climate examples Flashcards
(46 cards)
example of ecosystem being affected by climate change
Indonesia in 2019.
Drier-than-usual weather conditions due to El Nino caused a forest loss of 134,227 hectares in the Bornean provinces of Central Kalimantan, and 127,462 hectares at West Kalimantan.
Some affected areas include the Komodo National Park, a UNESCO World Heritage Site home to around 2,800 Komodo dragons.
example of climate change affecting human systems
Zimbabwe faced a severe drought caused by poor rains that affected food harvests between October 2018 and May 2019.
Prices of staple food (maize) increased by 31%, resulting in hunger and loss of income for farmers.
example of earth’s rotation and revolution
Sydney Australia is in the southern hemisphere. During Jun-Aug, it leans away from the sun while durin Dec-Feb, it leans towards the sun
example of latitude
Paris in France, which is located 48°N of the equator, has a lower mean annual temperature of 12°C, while Singapore, located 1°N of the equator has a higher mean annual temperature 29°C .
example of altitiude
Singapore and Quito, Quito is at a higher latitude so air is less dense and absorbs less heat from the earth
example for maritime/continental effect
Fairbanks(inland) and Anchorage(coastal) in Alaska, the coastal area has a smaller annual temperature range
example for conventional rain
Singapore which has heavy long-term mean annual rainfall total of 2165.9mm in 1981 to 2010. It rained an average of 167 days in a year and most of it is heavy and accompanied by lightning and thunder.
example for relief rain
there is lush forest in the Sierra Nevada, USA on the windward side while the leeward side is the Death Valley desert which is hot and dry.
during the NE monsoon, where does it brings heavy rain to
Indonesia and NW australia from the Indian ocean, and some parts of South-east Asia from the South-china sea
during the SW monsoon, where does it bring heavy rain to
India from the Indian ocean and is prevented from moving further north due to the Himalayas
example of volcanic eruption affecting climate change
The eruption of Mount Pinatubo in Philippines in 1991 released 17 million tonnes of sulphur dioxide into the atmosphere.
The average global temperature dropped about 0.6°C over 15 months after the eruption.
example for agriculture (livestock rearing)
Cows contribute to 3/4 of methane emissions from agriculture
example for agriculture (rice farming)
in wet rice farming, the flooded fields support rapid decomposition, amounting to 5-20% of total methane emssions
example of urbanisation affecting climate change
Cities like Shanghai and Mexico City consume about 78% of the world’s energy.
example of ocean circulation slowing down
The ocean circulation at the Atlantic Ocean has slowed down by 15%.
example of climate change affecting natural systems (marine)
The Great Barrier Reef in Australia was severely affected in 2016 and 2017 due to rising sea temperatures.
Up to two-thirds of corals died in the northern section of the reef.
There was a drastic decrease in species diversity after the bleaching event in 2016 and 2017.
example of ocean acidification
The Great Barrier Reef in Australia lost two-thirds of their 1400-mile structure and saw a drastic decrease in species diversity.
example of the trees moving polewards
Temperate forests are advancing northwards and replacing the boreal forests.
The Boreal forests which comprise mainly of coniferous trees located between 50–60°N north of the equator are advancing further northwards into the tundra.
example of extreme weather events affecting natural systems
The droughts in California, USA from 2012 to 2016 caused the death of more than 100 million trees due to the lack of water and spread of diseases.
example of heat wave affecting human systems
2003 heatwave in Europe, 70K people died and it lasted 2 weeks. Food supply was affected so the prices also increased, leading to economic strains on the population
example of droughts affecting human systems
prolonged and severe drought in Afghanistan in 2018-2019 which affected more than 2/3 of the country. Many faced a lack of food and were displaced.
example of wildfires affecting human systems
2019-2020 wildfires in Australia, warm and dry conditions made the fire harder to control. The air quality was hazardous and a health risk
example of flood affecting human systems
in 2020, Bangladesh experienced worst monsoon flooding due to intense rainfall. 260 people died, 1.3 billion homes were damaged and crops were destroyed.
example of tropical cyclones affecting human systems
2020 tropical cyclones in the Philippines. 6 cyclones hit in 4 weeks and the strongest was Typhoon Goni. Lives were lost, properties were destroyed.
