Atmospheric Hazards Flashcards

Question

what factors are looked at when thinking about urban heat island?

Answer 1

Intensity, Duration, Frequency, Arel extent

Answer 2

Short-term rise in deaths during heatwaves. Example: Summer 2003 heatwave in Western Europe caused tens of thousands of deaths. Extreme heat harms body temperature regulation (the “silent killer”). Health effects: Heat cramps, exhaustion (37–40°C), heatstroke (>40°C). Impacts: Strain on healthcare and worsening air pollution.

Answer 3

around 14,000 (60% of which over 75 age)

Answer 4

Power outages: In July 2022, sagging conductors and overheating transformers caused power cuts for nearly 8000 properties in Yorkshire, Lincolnshire, and the North East. Rail disruptions: Hot steel expanded, increasing risks of buckled tracks and derailments. Emergency speed restrictions and train cancellations were implemented in July 2022.

Answer 5

Heat-related illness and death Pressure on services Heat-related economic impacts Water/energy demand Critical infrastructure impacts Ecological impacts (including droughts, forest fires) Co-occurrence of heatwaves and air pollution episodes *Vulnerable groups most at risk

Answer 6

Very old and very young Chronic and severe illness Inability to adapt behaviour to keep cool Environmental factors and overexposure (e.g. jobs that can’t get out of heat) In particularly ‘bad’ heatwaves, groups that might be considered not at high risk are increasingly affected

Answer 7

Provided by UKHSA & operates from June to September in the UK (in place since 2004) Forewarns of upcoming hot weather based on Met Office forecasts and data There are 5 heatwave plans alert levels reflecting degrees of preparedness and action needed

Answer 8

educate & alert public + health providers Identify & protect most at risk groups Healthcare capacity Protect critical infrastructure (airports, roads, rail, power) Address urban heat islands Address problematic buildings (e.g. those poorly ventilated) Promote water efficiency and a water-saving culture Optimise forecasting capability

Answer 9

Frequency, and intensity of hot extremes have increased Human-induced greenhouse gasses is the main driver of the observed changes in hot and cold extremes on the global scale *as climate warms, temp distribution is shifting, increasing likelihood of hot extremes

Answer 10

~300 miles wide Has an organised structure, rotating systems of clouds and a warm core Often comes with rain Rotation depends on hemisphere (southern - clockwise, northern - anti-clockwise) due to Coriolis effect low pressure at centre wind speed >74 mph form over oceans (and not all reach land)

Answer 11

They are the same weather system, just depends on where you are. called typhoons in SE Asia called cyclones in Australia and Indian Ocean called hurricanes around the Americas and Atlantic ocean

Answer 12

Very severe tropical storms with winds about 74 mph characterised by its rotating cloud system and core

Answer 13

a low pressure weather system with high winds and heavy rainfall winds below 74mph but more than 39mph *not all tropical storms turn into hurricanes

Answer 14

North Atlantic Ocean (inc. Gulf of Mexico, Caribbean sea) Northeast Pacific Norwest Pacific North Indian Southwest Indian Southeast Indian/Australian Australian/Southwest Pacific

Answer 15

- they form at preferred times when environmental conditions are favourable Hurricane 'season' in the Atlantic Basin is from the 1st June to 30th November with peak activity in September. Majorly affected regions include Southern USA states, Mexico and parts of central America *in the UK we hear most about hurricanes in the North Atlantic Basin (even though we don't get them, but may get leftover winds after it has disipated)

Answer 16

latitudes between 5-30 degrees north and south of the equator (tropics and subtropics) can occur at less than 5 degrees of equator but this is extremely rare due to no Coriolis effect (creates the wind rotation)

Answer 17

Low pressure zone (inward converging winds, counter clockwise in NH) Warm oceans (>27°C) High relative humidity Atmospheric instability Location more than 5° from equator (sufficient Coriolis force) Low vertical wind shear (i.e. change in wind speed with height) Weaken over land. *powered by humid air and latent heat released from condensation. Allowing air to remain buoyant, and continue to rise. Contributing to clouds and an unstable atmosphere

Answer 18

Wind blows over warm ocean Sucks up heat and water vapes Warm moist air rises Water vapour condenses to form clouds Condensation releases latent heat Causes air to expand and rise even more Decreases air pressure at the surface Increases wind speed (cycles)

Answer 19

Takes several hours, to days to form. May last for many days and even weeks Travel several thousand miles - sometimes in a very erratic path (steered by winds) Decay after passing over cooler water or land (due to being cut off by energy source) Important to differentiate between speed of rotating winds and speed of forward propagation.

