Globetracker's Mission: Locating Louie

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Teacher Edition | View the Map

Week of February 25, 2024

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Friday

After spending a few days waiting to hear from Uncle GT and researching on our own, we finally have a clue to where we are going next. We called Uncle GT because we remembered that Louie's neighbors in Hawaii during the holidays had told us that he also had a vacation home in the Florida Keys. Well, guess what! The Florida Keys is a series of islands, exactly the type of location in our last clue. After a bit of investigation, Uncle GT learned that Louie's house is in a city called Key West. So we are now on an airplane, waiting in line for takeoff, heading to Key West! I bet it is going to be much warmer there. Holy Idaho! I forgot to tell you the one and only fact I learned so far about Key West. It is the southernmost city in the entire continental United States! In fact, one of the largest attractions on the island is a huge, brightly painted buoy that even states "Southernmost Point Continental U.S.A." I hope we can go visit that tourist attraction!

- Meri

A picture of the famous buoy! I hope we can see it in person.

Another picture we found of Key West.

A picture we found of the beautiful beach at Key West.

Early Friday Evening

We are here, and it is one beautiful city. Meri found a great video all about Key West (see the bottom of the our blog entry). This city is overflowing with history and culture. I can see why Louie would want a home here. Key West is in the Florida Keys (see a map of all of the Florida Keys below). The Florida Keys are amazing: tropical climate, lots of aquatic animals to see, and amazing culture and history. Key West is an island located in the Straits of Florida at the southernmost tip of the Florida Keys. The island is only about 4 miles long and 2 miles wide. Interestingly, it used to be about half of this size until the late 1950s when they filled in many of the large salt ponds, thus doubling the original land of the island. I wonder if anywhere else in the United States has filled in ponds (or other waterways) to make more land? This city has a maximum elevation of only 18 feet above sea level. Wow, that is a lot different than some of the mile high places we have visited!

The climate here is tropical. In fact, Key West claims to have never even had a frost (unlike every other city in the United States). This is probably because of the city's close location to the Straits of Florida, the Gulf of Mexico, and the Gulf Stream. The climate of Key West is similar to the climate of the Caribbean islands. I wonder how close Key West is to the equator? I know we are pretty far south. Does that put us closer to the equator? The coldest temperature ever recorded in Key West was back in 1886 at 41 degrees F. (How many years ago was that?) Why is the climate so much warmer as we go closer to the equator?

As you could see in the map, the Florida Keys are surrounded by water. It is bordered mainly by the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico. However, there are several smaller bodies of water surrounding the island as well.

Because of the tropical climate, Key West has notable wet and dry seasons. From November until April, Key West is full of sunshine with little rain (only a quarter of the yearly total). Considering that is during half the year, that isn't much rain. So far, we have experienced nothing but sunshine! May through October is the wet season; they get many showers, thunderstorms, and possibly hurricanes. The last hurricane to hit Key West (and the worst one in memory) was Hurricane Irma in 2017 resulting in 17 deaths just in the Keys. Interesting fact: Key West is the driest city in Florida. I wonder why that might be. Also, when the city does receive rain, it is usually in the early morning, unlike most other tropical climates, where the rainfall is typically in the afternoon hours.

We found out the exact address of Louie's house and are heading there first thing tomorrow morning. Best part is that Louie's house is only accessible by Hovercraft! That is one of those vehicles that will travel on a cushion of air over water or on land. I can't wait to take a ride. I have never even seen one, except in the movies.

Since it isn't dark yet, we are heading out to see the city! We are looking forward to seeing the famous jugglers, mimes, musicians, cafes, and more. We will be sure to take some pictures. Don't forget to check out the video clip we included in this blog entry. You will want to skip past the part about nightlife, since the night life stuff is not for us kids, but the rest of this video about Key West is really cool! Geo likes the part about the pirates!

- Geo

A picture we took while landing in Key West. This is a great shot of the island.

Another shot from the air. Look at the size of that bridge!

The aquarium we visited today.

Map of Florida Keys
What other countries are located close to the Florida Keys? Be sure to expand the map window so that you can see the entire map.

Video Clip
Check out this informative video about Key West! Really cool

LATE Friday Night

Holy Idaho! Geo forgot to tell you about the history and culture of this cool city. Way back in the Pre-Columbian times (before Columbus), Key West was inhabited by the Calusa people. I have never heard of them. Have you? The first European to visit the island was Juan Ponce de Leon, back in 1521. Florida slowly became a Spanish colony, comprised of many large fishing villages. Fast forward many years to the American Civil War when Key West played an important role! Florida seceded and joined the Confederate States of America. However, Key West remained with the U.S. Union because of the naval base located in Key West. Key West has always been an important military post, probably because of its location. The city sits on the northern edge of the deepwater channel that connects the Gulf of Mexico and the Atlantic Ocean. Key West even has the nickname "Gibraltar of the West." What do you suppose that means?

You should see some of the architecture in this area. The buildings are amazing (as you probably saw in the video clip in our last blog entry). Well, I better get going. We have lots to do to prepare for our trip to Louie's house tomorrow morning.

- Meri

Key West at sunset.

Another beautiful picture of the sunset (and some people fishing).

An interesting building we saw (it was a shopping center).

