Section 1

• What are the 4 layers of earth

  • crust - layer of earth

  • mantle - layer beneath the mantle

  • outer core - layer beneath the mantle

  • inner core - centre layer
• Tectonic plates are large peices of rock that float on the mantle
• Oceanic crust is crust found under the ocean

  Continental crust is found under land
• Continental drift is the theory that states the earths continents are slowly moving and that they once were joined together to form a super-continent called Pangea
• Tectonic plates move due to convection currents and slab pull

  Convection currents are circular currents within the mantle that cause overlying tectonic plates to move

  Slab pull occurs at destructive plate margin when heavy plates sink into the mantle and pull the rest of the plate with it
• A natural hazard is a natural process that poses a threat to people and property
• A meteorological hazard occurs in the atmosphere (e.g. hurricane, volcanoes, earthquakes)
• Geological/tectonic hazards occur due to movement of tectonic plates (e.g. volcanoes, earthquakes)
• • destructive plates move towards one another, these cause volcanoes due to magma rising and earthquakes due to pressure buildup

  • constructive plates move away from each other, this causes volcanoes as magma fills the gap and earthquakes as the magma creates tremors

  • Conservative plates slide past each other, these don't cause volcanoes but it causes earthquakes due to a buildup of pressure
• An earthquakes is a sudden or violent movement within the earths crust due to a buildup uo of pressure As tectonic plates suddenly move, they send out shock waves from the focus (centre of movement within the earths crust)

  The point directly above the focus is the epicentre, the closer you are to the focus and epicentre, the stronger the earthquake will be
• The strength of an earthquake is measured using a seisometer, it records the magnitude which is recorder on the richter scale
• Christchurch (a HIC) , located in New Zealand, experienced an earthquake with a magnitude of 6.3 at a Conservative margin in February 2011
• Christchurch - primary effects •

  • 181 ppl died

  • 2000 injured

  • >50% of city's buildings damaged

  • city's Cathedral spire collapsed

  • Water and sewage pipes damaged
• Christchurch - secondary effects

  • businesses closed for a long time

  • couldn't hold rugby world Cup match

  • schools closed for 2 weeks from damage
• Christchurch immediate responses • 6 to 7 Mill International aid provided

  • 300 Australian police officers flown in

  • aid workers like red Cross came to help

  •areas zoned to assess damage
• Christchurch long term responses • $898 Mill in building insurance claims • Water and sewage restored to city by August 2011 • temp housing provided
• Haiti (an LIC) experienced an earthquake with a magnitude of 7.0 at a Conservative plate margin in January 2010
• Haiti primary effects • 220000 dead • 300000 injured • 8 hospitals destroyed in Port-au-Prince • 5000 schools destroyed or damaged • transportation routes destroyed by fallen buildings • service lines destroyed
• Haiti secondary effects • trauma and diseases from dead bodies • 1.3 Mill in temp camps • unemployment • high crime rates • aid supplies couldn't reach victims • 2 Mill without food, electricity and water • cost 11.5 bill
• Haiti immediate responses • people evacuated • USA sent ships, helicopters and army to search and rescue for victims and cleat rubble at the port so companies could export goods again • UN sent police to distribute aid and keep order • Red Cross set up temp hospitals • UK raised 100 mill for emergency aid • USA gave 100 mill for emergency aid
• Haiti long term responses • thousands left Port-au-Prince permanently • cash for work programmes set up to clear rubble and give locals job • world Bank gave 100 Mill to support long term reconstruction • 3/4 of buildings repaired
• People live in areas of risk for a number of reasons like friends and family, employment, confident the government will protect them, fertile land near volcanoes for farming and a lack of education
• An earthquakes can be predicted by checking previous data, measuring for small tremors and unusual animal behaviour. For example in China, the city of Haicheng was evacuated following strange animal heavier, days later a 7.3 magnitude earthquake struck
• Earthquakes can be planned by making earthquake proof buildings (using flexible steel frames that sway as the ground moves, building builders with larger bases than top so they're less likely to topple over), practice drills, emergency evacuation kits, hazard mapping
• A tropical storm is a storm with winds of over 74mph and torrential rain
• 2 conditions needed for tropical storm formations are warm water (>27°) and latitudes between 5-20° North and south of the equator
• Tropical storms are measured using the Saffir-simpson scale which has 5 categories
• Climate change affects tropical storms as an increase in temp = more of world's ocean will be >27°, increase in temp also means storms will become stronger
• Tropical storm formation: 1. The sun heats the ocean 2. Warm, moist air evaporates and rises 3. More air rushed in to replace the air that has js evaporated 4. As air rises, it condenses to form thick clouds 5. Earths rotation causes clouds to spin, forming tropical storms distinctive shape 6. Cold air sinks in the centre of the storm forming the eye of the storm 7. It moves in the prevailing winds direction (east to west) 8. It reaches land and loses energy as its energy source (warm water) is gone, friction of land also reduces its energy
• Tropical storms are usually a circular shape and last 7-14 days
• Typhoon Haiyan occurred in the Phillipines, in Asia, in November 2013 which was a category 5 storm with wind speeds of 170mph and waves 15m high
• Typhoon haiyan primary effects • 6300 dead • 27000 injured • 40000 homes destroyed = 90% of Tacloban • 30000 fishing boats destroyed • schools, hospitals and shops destroyed • 400mm of rain flooded agricultural land • transportation routes blocked by trees and debris • service lines destroyed
• Typhoon haiyan secondary effects • trauma and diseases from dead bodies • 600000 ppl in temp camps • 6 Mill lost in income/employment • crops destroyed = loss of 53 mill due to rice crops not being exported • crime rates increased • aid supplies couldn't reach victims • some areas had not power for a month • shortages of water, food and shelter = diseases
• Typhoon haiyan immediate responses • ppl evacuated to 1200 evacuation centres • USA - search and rescue • ppl cleared rubble • emergency food from Philippines red Cross • emergency hospitals from France, Belgium and Israel • emergency shelter kits from UK
• Typhoon haiyan long term response • reconstruction - 1000s of new homes built in flood safe areas • reconstruction of roads, bridges and airports • NGOs (e.g. Oxfam) replaced fishing boats • UN, EU, UK, Australia, Japan and USA provided long term medical supplies and financial aid • cash for work programmes to help ppl earn money in the long term
• To predict a tropical storm, we can wtach satellite imagery and previous tropical storm data
• We can plan for a tropical storm by making an emergency kit, practice drills and evacuation routes, warning systems, building regulations (homes built in low risk areas, flood defences around coastlines or rivers)
• Weather is the day-to-day conditions of the atmosphere

  Extreme weather is weather events that are significantly different from normal
• Evidence that weather is becoming more extreme is the international disaster database which shows the number of floods has increased since 1960s, 2023 heatwave which caused 2045 deaths in the UK, 2010 big freeze - December 2010 temps dropped to -20C in Scotland, more rain (2014 Somerset flood)
• An example of extreme weather in the UK is the Somerset floods which happened in South-West England in January and February 2014. 350 mm of rain was produced, high tides, storm surges and the rivers hadn't been dredged in 20 years and were clogged with sediment. Somerset is a low lying farmland which has several rivers