Natural Hazards

• Adaptation


  Responding to climate change by coming up with ways to live and cope with the effects
• Atmospheric circulation


  The general movements of air around the Earth due to pressure and temperature
• Atmospheric hazard


  Hazards caused by the weather and processes in the atmosphere
• Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS)


  The process of capturing carbon dioxide that would normally be emitted into the atmosphere and storing it underground in reservoirs
• Climate change


  A distinct change in global or regional patterns of climate, such as changes in temperature or precipitation patterns
• Conservative plate margin


  A plate margin where two plates are moving alongside each other
• Constructive plate margin


  A plate margin where two plates are moving away from each other
• Continental crust


  The thicker, less dense crust that makes up the continents
• Convection current


  The movement of a fluid caused by a difference in temperature or density
• Coriolis Effect


  The effect of the Earth's rotation on wind movements
• Cyclone


  A tropical storm that hits Oceania or Madagascar
• Destructive plate margin


  A plate margin where two plates are moving towards each other
• Eccentricity


  The changing of the orbit of the Earth around the Sun from a circular shape to an ellipse
• Eye


  An area of a tropical storm with extremely low pressure and calm conditions
• Eyewall


  An area of a tropical storm with the most intense, powerful winds and torrential rain
• Ferrel Cell


  At around 60° either side of the equator, moist air rises, and travels to lower latitudes at around 30° where it sinks, along with air travelling from the equator
• Fossil fuels


  Fuels made up of the remains of organic material, such as oil, coal and gas
• Geological hazard


  A hazard caused by processes on the land
• Greenhouse Gases


  Gases in the Earth's atmosphere that trap energy in the Earth's system and contribute to the greenhouse effect (carbon dioxide, methane, water vapour and nitrous oxides)
• Hadley Cell


  At the equator, hot moist air rises, moves to higher latitudes (30°) and sinks
• Hazard risk


  The probability that a natural hazard will negatively affect a population
• Hotspot


  An area where unusually hot magma breaks through the middle of a plate and travels up to the surface, creating a volcano
• Hurricane


  A tropical storm that hits the USA, Latin America or the Caribbean
• Hydrological hazard


  A hazard caused by the movement of water on the land
• Ice core


  A cylinder of ice extracted from an ice sheet or glacier, which is used to analyse past environmental conditions
• Immediate responses


  Actions taken as soon as the hazard happens and in its immediate aftermath (hours, days, and potentially a week or so after the event)
• Long-term responses


  Actions taken after the immediate responses when the effects of the hazard have been minimised (weeks, months, and years after the event)
• Magma


  Molten rock found beneath the Earth's surface
• Mantle


  The area underneath the crust which contains magma
• Marine sediment core


  A cylinder of ocean sediments removed from the ocean floor, which is used to analyse past environmental conditions
• Milankovitch Cycles


  The cyclical variations in the Earth's orbit around the Sun
• Mitigation


  Reducing the causes of climate change, so that climate change slows or even stops
• Monitoring


  Detecting and recording physical changes and warning signs of a hazard
• Natural hazard


  A naturally occurring event that is a threat to a population
• Obliquity (or axial tilt)

  The tilt of the Earth's axis, which changes from 21.5° and 24.5°
• Oceanic crust


  The thinner, denser crust that makes up the ocean floor
• Planning


  Having systems in place, such as evacuation routes, so that if a hazardous event does occur, the population is prepared in advance
• Plate margin


  The point at which two plates meet
• Polar Cell


  At 60° north or south of the equator, moist air rises, and travels to the poles (90°), where it sinks
• Precession


  The 'wobble' of the Earth's axis