Armchair
Scientists: Monitoring Caribou Climate
Tracking Temperatures in Caribou-land
Thanks to technology, you can sit in the comfort of your climate controlled classroom and conduct science observations in the Arctic. Just how cold does it get up there?
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We can now access temperature information from a small community called Old Crow, where many Porcupine caribou congregate during the winter and early spring. Located at 67.65 N, and -139.50, Old Crow is situated at the confluence of the Crow and the Porcupine Rivers. The only Yukon community located above the arctic, it is a small town of about 300 aboriginal people; known as the Vuntut Gwitchin. People in Old Crow enjoy long summer days and experience the short days of winter.
Visit the Canadian Meteoriological Weather site to record their daily temperatures and daylength:
Weather
recorded at Old Crow, Yukon (67.65N, -139.50), on the Porcupine
River.
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High Temperature |
Low |
Sunrise
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Sunset
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Daylength
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Try This:
- Make a graph of high and low temperatures in Old Crow for the data you have collected.
- Keep a record of the high and low temperatures in your hometown every Monday and compare your climate at home with the caribou's on the Porcupine River.
Journaling Questions:
- Have you ever been somewhere as cold as the Arctic-even for a short time? What is it like to experience such cold temperatures?
- How does the caribou survive such cold weather? List some of the ways caribou adapt to stay alive in the cold weather.
- How would you dress to survive such cold weather?
- Do you think that temperature is affected by the amount of time the sun is out?
To learn more about Old Crow- its history and culture:
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