Answer 20

Tropical Storms (>39 mph) Hurricanes (>74mph)

Answer 21

The Eye The central innermost area (20-40 miles across) with calm, clear skies, low air pressure, low wind speed, low rin, dry air descending. The Eyewall 10-25 miles wide, dense thunderstorms. Rainfall and wind speed at maximum Rainbands Intensive clouds and rainfall extending several hundred miles from the eye. Wind speeds progressively decrease towards the edge of the storm. *Low pressure in eye, and increases as you move away from the centre

Answer 22

Speed of rotating winds within hurricane Categories 1-5 on Saffir-Simpson scale Minimum 74 mph (below this: Beaufort Scale 0-11) Maximum > ~160 mph

Answer 23

Speed of entire storm – typically 15–20 mph Affected by wider atmospheric flows that steer the storm system Can reduce to near 0 mph if hurricane stalls Can exceed 60 mph, particularly at high latitudes

Answer 24

Intensity is strongest where storm centre velocity and hurricane wind velocity are in the same direction For a northward travelling hurricane in the northern hemisphere, highest intensity is on the eastern side.

Answer 25

classifies tropical cyclones based on wind speed and its impacts It has a 5 category system 1. 74-95mph - very dangerous winds, some damage (e.g. power cuts) 2. 96-110 mph - extremely dangerous winds. Extensive damage 3. 111-129mph - devastating damage occurs (e.g. well built homes damaged) 4. 130-156 mph - extreme damage (e.g. severe dame to well-built homes) 5. >157 mph - catastrophic damage (e.g. many buildings destroyed, major roads cut off)

Answer 26

Extreme wind speed Storm surges Torrential rainfall and flooding Rip currents (even when miles from shore) Tornadoes Loss of life from other causal factors (e.g. disease transmission, loss of facilities and infrastructure)

Answer 27

A change in sea level - is caused by high winds and low pressure Flooding and heavy waves can damage coastal areas 6-12 hours before landfall E.g. Bangladesh 1970

Answer 28

Tropical cyclones may produce copious amount of rainfall leading to destructive flooding (6-12 inches or more) +/- 6 hours from landfall Slower moving (<10 mph or ‘stalled) and larger storms produce the most rainfall Can induce coastal and inland flash floods with more longer term flooding of rivers/streams lasting for days Can trigger devastating mudslides in mountainous regions

Answer 29

No strong evidence to suggest that the frequency of hurricanes will increase in the future. But, strong evidence that the intensity of hurricanes will increase, with more hurricanes expected to reach category 4 and 5

Answer 30

Rising sea levels worsen storm surges More water vapour in the atmosphere, more rain Potentially change the path of tropical cyclones

Answer 31

E.g. NOAA National Hurricane Centre (Florida) Detect hurricanes as they form using satellite imagery Issue a ‘hurricane watch’ alert (~ 48 h before landfall) and monitor closely. Analyse observational data (air pressure / temp / humidity / wind speed) from land, sea, aircraft and satellites) Feed observational data into process/statistical models, to predict path, landfall, and height of storm surge (e.g., SLOSH – Sea, Lake & Overland Surges from Hurricanes). Issue a ‘Hurricane Warning’ to vulnerable communities – usually 24-36 hours before landfall – so they can initiate evacuation and other preparedness plans A 72-hour forecast has a margin of error of about 160 km. Reduces to 65 km for a 24-hr forecast. <24-hour warning increases the accuracy and minimises unnecessary evacuation (BUT expensive!)

Answer 32

Natural defences - wide beaches, high dunes, mangrove forests. Artificial defences - raised mounds, concrete shelters, sea walls, levees, river flood barriers. Building regulations - structures can be elevated and designed to withstand high winds: > rounded walls and pitched roofs to promote wind flow around structure > anchor bolts between foundations, walls and roofs > cross bracing > shutters on windows

Answer 33

A violently-rotating column of air that is vertically-oriented and that descends (to ground level) from a thunderstorm cloud (cumulonimbus) Often visible due to a condensation funnel in which dust and debris is picked up and rotated Come in different shapes (‘wedge’, ‘rope’) Width is related to size of the wind system, amount of debris, and the width is directly related to the risk and hazard they pose

Answer 34

a ‘parent’ thundercloud (form at the base of large thundercloud storms, especially in supercell storms, tornado is a bit of that storm extending from the clouds to the ground)

Answer 35

Funnel cloud (forms reaches from cloud to ground but doesn’t touch it… not a tornado) Tornado reaches from ground to clouds (and touches the ground)

Atmospheric Hazards Flashcards

(60 cards)