by Catherine Schmidt · illustrated by Alex Paterson MEASURETHEWIND
1 How strong is the wind? Can we measure it?
2
lakes
When the wind is still, are flat, like
glass.
3 When strong breezes blow, the air moves tree branches.
4
storm
whip, waves toss big ships from side to side.
When winds
5
One way to measure the wind is to look at what it does to things.
This is what Francis Beaufort did back in the 1800s. He had a job on a ship. He could see the force of the wind in the waves. He could see the sails trap the wind.
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7 He could feel the ship move. Beaufort kept track of the wind. He made many notes.
8 Then, he made a scale. It had numbers. Next to the numbers on the scale, he gave the wind names: calm, gale, storm.
9 In time, he added words to tell about the wind. 0: There is no wind. 4, 5, 6: Breezes blow. 12: Blasting winds make a hurricane.
10 Many people made use of the wind scale. They added to it. 1: Light Air 2: Light Breeze 3: Gentle Breeze 7: Near Gale 8: Gale 9: Strong Gale
11 Now, the scale has pictures. They show what the wind does on land. Now, the scale has wind speeds. They tell how fast the wind blows. 4: Moderate Breeze 5: Fresh Breeze 6: Strong Breeze 10: Storm 11: Violent Storm 12: Hurricane
12 Use the scale! Look and see what the wind does as it blows.
13 See how the leaves shake, the grass moves, or the flag flaps. Then, match what you see to the scale.
0: Calm 1: Light Air 2: Light Breeze 3: Gentle Breeze 4: Moderate Breeze 5: Fresh Breeze 6: Strong Breeze 7: Near Gale 8: Gale 9: Strong Gale 10: Storm 11: Violent Storm 1 2: Hurricane Flag hangs down. Leaves are still. Flag barely moves. Leaves lif t. Flag flutters. Leaves rustle. Flag flaps. Leaves move. Flag Smallbillows.branches move. Leaves blow. Flag Smallwaves.trees sway. Large branches sway and Wholemove.trees move. Walking is hard. Twigs break . Cars veer of f the road. Trees bend over. Roof tiles fly of f. Trees uproot. Roofs fly of f. Houses blow apar t. Huge structures are destroyed. Beaufor t Scale What You See or Feel What It Looks Like 14 Just like Beaufort, you can measure the wind.
Thanks to Sir Francis Beaufort’s wind scale, scientists today know what the wind was like more than 100 years ago. Back then, sailors in the British Royal Navy recorded what they observed at sea all over the world. Every four hours they wrote what they noticed in a logbook. Sailors used the Beaufort scale to record the direction and strength of the wind. They collected the information from the logbooks to plan voyages. Today, scientists are reading those same logbooks for a different reason. The information recorded in the logbooks helps them understand the world’s climate. Climate describes the weather in an area over a long period of time. Scientists hope the data will help them predict how the climate might change in the future.
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Stephen Pearce, Rear-Admiral Sir Francis Beaufort, 1855–56, oil paint on canvas, 50 1/5 x 40 1/5 inches, National Maritime Museum, London, England.
Great Minds® is the creator of Eureka Math®, Wit & Wisdom®, Alexandria Plan™, and PhD Science™. Geodes® are published by Great Minds in association with Wilson Language Training, publisher of Fundations®. Credits: p. 1, R A Kearton/Moment/Getty Images; p. 2, FatManPhoto/ Shutterstock.com; p. 3, Peter Cripps/Shutterstock.com; pp. 4–5, © Crown copyright, Met Office; More page, © National Maritime Museum, Greenwich, London, Greenwich Hospital Collection Copyright © 2018 Great Minds® 10PrintedISBNgreatminds.org978-1-64054-180-1intheUSA987654321 1.3
Fundations® Alignment 84% Decodable at Level 1, Unit 11 Focus Concept Suffix -s Wit & Wisdom® Alignment Powerful Forces (01.03) Great Minds® level 1 | module 3 | set 4 book 1 MEASURE THE WIND He could see the force of the wind in the waves. He could see the sails trap the wind. What did Francis Beaufort learn from what he saw?
