natural hazards Flashcards

1
Q

what is a natural hazard

A

a natural event which poses potential risk of damage to property or loss of life

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2
Q

different types of natural hazard

A
  • tectonic hazard
  • atmospheric hazard
  • geomorphological hazards
  • biological hazards
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3
Q

factors effecting hazard risk

A
  • magnitude
  • population density/ urbanisation
  • deforestation
  • global warming
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4
Q

different types of crust

A
  • continental (thicker and less dense)
  • oceanic (thinner and denser)
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5
Q

how do tectonic plates move?

A
  • ridge push and slab pull
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6
Q

what happens at constructive plate margins

A
  • upper part of mantle melts and hot magma rises
  • plates move away from each other due to slab pull/ ridge push, and magma rises in between, before cooling down as solid rock to form part of oceanic plate
  • forms shield volcanos
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7
Q

what happens at destructive plate margin (continental)

A
  • both continental plates are buoyant and cannot sink into mantle, meaning compression forces the plates to collide and form mountains
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8
Q

what happens at destructive plate margin (continental and oceanic)

A
  • the denser oceanic plate is subdued and sinks under continental plate and into mantle
  • earthquakes, fold mountains and volcanoes occur
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9
Q

what happens at conservative plate margins

A
  • two plates move parallel to each other, either in the same direction or opposite direction
  • pressure is built up due to friction of both plates when they become stuck, causing earthquakes when the rock eventually fractures
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10
Q

case study for LIC/NEE earthquake

A
  • Gorkha, Nepal (2015)
  • LIC
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11
Q

case study for HIC earthquake

A
  • L’aquila, Italy (2009)
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12
Q

Gorkha earthquake stats

A

-7.8 on richter scale
- 8,841 dead
- 16,800 injured
- 1 million made homeless
- 26 hospitals destroyed
- 50% of schools destroyed

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13
Q

L’aquila earthquake stats

A
  • 6.3 on richter scale
  • 308 killed
  • 1,500 injured
  • 67,500 made homeless
  • house prices and rent increased due to lack of housing (long term)
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14
Q

immediate responses to l’aquila earthquake

A
  • hotels provided shelter for 10,000 people
  • 40,000 tents given out
  • Eu granted $550 million to help rebuild L’aquila
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15
Q

long term responses to L’aquila earthquake

A
  • homes took several years to rebuild and historic centres expected to take approx 15 years to rebuild
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16
Q

immediate responses to gorkha earthquake, nepal

A
  • Uk’s DEC raised $126million to provide emergency aid and start rebuild
  • temporary shelters set up- tents for 225,000 people provided by red cross
  • WHO distributed medical aid
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17
Q

long term responses to gorkha earthquake

A
  • Nepal’s government carried out Post- disaster needs assessment, which reported 23 areas need rebuilding
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18
Q

why do effects and responses of earthquakes differ?

A
  • depends on level of development -ie HIC, LIC, NEE etc, which effects the ability to predict, protect and prepare for hazard
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19
Q

different factors affecting effects of earthquakes

A
  • magnitude
  • depth of focus (shallower = more effect)
  • pop density
  • building density
  • distance from epicentre
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20
Q

pull factors for living in high volcanic and earthquake risk areas

A
  • geothermal energy- steam heated by hot magma
  • farming- nutrient rich, fertile soil
  • mining- makes more than on a coffee plantation
  • tourism
  • family/ friends
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21
Q

how can risks of natural hazards be reduced

A
  • monitoring
  • protection
  • prediction
  • planning
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22
Q

how can monitoring and prediction reduce risk of earthquakes

A
  • Seismologists use radon detection to find radon in soil and groundwater, as it escapes form cracks in earth’s surface
  • seismometers used to measure tempers or foreshocks
  • locations and times of earthquakes mapped to spot patterns- predict next one
  • animals believed to act strangely before earthquakes
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23
Q

how can protection reduce risk of earthquakes

A
  • designing buildings, roads and bridges built to withstand earthquakes provides protection- mitigation
  • however this is expensive and cannot always be achieved
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24
Q

