Weather hazards

• Hazards


  • Strong Winds
  • Heavy Rainfall
  • Snow and Ice
  • Drought
  • Thunderstorms
  • Heat Waves
• Strong Winds


  • Can damage properties and disrupt transportation
  • Can uproot trees and cause debris that can injure or kill people
• Heavy Rainfall


  • Can cause flooding, which can damage homes, disrupt transport networks and drown people
  • Recovering from flooding can cost millions of pounds
• Snow and Ice


  • Can cause injuries due to slipping and deaths due to the cold
  • Can force schools and businesses to shut, and disrupt travel causing economic impacts
• Drought


  • Can lead to water supplies running low, causing social and economic impacts such as crop failures
  • Can require rules to conserve water like banning hosepipes
• Thunderstorms


  • Can involve heavy rain, strong winds and lightning
  • Lightning can cause fires, which can damage property and the environment, and can occasionally kill people
• Heat Waves


  • Can cause pollution to build up in the air, leading to heat exhaustion or breathing difficulties that can kill people
  • Can disrupt transport from rails buckling or roads melting, but may benefit the tourism industry
• The heavy snowfall resulting from the Beast from the East caused chaos across most of the UK
• Roads and motorways were impassable, leading to lorries being unable to reach supermarkets so fresh food supplies started to run out
• 16 people died as a result of the weather, primarily from traffic accidents
• Over 1200 flights were cancelled at airports such as Birmingham
• The amount of gas used in the UK increased hugely, leading to the UK having to issue a 'deficit' warning
• Heavy snowfall resulted in loss of power to thousands of homes and businesses
• £1billion per day were lost as businesses and even factories were forced to close
• Hospitals were forced to cancel non-urgent operations and clinics, while schools across the country closed for up to three days
• Farmers struggled to find their lambs and keep them alive in the freezing temperatures, and had to spend extra money on animal feed
• The frozen ground meant that birds struggled to find food, so the RSPB encouraged the public to leave food out for them
• Ice Cores


  Made up of layers of ice, with each layer representing one year, which can be analysed to determine past temperatures
• Sediment Cores


  Taken from the bottom of lakes or peat bogs, which can contain preserved organic matter that can be analysed to determine past climate conditions
• Pollen Analysis


  Preserved pollen in sediment can be identified and dated to show which plant species were living at that time, indicating past climate conditions
• Tree Rings


  The thickness of tree rings can indicate past climate conditions, as trees grow thicker rings in favourable conditions
• Temperature Records


  Accurate temperature measurements have been taken since the 1850s, providing a reliable but short-term record of temperature change, which can be extended further back using historical records
• Possible Causes of Climate Change

  • Orbital Changes
  • Volcanic Activity
  • Burning Fossil Fuels
  • Farming
  • Solar Output
  • Cement Production
  • Deforestation
• Orbital Changes


  • Affect how much solar energy the Earth receives, potentially causing glacial and interglacial cycles
• Volcanic Activity


  • Major eruptions can eject large quantities of material into the atmosphere, blocking some of the Sun's radiation and causing short-term cooling
• Burning Fossil Fuels


  • Releases CO2 into the atmosphere, contributing to global warming
• Farming


  • Livestock produce methane, which contributes to global warming, and flooded fields emit methane
• Solar Output


  • Changes in the Sun's output, including short 11-year cycles and potentially longer cycles, can affect the Earth's climate
• Cement Production


  • The production of cement releases CO2 into the atmosphere
• Deforestation


  • Removing trees reduces the amount of CO2 being removed from the atmosphere, and can also release CO2 when the trees are burned or decompose
• Global Atmospheric Circulation


  The movement of air around the globe, transporting heat from tropical to polar latitudes, which helps determine patterns of weather and climate
• Tropical Storms


  • Develop as a result of particular physical conditions, including warm ocean temperatures, rising warm moist air, and air rushing in to replace the rising air, creating strong winds
• Tropical storms (hurricanes, cyclones, typhoons) occur between the Tropic of Cancer and Tropic of Capricorn, with the highest numbers in the North Pacific
• Sequence of Tropical Storm Formation and Development

  1. Ocean surface temperature reaches 27°C, causing evaporation

  2. Warm, moist air rises and condenses, forming clouds and heavy rain

  3. Cooled air sinks back down through the centre, forming an eye with no rainfall

  4. Air rushes in from outside to replace the rising air, creating strong winds

  5. The storm rotates due to the Coriolis effect
• Westerlies


  Winds that blow air across the surface from the tropics towards the poles
• Tropical storm


  • A low pressure weather system with clouds that spiral around a central eye
  • Can carry heavy rain and winds
  • Can cause a storm surge
• Global distribution of tropical storms: Between the Tropic of Cancer and Tropic of Capricorn. The highest numbers of tropical storms occur in the North Pacific
• Causes of tropical storms and the sequence of their formation and development

  1. Ocean surface temperature reaches 27°C and evaporation occurs

  2. Warm, moist air rises and then cools and condenses so clouds form leading to heavy rain

  3. Some of the cooled air sinks back down through the centre of the clouds forming an eye where there is no rainfall

  4. Air rushes in from outside of the storm system to replace the rising air, this creates strong winds

  5. The storm rotates because of the Coriolis effect
• Tropical storms occur in the between the tropics because of high levels of solar radiation leading to rapid evaporation
• In the northern hemisphere tropical storms move towards the west