Climate Change - What is the greenhouse effect?

This sequence of lessons aimed to introduce the concept of global warming and to analyse scientific evidence. Thanks to Miss Gunstone and Miss Hayes for working with all the Year 10 groups to prepare presentations about the key issues.

The earth has warmed by about 1ºF over the past 100 years. But why? And how? Well, scientists are not exactly sure. The Earth could be getting warmer on its own, but many of the world's leading scientists think that things people do are helping to make the Earth warmer.


You need to be aware of several important definitions before we go any further...

Climate is the long-term average of a region's weather events, usually over at least 30 years.

Climate change represents a change in these long-term weather patterns. They can become warmer or colder. Annual amounts of rainfall or snowfall can increase or decrease.

Global warming refers to an average increase in the Earth's temperature, which in turn causes changes in climate. A warmer Earth may lead to changes in rainfall patterns, a rise in sea level, and a wide range of impacts on plants, wildlife, and humans.

When scientists talk about the issue of climate change, their concern is about global warming caused by human activities.

The Greenhouse Effect is the rise in temperature that the Earth experiences because certain gases in the atmosphere (such as water vapour, carbon dioxide, nitrous oxide and methane) trap energy from the sun. Without these gases, heat would escape back into space and Earth’s average temperature would be about 60ºF colder. There would be no life on earth under these circumstances.



The Greenhouse Effect is shown in the diagram above and in the YouTube movie below. The movie won't play at school as the site has been filtered by the LEA. Sorry!

If you are an auditory learner, you might like to listen to the Geocrest Podcast about climate change - Global Warning.

And finally, here is the an official video from the British Government.

Acid Rain

Objectives:

- to know how acid rain forms
- to recognise that acid rain is an issue of international concern
- to consider what we might do to reduce the impact of human activities in creating acid rain

This is the PowerPoint we used in the lesson. I've had to remove the movies as Slidehsare can't cope with them! However, just so you don't feel you're missing out, I have linked to several YouTube movies below.

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Acid rain is a result of air pollution. When any type of fuel is burnt, lots of different chemicals are produced. The smoke that comes from a fire or the fumes that come out of a car exhaust don't just contain the sooty grey particles that you can see - they also contains lots of invisible gases that can be even more harmful to our environment.

Acid Rain is caused by the burning of fossil fuels. Burning oil, gas and coal in power stations releases Sulphur Dioxide (SO2) into the atmosphere. Burning oil and petrol in motor vehicles puts nitrogen oxides (NOX) into the atmosphere. These gases mix with water droplets in the atmosphere and create weak solutions of nitric and sulphuric acids. These then fall as acid rain.



Acidity is measured using a scale called the pH scale. This scale goes from 0 to 14. 0 is the most acidic and 14 is the most alkaline. Something with a pH value of 7, we call neutral, this means that it is neither acidic nor alkaline. Rain is always slightly acidic because it mixes with naturally occurring oxides in the air. Unpolluted rain would have a pH value of between 5 and 6. When the air becomes more polluted with nitrogen oxides and sulphur dioxide the acidity can increase to a pH value of 4. Some rain has even been recorded as being pH2.



Acid rain increases the acidity levels of rivers, lakes and seas which can kill aquatic life. It also increases the acidity levels of soils which can kill vegetation. Acid rain has been found to destroy the roots and leaves of forests in Germany and Scandinavia have been destroyed as the result of acid rain emissions from the UK.

Acid rain can also erode buildings and monuments (particularly if they are made from limestone like the statue below).

Acid rain can be carried great distances in the atmosphere, not just between countries but also from continent to continent. The acid can also take the form of snow, mists and dry dusts. The rain sometimes falls many miles from the source of pollution but wherever it falls it can have a serious effect on soil, trees, buildings and water.

Thanks to YouTube user Jamie Harris for this movie:

What can be done to prevent acid rain?