how does planning reduce risk of earthquakes

A
  • furniture and objects fastened down
  • residents taught how to turn off gas, electricity and water supplies
    -preparing emergency aid supplies and how to distribute- saves lives as response faster
  • earthquake drills
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25
Q

how does monitoring and prediction reduce risks of volcanic eruptions

A
  • satellites and telemetry’s monitor ground deformation
  • seismometers measure small earthquakes and tremors
  • thermal heat sensors detect changes in temp of volcano’s surface
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26
Q

how does protection prevent risk of volcanic eruptions

A

*extremely difficult- doesn’t really happen

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27
Q

how does planning prevent risk of volcanic eruptions

A
  • evacuation plans
  • preparation of emergency shelter and food supplies
  • exclusion zones (nobody can enter)
  • if unable to evacuate, residents told to seek shelter or go indoors to prevent dangers of ash and rock
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28
Q

how do tropical storms form

A
  • warm air rises to create an area of intense low pressure
  • as warm, moist air reaches high altitudes, powerful winds spiral around calm central point due to coriolis effect creating the ‘eye’
  • warm air cools and condenses into heavy rainfall and thunderstorms
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29
Q

where are hurricanes found

A
  • Atlantic and Eastern Pacific Oceans
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30
Q

where are typhoons found

A
  • North pacific ocean
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31
Q

conditions needed for tropical storms

A
  • between 5-30 degrees N and S of equator
  • sea temp above 27 degrees C
  • sea depth of approx 60-70 metres
  • Low wind shear
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32
Q

where are cyclones found

A
  • indian and south pacific ocean
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33
Q

Where are Hurricanes found

A
  • Atlantic Ocean
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34
Q

Where are Typhoons found

A
  • Pacific Ocean
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35
Q

Which direction do Tropical storms spin in Northern Hemisphere

A
  • Anti-clockwise
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36
Q

Which direction do tropical storms spin in Southern Hemisphere

A
  • Clockwise
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37
Q

How to categorise tropical storms

A
  • CAT 1-5 on Saffir-Simpson scale
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38
Q

What is it called when storm reaches land

A
  • Making Landfall
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39
Q

What happens when storm reaches landfall

A
  • Dissipates due to there no longer being enough evaporation to fuel the storm
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40
Q

Process of formation of tropical storm:

A
  • Sun’s radiation warms oceans to 27 degrees
  • Warm moist air rises creating low pressure at centre of storm
  • as air rises it cools, causing condensation to occur, leading to rain
  • Air rushes in from higher pressure areas outside storm to lower pressure at centre creating strong winds
  • Whole storm rotates due to Earth’s spin
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41
Q

How could climate change effect distribution of tropical storms

A
  • Increased global water temperatures mean more areas are warm enough to have tropical storms
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42
Q

How could climate change effect intensity of tropical storms

A
  • Warmer water means hurricane is stronger
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43
Q

How could climate change effect Frequency of tropical storms

A
  • Higher water temps increase possibility of tropical storms
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44
Q

Primary effects of Tropical storms

A
  • People injured/killed by debris
  • Buildings destroyed by debris or storm surge
  • People drown in storm surge
  • Water supplies contamination
  • Road and rail networks blocked by debris
45
Q

Secondary effects of Tropical storms

A
  • Crops/livestock killed can lead to food shortage
  • people left homeless
  • Electric supplies cut off due to power line damage
  • Sewage released due to flooding
  • Water borne diseases due to poor sanitation
  • Unemployment due to businesses being damaged
46
Q

Immediate responses of tropical storms

A
  • People evacuated before landfall
  • Trapped people rescued
  • medical support provided for injured
  • Temporary shelters for evacuees
  • Food and water supplied to people
  • Dead bodies recovered
47
Q

Long term responses of tropical storms

A
  • repair and rebuild properties
  • rehouse people
  • repair transport infrastructure
  • provide grants and aid to people to help rebuild their homes
  • BBB- Build back better
48
Q

Name of Tropical storm case study

A
  • Typhoon Haiyan
49
Q

How many killed in Haiyan

A
  • 6,340 people
50
Q

How many made homeless in Haiyan

A
  • 670,000
51
Q

How many islands in Philippines

A
  • 7000
52
Q

Category of Haiyan

A
  • Cat 5 on Saffir Simpson scale
53
Q

Fastest wind in Haiyan

A
  • 315Kph- fastest ever recorded tropical cyclone
54
Q

When Haiyan made landfall?

