Here’s a great question from Kevin Low’s talk last Tuesday: How will climate change impact the Missouri River? Can we expect more floods, more droughts, or no changes at all?
Watch here, and click on the blue boxes in the video for links and more information.

https://www.thinglink.com/video/783446424690884610

Download the presentation

This 7-minute video is just a highlight from Kevin Low’s complete presentation, “Quantum Physics and the Dark Arts: Predicting Tomorrow’s Flood Crest.” Check out his entire talk here.

Explore more

• Missouri Basin River Forecast Center: The latest flooding predictions or current observations, at monitoring stations along the Missouri River basin. Choose from current observations to 9-day-out predictions.
  • Create a custom river page: just the data from just the locations you are interested in. Predictions or data on the past are available.
• Follow the Missouri Basin River Forecast Center on Facebook and Twitter.
• 2016’s flood outlook. The snowpack in the Rockies is small this year, so despite wet soil conditions, the USGS is expecting a milder year.

Science Standards Connections

Earth and Space Science 4.2.F (Missouri High School Standards) :

a. Predict the weather based on maps

b. Explain how climate and weather are impacted by various factors

e. Provide evidence that support possibilities of climate change

Extensions for students during or after the video:

1. Share the NOAA’s report on the causes of the extreme 2011 floods on the Missouri River. Based on the video and report, what were the main factors behind the 2011 flood? (snowpack and rainfall)

a. Explore the current measurements of those main flooding factors on the Missouri Basin River Forecast Center site. Based on that data, what do you predict flooding will be like this year? Why? What about in the next week?

2. Compare the maps of predicted precipitation and temperature change at seconds 0:09. Based on the maps, what kind of changes are expected to occur in the Missouri River Basin in the next 90 years? What impacts might these changes have on riverside communities and agriculture?

b. Explore the GlobalChange.gov climate change in the Great Plains. How might climate change impact your  area, its agriculture, and its natural resources, compared to other parts of the Great Plains? What variables could change these possible outcomes?

3. Explain why it’s possible for changes in climate to cause an increase in both total precipitation and droughts.

4. For more resources to teach about climate change in the Great Plains, visit the National Climate Assessment’s Educator Resources Page.

Did you use this video in a lesson? Leave a comment letting us know. Or, have your students leave their answers and observations in the comments here — we’d love to learn from them!