This mini-lesson features time-series graphs of mean salinity at the surface for the Arctic and Antarctic regions. A series of questions guides students in their analysis.

Background information on the El Nino Southern Oscillation or ENSO.

Explore and connect to the GLOBE Water Quality protocol bundle. 

Explore and connect to hydrosphere protocols in GLOBE. Each protocol has related Earth System Data Explorer datasets identified as well.

Explore and connect to the GLOBE ENSO (El Niño Southern Oscillation) protocol bundle. 

Explore and connect to the GLOBE Rivers and Lakes protocol bundle. 

Background information on ocean circulation.

Phytoplankton distribution background information.

Explore the energy and matter cycles found within the Earth System. 

The Earth System Satellite Images help students observe and analyze global Earth and environmental data, understand the relationship among different environmental variables, and explore how the data change seasonally and over longer timescales.