😇 Please read all files carefully.
1. Oso Landslide Infographic Activity
2. Lab: Glacial Features in Google Earth
Oso Infographic Questions
Please read through and examine the photographs in the link to answer the following
questions. Answer the questions on this page and SaveAs_YourLastName to upload to the
submission box on Canvas.
http://projects.seattletimes.com/2014/building-toward-disaster/
1. The first landslide is documented in the interactive graphic in what year? _________
2. How many landslides had been mentioned in the historical records leading up to this first
documented event? _______
3. What approach did the government use to subdue mass wasting along the slide area in the
1960’s?
4. Offer two reasons why their attempt to engineer a solution in the 1960’s didn’t work:
5. Compare the photos from before and after the 1967 landslide event. What is the dramatic result
to the landscape that occurs as a result of the 1967 slide?
6. In what year has the river moved itself back to its position at the time of the 1967 slide?
_______
7. What events lead up to the next major slide, in 1988?
8. In the image taken in 1998 the head scarp has shifted. Where is it in relation to the head scarp
from the 1967 slope failure event? (to the north, south, east, west)
9. In what year does the failure surface from 1967, and from 1998 appear to be combined into
one, large, massive slope surface with potential for failure?________
10. What actions do the government agencies take in light of the increasingly apparent danger in
2006?
11. The catastrophic 2014 Oso event is illustrated in a photograph. What do you notice about the
placement of the head scarp now? Specifically, what is it location relative to the area that had
been logged in 2009-2011?
12. One of the biggest challenges in dealing with or preparing for natural disasters is considering the
cost to every ‘stakeholder’ that may be affected. Stakeholders include different groups of people
who use the land and its natural resources, as well as endangered animals, agencies, and
businesses. List the 5 primary shareholders that have a stake in what happens along this stretch
of the Stillaguamish River according to the infographic:
13. At least 5 different types of mass movement are described in the Red Flags, occurring at this
location over the years. List 4 of them, the year they are documented. Explain how they are
different from one another.
14. Evaluative Essay: USE COMPLETE SENTENCES TO ANSWER THIS QUESTION.
Consider the sequence of events, including scientific research and reports that led up to the Oso
landslide disaster that killed more than 40 people living and working in the Steelhead Haven
Neighborhood along the river. The article states that after the 2014 event:
‘John Pennington, head of Snohomish County’s Department of Emergency
Management, told reporters the slide was unforeseeable: “This came out of
nowhere. No warning.” ‘
Evaluate this statement based on the information available in the infographic. In your informed
opinion, was the slide “unforeseeable”? Why or why not? Include 2-3 details from the
infographic to support your conclusion.
GEOL 101 – Physical Geology
Exploring Glacial Features with Topographic Maps: A Google Earth Activity
Learning Objectives:
• Apply skills using Google Earth to explore glacial features.
• Use topographic maps to examine the terrain of glacial features.
• Measure and estimate ablation of glaciers
• Identify and recognize the following glacial features of erosion: cirque, horn, cleaver, arete
• Identify and recognize the following glacial features of deposition: moraine, drumlin, esker, kettle
lake.
In this activity you will use Google Earth to explore specific features of glacial erosion or deposition.
1. Download a new data file with a topographic map layer.
Go to: https://www.earthpoint.us/topomap.aspx and click on View on Google Earth to download the
data. As before, it is best to open Google Earth first, then open the data file, so that it opens directly into
the program. If it doesn’t, check your downloads folder and drag it to Google Earth.
2. To begin, clear the screen of clutter by unchecking any boxes currently checked. Then click/check on
Earthpoint Topo Map in the list on the left side of the screen. You will see the earth covered by a
topographic map – green and brown and blue, with lines all across it to indicate the shape of the land.
You will be turning this map on and off throughout the activity. *Sometimes it will need a few seconds
to load, especially as you move around the landscape or zoom in and out. Be patient!
Location 1: Mt Rainier, Washington
We will start at Mt Rainier. Type Mt Rainier into the search box and fly there. Once you are there, you
need to locate the two following locations: McClure Rock and Henry Jackson Visitor Center. You can
use the search box to do this, it may help to leave ‘Mt Rainier’ in the search box so that Google Earth
doesn’t take you to some other McClure Rock somewhere else in the world.
3. Use the ruler tool to measure the distance between them in km. (Revisit the Google Earth Intro Lab to
review the ruler tool if needed)
Distance between McClure Rock and Jackson Visitor Center ________km
Elevations (the height above sea level) are given in the lower right corner, next the latitude and
longitude. Elevation is given in feet.
3. Locate Cowlitz Rocks on Mt Rainier. What is the elevation of the Cowlitz Rocks? ________ft
4. Locate Camp Muir on Mt Rainier. What is the elevation of Camp Muir? __________ft
What is the elevation difference between Camp Muir and Cowlitz Rocks? Show your work and
remember units.
