Highways of the Sea Lab Report

Instructions: In the Highways of the Sea Lab, you will chart the traveling shoes and predict how ocean
currents move. Record your findings below. You will submit your completed lab report.

(30 points possible)

Name and Title:

Include your name, teacher’s name, date, and name of lab.

Brody Walton, Don Muellner ,01/03/2024, Highways of the Sea Lab

Objective(s):

What was the main purpose of the lab?

Construct a map showing the locations of the Nike shoes’ last known locations and their
discovery at sea, along with the pecan currents that may have carried them there.

Hypothesis: (2 points)

This should be a prediction that can be tested. You may use the if/then format to write your
hypothesis.

If ocean currents are strong, the Nike shoes are more likely to be carried extensively
throughout various locations in the sea.

Procedure: (8 points)

On the map below, locate and mark the locations of shoes provided in the data table. You may
print your map and mark it by hand or copy it to a program to edit. Label each data point in
chronological order from 1 to 11 on the map, and connect the data points with arrows.

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Data:

Conclusion: (20 points)

1. Define the following terms: (2 points)

a. Current :the water's constant flow from one location to another.
b. Gyre:

2. Using the map and the data points, what can you conclude about the general pathway
the shoes took? (2 points)

With the exception of a brief period from January 1993 to 1993, when they started
to drift towards China, the shoes were observed to have stayed in the vicinity of

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 the United States and Canada, indicating a significant change in their trajectory.
Certain ocean currents, seasonal variations, or other environmental factors may
have an impact on this change.

3. Compare the pathway of the shoes to the map showing the major surface currents in the
Pacific. Which current(s) did the shoes most likely encounter? Add these to your map
above. (2 points)

The Nike shoes most likely came into contact with local currents like the Kuroshio
or the North Equatorial, as well as ocean currents like the North Pacific Gyre. The
movement of floating objects over great distances is largely guided by these
currents.

4. Which data point is an outlier? What may have happened to this batch of shoes? (2
points)

An outlier in the graph’s 10th data point indicates a departure from the general
pattern. One possible explanation for this disparity would be that some shoes
stayed put while others moved.

5. How fast did the shoes travel? (4 points)

a. From where the shoes spilled (48°N, 161°W) to where they first made landfall
(49°N, 126°W), how many kilometers did they travel? How many days did they
take to travel that distance? (You can use November 30 as the date found). What
was their rate of travel in kilometers per hour?

The Nike trainers covered 2,557 kilometers in 187 days, which translates to
an average daily mileage of roughly 13.67 kilometer’s, or 1.75 kilometres
per hour. This data highlights the shoes’ extended journey and the
influence of ocean currents on their trajectory, offering insight into their
consistent movement over time.

b. From where the shoes spilled (48°N, 161°W) to where they were found in 1996
(54°N, 133°W), how many kilometers did they travel? How many days did they
take to travel that distance (use April 30 as the date found)? What was their rate
of travel in kilometers per hour?
In 1996, the shoes travelled 2,052 kilometers at an average speed of 25.32
kilometers per hour over a period of about 2,165 days. This data
emphasizes the long-lasting and extensive voyage of these shoes,
emphasizing the possibility of objects travelling large distances over
prolonged periods of time inside ocean currents.

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 6. The shoes traveled faster than the rubber ducks and bath toys. Propose a hypothesis to
explain the why the shoes traveled faster, and develop a plan to test your prediction. (2
points)

I believe the shoes’ higher mass will cause them to travel at a faster pace than the
bath toys and ducks. Using a blower and a long bucket filled with water, I intend to
set up an experiment to test this theory. In order to gain an understanding of how
mass affects object movement in water, I plan to observe which object—the shoe
or the duck toy—reaches the end of the bucket first. When it comes to fluid
dynamics and the behaviour of floating objects with different masses, this
experiment may yield important information.

7. The shoes floated low in the water, while the ducks floated high in the water. How could
this fact have changed the course and speed of both the shoes and the ducks? (2 points)

Nike shoes may move underwater more quickly than duck toys because they may
not be as impacted by external factors like wind. In contrast to duck toys, which
may be affected or slowed down by wind, the underwater path of the shoes may
stay relatively constant. Taking these things into account highlights how various
objects can be influenced by a variety of environmental elements, eventually
impacting their speed and direction, and adds an intriguing dimension to the
dynamics of floating objects in water.

8. Give a possible explanation why some shoes drifted northward along the coast while
others drifted southward. (2 points)

If some Nike shoes had been separated, they might have been distributed
throughout the Northern and Southern hemispheres by various ocean currents.
Vast distances can be covered by the intricate network of ocean currents carrying
floating objects. It is important to discuss how these shoes might spread and how
ocean currents might affect the environment because marine systems are
interconnected. This situation emphasizes how important it is to manage waste
responsibly in order to reduce the accidental spread of debris and the negative
effects it has on the environment in different areas.

9. Your friend has invited you onto her family’s boat for a day of fishing. After lunch on the
boat, your friend wants to throw a bag of trash overboard. After researching the impact
currents have on objects, explain what you would do in this situation and why. (2 points)

I would remove the trash bag from the water and talk to my friend about how
ocean currents affect trash circulation. I would emphasize the environmental
effects while describing how these currents can lead to debris circulating and
sinking deeper into the ocean. I would also like to draw attention to the threat it
poses to marine life, since animals may mistake the trash for food and become
harmed or even killed as a result. Starting a discussion about the wider

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 environmental effects raises awareness and emphasizes how crucial it is to
dispose of waste responsibly in order to save our oceans and marine ecosystems.

Unless Otherwise Noted All Content © 2023 Florida Virtual School. FlexPoint Education Cloud™ is a trademark of
Florida Virtual School.