Come fly with us through the Verde River watershed! Under a new NSF Geosciences Education Program grant, we are developing a 3-D visualization of the Verde watershed. The watershed, located northeast of Phoenix, is the first focus area for a series of visualizations that are being developed as an educational tool for grade 8-12 classrooms. The goal of this tool is to educate students about basic hydrologic processes and important watershed concepts. The narrated fly-through will foster an understanding that goes beyond static maps and graphs. It features animated sequences and decision-making opportunities at various points in the upper and lower watersheds, making visible otherwise unseen processes, and creates a link for students to actually see the impacts of their own city on the changing watershed. A DVD-based visualization will be offered to teachers and students in conjunction with the WATER Kits program.

Watershed Visualization Project Specifics

The 3D flythrough of the Verde watershed is a learning tool for students to develop a richer understanding that goes beyond static maps and graphs. It features animated sequences and decision-making opportunities at various points in the upper and lower watersheds, making visible otherwise unseen processes, and creates a link for students to actually see the impacts of their own city on the changing watershed.

The content is derived from real regional data (e.g. precipitation, land use, recharge areas, wells) and layered into the digital model so events such weather, forest fires, land use and urbanization can be modeled, and the effects of these changes can be seen.

Modules

  1. Verde Watershed flythrough
  2. What is a watershed?
  3. The hydrologic cycle & Watersheds
  4. Infiltration & Recharge - How water moves underground in a watershed

Teacher support materials (click here)

Click Here to complete a short, anonymous evaluation survey

 

Streaming and Downloadable Video versions

FLASH

Quicktime Streaming

Quicktime Download

All Old modules

All New modules

Module 1 rev.May09

Module 2 rev.Aug09

Module 3 rev.Aug09

Module 4 rev.Jun09

module 1 (275 Mb)

module 2 (195 Mb)

module 3 (219 Mb)

module 4 (522 Mb)

module 1 (72 Mb)

module 2 (86 Mb)

module 3 (89 Mb)

module 4 (161 Mb)
Verde Valley fly-through

Desert Water Cycle

Infiltration & Recharge

 

This work support by award 0507710 from the National Science Foundation