Rubber Ducks Spill Map
Mark the location of a 1992 cargo ship spill of rubber ducks.
Rubber ducks spill map. Use figure 2 to plot data listed on handout or write data on the board of when and where the rubber ducks were at different times. Ebbesmeyer studied the movements of a consignment of 29 000 friendly floatees yellow ducks red beavers blue turtles and green frogs which were washed into the pacific ocean in 1992. Once the story is read students are asked their thoughts about whether the story is actually true. This can affect the ocean because animals are used to eating animals about the same size.
When 28 800 bath toys are lost at sea in 1992 a cargo ship container tumbled into the north pacific dumping 28 800 toys into the ocean. This new map illustrates how the ducks went on to rule the high seas. Watch out for ducks in january of 1992 there was a spill where 28 000 rubber toys fell off a cargo ship from asia to alaska. Tell students that in this location in 1992 a cargo ship full of bath toys spilled nearly 92 000 rubber ducks into the pacific ocean.
They floated in the water for some time and then were spotted on the shore of alaska. The teacher reads aloud the picture book 10 little rubber ducks. Friendly floatees are plastic rubber ducks marketed by the first years and made famous by the work of curtis ebbesmeyer an oceanographer who models ocean currents on the basis of flotsam movements. The teacher then explains the real event and informs the students that they will use a map and data coordinates to chart the ducks journey in the north pacific ocean.
The travels of the ducks was used by oceangrapher curtis ebbesmeyer to map the global currents of our oceans though they were already working on a model tracking 61 000 nike trainers lost. These ducks traveled thousands of miles on ocean currents providing new information about these. Have students connect the dots in order of time. Get two months of skillshare premium for 99 cents by being one of the first 1 000 people to sign up at http skl sh hai8 get a half as interesting t shirt.
Label each data point with the corresponding date. Update on ducky spill to learn more about the effect of currents in the ocean students complete the rubber ducky activity. What happened to those toys led writer. Have students mark 44n 178e on their maps.
In this activity students read an article about the great ducky spill of 1992 when a shipping crate containing 28 000 plastic bath toys was lost at sea when it fell overboard on its way from hong kong to the united states.