5. Elevation between Camp Muir and Cowlitz Rocks: _____________
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GEOL 101 – Physical Geology
Contour lines are the many brown lines or blue lines on the map. These are lines of constant elevation;
each line wiggling around in the map represents a specific altitude above sea level. Some of the contour
lines are bold/dark, compared to most of the contour lines, which are lighter. The contour interval is
the elevation difference between contour lines. The contour interval is the vertical distance between two
contour lines.
Determine the elevation difference between the contour lines – the dark lines are labeled with their
elevation, so start with calculating the difference between 2 dark contour lines. Don’t forget units.
6. What is the elevation difference between 2 dark contour lines on the map? __________
7. How many light contour intervals between 2 dark contour lines? _________
8. What is the elevation difference between 2 light contour lines? ___________
(You can check your last answer by moving your cursor to one line, and then the other and read the
elevation shown in the lower right corner).
Slope change: As shown in the image below, when the contour lines are closer together, they indicate a
steeper slope to the landscape.
Location 1a: Nisqually Glacier, Mt Rainier
Glaciers can be recognized by the blue contour lines on the map.
9. What is the elevation at the head/top of the Nisqually Glacier? _________ft
10. What is the elevation at the terminus (toe)? __________ft
11. What is the distance (km) from the head of the Nisqually Glacier to the terminus? ________ft
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GEOL 101 – Physical Geology
Observe the spacing of the contour lines on the Nisqually Glacier.
12. Which section of the Nisqually Glacier is the steepest? (describe in terms of elevation xxxx ft – xxxx
ft)
_____________________
13. What does the contour line spacing tell you about the steepness at the glacier’s terminus/toe?
Now uncheck the Earthpoint Topo Map box in the left side column and look at the Google Earth image
of Mt Rainier and the Nisqually Glacier.
14. On this image, located the terminus of the glacier, place your cursor there and note the elevation.
________ft
The topographic map was last updated in 1954. The Google Earth images are from 1994.
15. Calculate how much ablation has occurred glacier between 1954-1994 in terms of both elevation (ft)
and distance (km). Ablation is measured in terms of meters. Convert your distance answer to meters to
state the approximate ablation of the Nisqually Glacier between 1954 and 1994.
_______________________m.
Features of Glacial Erosion
Location 1: Mt Rainier
Mt. Rainier is heavily glaciated today, but glaciers were even more extensive in the past. Glaciers have
retreated quite a bit in the last few hundred years, leaving behind evidence of glacial erosion.
A cirque is an amphitheatre, or semicircular basin, carved out of rock at the head of a glacier. Find
Snow Lake on Mt Rainier. The rocks upstream from Snow Lake form a cirque. To find ‘upstream’ you
will need to look carefully at the topo lines and observe where they are spaced closer together around
Snow Lake.
16. Which compass direction does this cirque face (which end is the open end of this circle or bowl)?
Pinnacle Peak is a horn. Find Pinnacle Peak on Mt Rainier. The contours near the summit of Pinnacle
Peak have a distinctive shape. Sketch a map view (bird’s eye) of these 3-4 summit contours.
17. What is the shape that these contour lines make?
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GEOL 101 – Physical Geology
Arete or Valley? Find Disappointment Cleaver on Mt Rainier. The contours on Disappointment
Cleaver form a V-shape.
18. Which direction do the V’s point, uphill or downhill?
19. Is Disappointment Cleaver a ridge (arête in glacier terms) or a valley?
Features of Glacial Deposition
Location 1b: Cowlitz Glacier on Mt Rainier
Find the toe of the Cowlitz Glacier on Mt Rainier. Zoom in very close (eye alt of 9000ft or less; eye alt
is listed next to alt in lower right corner of the screen) and observe the dots marking the map. (be patient
letting the map reload with the up-close details) These dots are a symbol from the USGS
https://pubs.usgs.gov/gip/TopographicMapSymbols/topomapsymbols.pdf indicating glacial till
sediment.
Using the ruler tool, measure (in meters) how far down valley these materials extend from the toe of the
glacier.
20. Extent of sediments from toe: __________m
21. In meters, how much ablation has occurred on the Cowlitz Glacier? ________m
These sediments are also indicated further up the glacier, just downslope from the joining of the Cowlitz
and Ingraham Glaciers. Zoom in to at least 10,000 eye alt and let the topo map reload with new detail.
(It may take a minute).
22. How might you describe the way these sediments are illustrated: (circle or highlight one)
blobs
lines
circles
zigzags
When the glacier melts and leaves these sediments behind, a moraine is built. To view the moraines
this glacier deposited, uncheck the topo maps and examine that same location on the Google Earth
image.
23. Take a screenshot or photo of your screen with the moraines and paste into or upload with your lab
file.
Location 2: Cato, New York
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GEOL 101 – Physical Geology
Type Cato, New York into the search box and fly there. (Turn on the Topo Maps) The Cato area is
covered with small hills. I’ve picked one hill – Ferris Hill. The hill is southeast of the town of Ira,
between Ferris and Farnam Roads, north of Dalton Road. Ferris Hill is 560 feet above sea level.