Saturday

Wow! That hovercraft ride was simply amazing. That is the good news. And we also found Louie's house very easily. When we arrived, there was a note on the door. It was from Louie. He said he waited for us for a few days, but had to move on now to a city with the "same name." He promised to call our cell phone on Monday, when he was ready to get back to work. Finally, it seems that we will meet up at, our next stop of our mission. Wish we didn't have to leave Key West. Now, a city with the same name as Louie? His real name is Louis; Louie is his nickname. I know there is a city called St. Louis, but I am not sure where that city is located. Can you look at the attached map of the United States and help us figure out which state we are flying to next? I think there is an old movie musical about "Meet me in St. Louis." If you can see YouTube, we'll share the link below. You might recognize one of the stars from another popular old movie! We will update you Monday, when you can "meet me in St. Louis!" if you just tell us where it is!

- Geo

A lighthouse we saw on the way to Louie's house.

A carving from the market yesterday (Doesn't it look like a real person?)

Here is a picture of a hovercraft. Photo by Andrew Berridge, licensed under Creative Commons. See full photo credit

Video clip
Check out this video clip from the old musical, \"Meet Me In St. Louis.\"

Map of United States
Take a look at this map. Can you help us find St. Louis? Is it in Kansas, Missouri, or Pennsylvania?

Vocabulary Terms:

channel - bed of a stream or river, typically the deepest part of the river or harbor. Usually a broad strait that connects two seas or other bodies of water.

climate - the weather in a particular area: including temperature, precipitation, and wind.

elevation - the altitude (or how high) a location is above sea level.

equator - an imaginary line on the earth's surface that is positioned halfway between the north pole and the south pole. The equator divides the earth into the northern hemisphere and the southern hemisphere.

gulf - a small portion of the sea or ocean that is partly enclosed by land. Gulfs are larger than bays.

Gulf Stream - a warm ocean current originating in the Gulf of Mexico. It passes through the Straits of Florida and flows northward along the southeast coast of the United States.

hurricane - a severe tropical storm with heavy rains and high winds.

hurricanes - severe tropical storms with heavy rains and high winds.

island - land that is surrounded on all sides by water.

seceded - withdrew from a political entity (such as a country), union, or organization.

Straits - narrow passageways that connect two larger bodies of water.

Straits of Florida - straits located in southeast United States, located between the Gulf of Mexico and the Atlantic Ocean, and between the Florida Keys and Cuba.

tropical - a climate with high temperatures and a decent amount of rainfall. Tropical climates are usually located between the Tropic of Cancer and the Tropic of Capricorn, closer to the equator than cooler, temperate climates.

tropical climate - a climate typically having high temperatures and a decent amount of rainfall. Tropical climates are usually located between the Tropic of Cancer and the Tropic of Capricorn, closer to the equator than cooler, temperate climates.

Standards for this episode:

Understands the characteristics and uses of maps, globes, and other geographical tools and technologies.

Grade 3-5: Knows the basic elements of maps and globes (title, legend, cardinal, scale, grid, meridians, time zones, etc.).

Grade 6-8: Understands concepts such as axis, seasons, rotation, and revolution.

Knows the location of places, geographical features, and patterns of the environment.

Grade 3-5: Knows major physical and human features of places as they are represented on maps and globes. Knows how to read different maps: road, relief, globe, etc..

Grade 3-5: Knows the location of major cities in North America.

Grade 3-5: Knows the approximate location of major continents, mountain ranges, and bodies of water on Earth.

Grade 6-8: Knows the location of physical and human features on maps and globes (e.g., culture hearths such as Mesopotamia, Huang Ho, the Yucatan Peninsula, the Nile Valley; major ocean currents; wind patterns; land forms; climate regions).

Grade 6-8: Knows the relative location of, size of, and distances between places.

Understands the characteristics and uses of spatial organization of Earth's surface.

Grade 3-5: Knows different methods to measure data (miles, kilometers, time, etc..).

Understands the physical and human characteristics of a place.

Grade 6-8: Knows the human characteristics of places (e.g., cultural characteristics such as religion, language, politics, technology, family structure, gender; population characteristics; land uses; levels of development).

Understands the concept of regions.

Grade 3-5: Knows the characteristics of a variety of regions (climate, housing, religion, language, etc..).

Grade 6-8: Understands criteria that give a region identity (such as Amsterdam as a transportation center or the Sunbelt's warm climate and popularity with retired people).

Knows the physical processes that shape patterns on Earth's surfaces.

Grade 3-5: Knows the physical components of Earth's atmosphere (weather and climate), lithosphere (land forms such as mountains), hydrosphere (oceans, lakes and rivers), and biosphere (vegetation and biomes).

Grade 3-5: Knows how Earth's position relative to the Sun affects events and conditions on Earth.

Understands the forces of cooperation and conflict that shape the divisions of Earth's surface.

Grade 3-5: Knows how and why people divide Earth's surface into political and/or economic units (e.g., states in the United States and Mexico; provinces in Canada; countries in North and South America; countries linked in cooperative relationships, such as the European Union).

Understands how physical systems affect human systems.

Grade 3-5: Knows how communities benefit from the physical environment (e.g., people make their living by farming on fertile land, fishing in local water, working in mines; the community is a port located on a natural harbor, a tourist center located in a scenic or historic area, an industrial center with good access to natural resources).

Grade 3-5: Knows natural hazards that occur in the physical environment (floods, tornadoes, earthquakes, etc..).