Topic 1 Flashcards
What happens in High pressure areas
Air cools and falls transferring heat to the ground
What happens in low pressure areas?
Air is heated, then it rises creating clouds and causing it to rain
Where are:
The hadley cells
The ferrel cells
The polar cells
The hadley cells are near the equator
The two ferrel cells are 30 and 60 degrees
The polar cells are near the poles
How is air transferred away from the equator?
Air starts rising near the equator travelling from the north to the south. The different temperatures cause difference in air pressure. Winds then blow air from areas of high pressure to low pressure, transferring heat away from the equator.
How do ocean currents move heat from the equator to the poles?
Ocean currents are large scale movements of water that transfer heat energy from warmer to cooler regions. There are also deep currents driven by differences in temperature.
How does the gulf stream work?
When there is lots of water in the ocean and it combines with low temperature it creates high density causing water to sink.
How have these Four different natural factors caused climate change over the last centuries
Volcanic activity
Sun spots
Solar output variation
Asteroid collisions
Volcanic activity - the ash that goes into the atmosphere reflects sunlight into space
Sun spots - more solar energy cause slight warming
Solar output variation - when the sun’s output increases it sends more heat energy to earth
Asteroid collisions - they through huge amounts of dust in the atmosphere blocking sunlight causing cooling
Three evidences for climate change
Ice cores
Tree rings
Historical records
How do ice cores show CC and temperature from the past?
It contains air bubble from many years ago. The scientists analyse all the layers to see how much co2 they contain which shows CC. The temperatures and activities can be showed through the atoms in the ice.
How do tree rings show if it was wet or dry and seasons temperature
Dry seasons are a lighter colour and wet seasons are a darker.
The more space shows the tree’s growth. Bigger space may indicate more sunlight and rain.
How has industry enhanced the greenhouse effect?
The need for energy results in fossil fuels being burnt.
Industrial waste may end up in landfill where it decays and releases methane.
How has energy enhanced the greenhouse effect?
Co2 is released into the atmosphere when fossil fuels are burnt.
Energy contributes 89% of greenhouse gasses across the globe
How has transport enhanced the greenhouse effect?
With transport becoming more affordable more fuels are burnt.
Car ownership is increased meaning that more fossil fuels are used to make cars.
Give evidence to explain how each of the factors below show that climate change is happening:
Sea levels,Global temperatures,Arctic ice,Extreme weather
Sea levels have risen by 210mm from 1870 to 2010
Global temperatures have increased by nearly 1C° since 1880
Over 90% of the world’s valley glaciers are shrinking
Sever droughts , flooding and heatwaves
Consequences of climate change that will
a. Make people poorer
b. Affect human health
c. Lead to overcrowding in some areas
d. Reduce food growth
e. Cause damage to houses/lost business
A. Drought of farms will affect farmers economically
B. Coastal flooding may cause homelessness
C. Flooding causes people to move into a safe space leading to overcrowding
D. Drought can stop crop farming
E. Tornadoes can easily destroy buildings
Why can’t we be more certain about climate change?
The future is unknown and even if we work an estimate there are still stuff which can affect these projections.
What is the Coriolis force, the eye, the track,the source area and seasonal distribution in tropical cyclones
CF-A strong force created by the earth’s rotation
Eye-The centre of a tropical cyclone
Track-The path followed by a tropical storm
Source area-The region where tropical cyclones form
Seasonal distribution-How something occurs at different times of the year
How do tropical cyclones form.
The warm ocean heats the air above it. (The ocean temp has to be 26.5C°)
Then rising warm evaporates and starts to spin. The air then cools and condenses to form a towering cumulonimbus cloud. At last the intense low pressure sucks in the air causing very strong winds.
What is used to measure hurricanes
The saffir Simpson scale is the hurricane scale which categorises hurricanes using storm surge and wind speed
What happens to flat areas and coastal areas during tropical cyclones
They are more vulnerable because there is nothing to block the tropical cyclone but also water makes it bigger and more catastrophic
Method used to prepare for tropical cyclones and how it helps prepare
Forecast/tracking - Can track the eye of the storm using GIS. This will mean that people have time to prepare
Warning/evacuation - Successful evacuation reduces death and injuries. Warning strategies can alert people
Building design - Sea walls can prevent storm surges. Stilts can reduce the amount of building collapsing
Response methods to tropical cyclones
Rescue - People dig to rescue people under collapsed building
Rebuild - Repair and reconstruction will have a major impact on recovery
Name the tropical cyclone in a developed country, its date,place,magnitude and impacts
Hurricane Katrina
Category 3
August 2005
South east USA
3 mill people without power
23,000 jobs lost
1800 people died
Massive oil spills
Coastal habitats destroyed (turtle breeding beaches)
Name the tropical cyclone in a developing country, its date,place,magnitude and impacts
Cyclone Nargis
Category 4
Myanmar
May 2008
14 000km flooded land
38,000 hectares of forest destroyed
More than 140,000 killed
45,000 houses destroyed and 35,000 damaged