24. Use the Ruler Tool to measure Ferris Hill. How long is Ferris Hill, in feet? _______
25. How wide is Ferrris hill, in feet? _________
26. Is Ferris Hill round or elongated? ___________________
27. What is the orientation of the long direction of the hill? Give a compass direction, for example: NS or NW-SE).__________________
28. Do other hills in the area show the same orientation or different orientations? ________________
29. Compare the spacing of contours at the north end of Ferris Hill with the spacing of contours at the
south end of the hill. What does the distance between contours tell you about the slope at the north end
compared with the slope at the south end?
30. Sketch a cross section, a slice down through Ferris Hill, with north on the left and south on the right.
Show the general shape of Ferris Hill in cross section. On your sketch, label the elevation at the north
and south end (base) and the elevation at the highest point of the hill.
31. This hill was deposited as a glacier moved across the landscape. What is the name of this glacial
feature? ______________________.
By examining the shape of the feature – which end is steeper – you can make an inference about which
direction the glacier was moving when this feature was deposited. (you may need to refer to the textbook
or Instructor Notes for clues about this.
32. Which direction did the Great North American glacier flow/slide in the Cato area, 13,000 years ago?
________________________
33. Explain how you came to this conclusion:
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GEOL 101 – Physical Geology
Location 3: Passadumkeag, Maine
Fly to Passadumkeag, Maine. Turn on Topo Maps. You are looking for a feature called Enfield
Horseback. It is to the west of the town of Passadumkeag and follows along the river.
34. Observe this feature. Is it straight, curved or sinuous (snake-like)? __________________
Using the contour intervals or the cursor and elevation tool in Google Earth, measure how tall the
Enfield Horseback is above the surrounding terrain. Give an average height in feet, based on 5
measurements taken at different points along the horseback.
Elevation at point 1:
Elevation at point 2:
Elevation at point 3:
Elevation at point 4:
Elevation at point 5:
36. Average elevation of Enfield Horseback: _____________ft
37. Use the ruler tool to determine how long Enfield Horseback is:________________ ft or m.
Look along the Enfield Horseback at eye alt 9000 ft to easily read the map symbols for various mines.
38. What is being mined from this feature? ____________________. What is the technical term for the
glacial sediments that make up this feature? _______________
39. Describe how this type of glacial deposit feature forms. Be specific.
Location 4: Seattle, Washington
Fly to Seattle Washington in Google Earth. We will be looking at the area of the city north of Lake
Union, looking specifically at thee smaller lakes. To find the lakes easily you can turn on the Topo Map
and look for blue, or type into the search bar: Seattle Green Lake.
The many small lakes north of Seattle are kettle lakes. A kettle lake is the result of a block of ice from a
melting glacier being left in sediments and then slowly melting, leaving a pit that is later filled with
groundwater and rain to form a lake. Green Lake and Ballinger Lake are fairly large, but there are many
other, smaller lakes in this region of Seattle.
40. Find one of these smaller lakes on the map and list it here:____________________
6
Oso Landslide Infographic Activity A’
Start Assignment
Points 20
Submitting a text entry box or a file upload
Open or print this file: Oso Slide.docx
and then go to the following website to use an interactive infographic to answer the following questions.
http:/projects.seattletimes.com/2014/building-toward-disaster/
Once you have completed the worksheet, SaveAs _YourName and upload it to the submission box
Oso Activity Rubric
Criteria
Ratings
Pts
Research Questions #1-11
5 pts
Full Marks
O pts
No Marks
5 pts
#12 Five stakeholders
5 pts
Full Marks
O pts
No Marks
5 pts
#13 Types of mass movement
5 pts
Full Marks
O pts
No Marks
5 pts
Evaluative Essay
Writes at least 5 sentences stating their opinion and including 2-3 lines of evidence from the infographic
5 pts
Full Marks
O pts
No Marks
5 pts
Total Points: 20
In this lab you will use Google Earth to explore glacial features.
Open this file LAB Glacier Topo.docx
To submit you may either fill in the document and SaveAs_YourLastName or you can print it and submit photos of your completed work.
GE Glacier Rubric
Criteria
Ratings
Pts
Location 1 #3-8
4 pts
Full Marks
O pts
No Marks
4 pts
Location 1a #9-15
5 pts
Full Marks
O pts
No Marks
5 pts
Features Location 1 #16-19
3 pts
Full Marks
O pts
No Marks
3 pts
tures Locationlb #20-22
3 pts
Full Marks
O pts
No Marks
3 pts
Features Location 2. #24-33
4 pts
Full Marks
O pts
No Marks
4 pts
Features Location 3, #34-39
4 pts
Full Marks
O pts
No Marks
4 pts
Location 4, #40
2 pts
Full Marks
O pts
No Marks
2 pts
Total Points: 25