SCAVENGER HUNT ANSWER KEYS
Answer Key for Scavenger Hunt 1: For Students in Grades 1-3
- Dall sheep are the only wild white sheep in the world.
- You can tell how old a walrus is by the number of rings you find in a cross-section of its teeth.
- The polar bear's black skin allows it to soak up as much heat as possible from the sun.
- Arctic hare have short ears while hare outside of Arctic areas have long ears.
- Going fast helps a wolverine stay on top of the snow.
- The caribou is a member of the deer family.
- Eskimos use the winter fur of collared lemmings to make doll clothing.
- A narwhal is a kind of whale.
- Arctic fox mainly eat small mammals, such as lemmings.
- Summers are very short in the Arctic. Owlets must be ready to take care of themselves during the cold winter.
BONUS. An animal's color can help it blend into its surroundings and protect it from predators.
Answer Key for Scavenger Hunt 2: For Students in Grades 4-6
- The capital of Alaska is Juneau. Anchorage is its most populous city.
- The aurora borealis, also called the Northern Lights, is created from charged electrons and protons striking gas particles in the atmosphere.
- Alaska's five regions are the Far North, Interior, Southwest, Southeast, and Southcentral regions.
- The snowmobile has replaced the dogsled as the most popular form of ground transportation; more Alaskan residents per capita (than any other U.S. state) have planes and/or pilot licenses; accept ferry, car, or dog sled as the third choice.
- Alaska's three most important industries are oil, tourism, and fishing.
- Alaska became the United State's 49th state on January 3, 1959.
- The United States bought Alaska from Russia in October 1867 for 7.2 million dollars. (Many Americans thought this was a waste of money and called Alaska "Seward's Folly," after Secretary of State William H. Seward who championed the purchase.)
- About 5000 earthquakes happen in Alaska each year and 5000 glaciers are in Alaska.
- The moose is Alaska's official state land animal.
- Eight stars are on the Alaska state flag.
Answer Key for Scavenger Hunt 3: For Students in Grades 7-12
- The dragonfly is the official state insect of Alaska. (Source: http://www.gi.alaska.edu/ScienceForum/ASF12/1243.html Dragonfly Wins State Title; Mosquitoes Miffed)
- All-red auroras are associated with a large influx of electrons. Auroral scientists do not yet fully understand the cause of pure red aurora. They know it is associated with intense solar activity and heating of the upper atmosphere from a large influx of low-energy electrons, but they have not yet explained the mechanism producing this occurrence. (Source: http://www.gi.alaska.edu/ScienceForum/ASF9/918.html The Rare Red Aurora)
- Three anthropologists, working independently, have concluded that there were three unrelated migrations occurring thousands of years apart. (Source: http://www.gi.alaska.edu/ScienceForum/ASF6/637.html The First North Americans)
- Solar eclipses occur because the moon, which is about 400 times smaller than the sun, is also about 400 times closer to the earth than the sun. That means the moon, in proper position, is just large enough to block out the sun and prevent direct sunlight from reaching the earth during a total solar eclipse. (Source: http://www.gi.alaska.edu/ScienceForum/ASF13/1325.html Alaska's Being Followed by a Moon Shadow)
- Researchers recently found that less than .001 percent of red light and less than a trillionth of the violet light transmitted traveled the length of a typical, inch-long polar bear hair. Even less ultraviolet light made it from the tip to the base of the hair. (Source: http://www.gi.alaska.edu/ScienceForum/ASF13/1390.html Debunking the Myth of Polar Bear Hair)
- Lightning heats the air through which it passes to 54,000 degrees F, which causes a dramatic expansion of air. This produces a shock wave, which becomes a sound wave we hear as thunder. (Source: http://www.gi.alaska.edu/ScienceForum/ASF12/1235.html Lightning Returns, with a Flash and a Bang)
- Because most of Alaska's volcanoes are far removed from cities and towns, the abrasive ash they emit, not lava or mudslides, present the greatest danger to humans. (Source: http://www.gi.alaska.edu/ScienceForum/ASF12/1228.html Listening to the Heartbeat of Alaska's Volcanoes)
- The Denali fault follows the mid-line of the Alaska Range from a point north of Mt. McKinley into Canada and to the southeast where it forms Chatham Strait. (Source: http://www.gi.alaska.edu/ScienceForum/ASF6/686.html Fairbanks Alaska's Faults and Earthquakes)
- The Black Rapids Glacier advanced about one mile each month between December 3, 1936, and March 7, 1937. (Source: http://www.gi.alaska.edu/ScienceForum/ASF13/1342.html Black Rapids Glacier Galloped to Fame in 1937)
- Gold, rather than cheaper metals, is used in electronic equipment because it's dependable in extremes of heat and humidity. (Source: http://www.gi.alaska.edu/ScienceForum/ASF13/1311.html Gold Opened Alaska; But What Is it Good For?)
Article by Linda Starr
Education World®
Copyright © 2003 Education World
Originally Published 01/18/1999
Links updated 03/12/2003
