Heat wave

High school (ages 12+)
Environment & Earth

Name:

Date:

Step 1 · Read the article

Open the article and read it at the level above. Then answer the questions below in your own words.

https://smallwhale.org/articles/heat-wave

Write what each word means, using the article.

Do not copy the article. Write two things you learned, the way you would explain them to a friend.

Answers below are taken from the article’s stored facts, so they match what the student read.

1. What is a heat wave?A heat wave is a stretch of days when the temperature is much hotter than normal for that time of year. It happens when a big high‑pressure area, called a heat dome, stays over a region and keeps warm air trapped near the ground.
2. Why does a heat wave happen?It happens when a strong high‑pressure system keeps air from rising and forming clouds, so the air warms as it compresses and stays hot near the surface.

Adiabatic warming: The process where air warms as it descends and is compressed, without exchanging heat with its surroundings.
Anticyclonic system: A weather system characterized by high atmospheric pressure and generally clear skies, with air circulating clockwise in the Northern Hemisphere.
Thermoregulation: The physiological processes by which an organism maintains its internal body temperature within a narrow range.