A
  • Nov 7 2013
55
Q

How much of city of Tacloban destroyed by Haiyan

A
  • 90%
56
Q

How many farmers and fishers lost source of income in Haiyan

A
  • 3/4
57
Q

How big was Haiyan’s storm surge in Tacloban

A
  • 5 metres
58
Q

Secondary effects of Haiyan

A
  • 6 million lost source of income
  • 8 deaths in stampede for rice supplies
  • Rice prices risen by 12% in 2014
59
Q

How many fishing boats destroyed in Haiyan

A
  • 30,000
60
Q

Immediate responses to Haiyan

A
  • 1200 evacuation centres set up
  • International governments and aid agencies supplied food, water and emergency shelters
  • RAF and Royal Navy provided thousands of litres of water and 100,000 tonnes of rice
61
Q

Long term responses to Haiyan

A
  • UN countries donated financial aid, supplies and medic support
  • Rebuilding of roads, bridges and airports
  • ‘Build back better’
62
Q

What is Build back better

A
  • A scheme by ‘plan international’ which gave visual guides to local people on how to build more resilient houses
63
Q

Why was it hard for effective immediate response for Haiyan

A
  • Hundreds of effected islands made it hard to co-ordinate- no land vehicles could be used
64
Q

What is tropical storm planning

A
  • Telling people way they need to do in a tropical storm
65
Q

How does tropical storm planning help

A
  • People more prepared, therefore act more decisively and less loss of life
66
Q

Examples of tropical storm planning

A
  • Fuel up vehicles in advance
  • Store loose objects to prevent debris
  • prepare supply kits
  • Learn locations of evac centres
67
Q

What is tropical storm prediction

A
  • Putting weather data into supercomputers which can run models to predict path/intensity of storm
68
Q

How does prediction reduce impact of T.S

A
  • Use prediction to see where storm his heading to issue warnings in these areas
69
Q

Example of Prediction

A
  • Cyclone in india in 2013 was successfully predicted leading to 1.2 million evacuees
70
Q

What is tropical storm monitoring

A
  • Tracking/observing storms to see where they are/their magnitude
71
Q

How monitoring reduce impact of T.S

A
  • Allow predictions to be made which saves lives and reduce damage
72
Q

Example of T.S monitoring

A
  • Global precipitation measurement satellite monitors precipitation every 3hrs between 65 degrees N and S of equator
73
Q

What is T.S protection

A
  • Making buildings stronger and more resistant to storms
74
Q

How does protection reduce impact of T.S

A
  • Stronger buildings means less damage to properties
  • Also means less debris flying around which reduces danger
75
Q

Examples of T.S protection

A
  • Storm shutters in windows
  • Tying down objects that could get blown
  • Reinforce doors
76
Q

What is weather

A
  • State of atmosphere at a particular place and time
77
Q

What is climate

A
  • Weather conditions prevailing in an area over a long period (30yrs)
78
Q

What is extreme weather

A
  • A weather event which is especially severe and significantly different from the average, typically unseasonal and different from usual weather pattern
79
Q

Case study for extreme weather event in UK

A
  • Beast from the east, 2019
80
Q

Impact of Extreme cold weather

A
  • Travel disruptions and safety concerns lead to school and business closure
  • death of livestock
  • slipper conditions- risk to health
  • money spent on salting and gritting
81
Q

Impact of gales (strong winds)

A
  • Buildings, transport links and electricity lines damaged
  • Debris could block roads
82
Q

