of the volume.
3. Add a few drops of bromothymol blue to observe the pH.
4. Place the flexible tubing into the saltwater.
5. Add a tablespoon of baking soda to the Erlenmeyer flask. Pour in 125 ml of vinegar and quickly place the stopper into the neck of the flask. You may need to hold the stopper in place.
6. If all went well, carbon dioxide gas should be bubbling into the salt water.
7. Observe the color of the saltwater.
8. Use your model to explain how rising atmospheric levels of carbon dioxide contribute to ocean acidification.

Hancock, L. (n.d.). Everything you need to know about coral bleaching and how we can stop it. Retrieved from https://www.worldwildlife.org/pages/everything-you-need-to-know-about-coral-bleaching-and-how-we-can-stop-it

The Ocean Portal Team. (2018, April). Sea level rise. Retrieved from https://ocean.si.edu/through-time/ancient-seas/sea-level-rise

NASA Global Climate Change. (2018, May 03). Sea level. Retrieved from https://climate.nasa.gov/vital-signs/sea-level/

Time. (2016, September 16). What is coral bleaching? Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fA6mpexcyN4

Transatlantic Outreach Program. (2022). STEM Unit 3: Station 6 – Satitoa, Samoa (7/9). YouTube. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-htBczRWib8