Impact of thunderstorms

A
  • Lighting can cause fires, electrical surges, deaths and building damage
  • flash floods could occur
83
Q

Impact of heatwaves

A
  • Deaths due to health issues- heat exhaustion and breathing difficulties
  • crops scorches and livestock killed
84
Q

Impact of droughts

A
  • Crop failure
  • Water conservation methods such as hose pipe bans
85
Q

Impact of heavy rain

A
  • (Flash)floods damage buildings, transport links and energy supplies
  • livestock and crops killed
  • expensive reparations
86
Q

Causes of Beast from the east

A
  • Change in Northern polar jet stream, which drew cold air to UK
  • Air picked up moisture over North Sea bringing snow
  • Huge amount of snow dumped on UK
87
Q

Primary effects of Beast from East

A
  • 4 reported deaths
  • upto 50cm of snow in some places
  • 60-70mph winds in Northern England and Wales
88
Q

Secondary effects of beast from east

A
  • Hundreds of flights cancelled from Heathrow
  • Thousands of schools closed
  • Over 8000 collisions in 3 days due to conditions, costing over £10m in insurance
  • Scottish premiership postponed games
89
Q

Responses to beast from east

A
  • Army called in to help people
  • Met office issued red warnings
  • Councils sent out gritters and ploughs to clear roads
  • Public Heath England urged people to ensure they had enough food and meds
90
Q

Evidence for UK weather becoming more extreme

A
  • 2022 had record breaking temps
  • 2020 Feb had 4x average rainfall
  • increase in frequency for heatwaves- used to be every 3 yrs, now every 200 days
91
Q

Evidence for Uk weather not becoming more extreme

A
  • UK hasn’t seen overall change in annual rainfall
  • We don’t have enough evidence over a long enough period
92
Q

What is climate change

A
  • Very long term shifts in weather patterns
93
Q

Evidence of Climate change in past

A
  • Glaciated landscapes
  • Fossils of animals in unusual places, showing different climates in past
94
Q

Evidence of climate change today

A
  • Sea levels rising
  • Increase in temp
  • Ice caps melting
  • increased extreme weather
95
Q

How much sea level risen in last 100 years

A
  • 10cm
96
Q

Natural causes of climate change

A
  • orbital changes
  • Solar output
  • volcanic activity
97
Q

How does solar output cause climate change

A
  • ‘Sunspots’ randomly form on surface of sun, leading to more solar output and so high temperature
98
Q

How do orbital changes lead to climate change

A
  • Earth’s orbit changes from circular to elliptical shape every 100,000 years, causing colder (glacial) periods
99
Q

How does volcanic activity lead to climate change

A
  • In short term, volcanic ash blocks out sun, reducing temp on earth
  • In long term, sulphur dioxide turns into sulphuric acid, which reflects radiation form sun
100
Q

Sources of greenhouse gases

A
  • Industry- releases CO2
  • Deforestation- releases CO2 as carbon sinks burned
  • Agriculture- livestock produce methane
101
Q

How does enhanced greenhouse effect work

A
  • Increased greenhouse gases released leads to thicker layer of greenhouse gases, which traps heat inside Earth’s atmosphere increasing temp
102
Q

Effects of climate change on people

A
  • Diseases more rife in hotter climates
  • Melting snow in ski resorts can ruin economy in these areas
103
Q

Effects of climate change on Environment

A
  • More extreme weather could lead to forest fires in hot areas
104
Q

Effect of climate change on Environment AND people

A
  • More frequent droughts and flooding lead to crop failure and so starvation
  • Melting ice caps leads to rising sea level meaning some have to leave their homes in coastal areas
105
Q

What is mitigation

A
  • strategies to reduce causes of climate change and therefore reduce impacts
106
Q

What is adaptation

A
  • Strategies to responses to new conditions of climate change to make populations less vulnerable to negative impacts
107
Q

Example of mitigation

A
  • Taxing cars that produce more CO2- ULEZ
108
Q

Example of adaptation

A
  • Farmers changing crops which are more suited to new conditions