The main way of tackling the problem of acid rain is to reduce emissions. We can do this by:

• researching new ways to create energy which don't produce so much pollution

• spending more money on pollution control even if it does mean an increase in the price of electricity

• wash sulphur out of smoke by spraying a mixture of water and powdered limestone into the smokestack

• fit cars with catalytic converters which remove three dangerous chemicals from exhaust gases

• give greater subsidies to public transport encourage people to use public transport rather than always travelling by car

• make an effort to save energy by switching off lights when they are not being used and using energy-saving appliances - when less electricity is being used, pollution from power plants decreases

• walking, cycling and sharing cars all reduce the pollution from vehicles

What's happened to Google?

What's happened to the Google homepage?

Don't worry - it's not a mistake. The reason that Google has "turned the lights out" on its homepage is that it is supporting 'Earth Hour'. Last year, Sydney took a stand against climate change and switched off the lights for an hour on 31st March. This year, Earth Hour has become a global event. People across the world will be switching off their lights for an hour at 8.00pm local time on 29th March. Will you be one of them?

How do weather and climate affect peoples' lives? Holidays in the Mediterranean

This lesson considered:

- how the Meditteranean climate differs from the UK climate

- why British tourists are attracted to the Med

- how the climate affects different holiday types

The vast majority of overseas holidays taken by UK residents are in EU Europe. The graph shows the percentage of outbound visitors to visit the top 10 destinations in 2003.

UK residents made a record 41.2 million holiday trips in 2003. This was 3 per cent more than in 2002 and was a continuation of the rise in overseas holidays over the last three decades from 6.7 million in 1971. About half (47 per cent) of the holiday trips abroad in 2003 were package holidays. Large numbers of families travel south during the school holidays, visiting the islands and mainland resorts of the Mediterranean. We considered the reasons for this...

1. Cost - flights to Mediterranean resorts are cheap.

2. Language - many British children are taught European languages at school; the vast majority of Europeans speak enough English to be able to comunicate with tourists.

3. Flight times - flights times are short, for example just 3 hours to Rome.

4. Low cost airlines - many new low-cost airlines have been established, and they are in competition with each other so bargain flights are available!

5. Internet bookings - widespread use of the internet has made it easier (and cheaper) to book holidays.

6. Weather and climate - many travel agents market the Mediterranean resorts as being in guaranteed sunshine. Is this the reality?

These graphs show the average temperatures in the UK and Spain's Costa Blanca, and the average number of hours of sunshine. To what extent do you think UK travel agents are justified in using the slogan 'Come to Benidorm for your winter break!'. How does the Mediterranean climate differ from the UK climate?

If you were on holiday in Benidorm in the summer, what activities might you take part in? Sunbathing? Skiing? Look at the climate graphs for ideas! How would the activities for a family holidaying in Benidorm be different to those for a family holidaying in Scarborough?

How do weather and climate affect people's lives?

Weather and climate can have a major effect on people's lives, for example:

Farming - there is a direct link between the type of agriculture and climate. For example, Eastern England has a drier, warmer, sunnier climate than the west. Arable crops tend to be grown in the east, and pastoral farming dominates in the west.

Housing - in particuarly hot climates, buildings may be painted white to reflect the heat. Houses in cold climates are often built on stilts to insulate them from the freezing ground.

Clothing - there is an obvious link between clothing and climate! Why would you wear a snowsuit rather than a bikini if you visited the Arctic?

Sport and leisure opportunities - remember the Jamaican bobsled team of Cool Runnings? They weren't too successful! Why might this be?



Sources of energy - particularly windy areas have plenty of potential for wind farms.

Tourism - the next post considers this in more detail.

Water supply - most of the UKs population live in the south and east, which is relatively dry. Water has to be transferred from reservoirs in the wetter west.

Snow and Ice - in areas where snow and ice are rare, even a small snowfall can lead to chaos on the roads. Schools may even be closed for the day!

Anticyclone case study - Europe, Summer 2003

Thanks to Miss Wieczorek for her help in preparing the resources for this lesson.

The Summer 2007 exam paper required candidiates to write a case study about a high pressure weather system. The European anticyclone of Summer 2003 would be a great example to use in a question like this (remember: anticyclones are areas of high pressure).

This is the 2007 exam question. Make sure that you can answer in detail - check the previous post to see how the examiner marks case study answers.

A weather event caused by high pressure

(i) Name and locate a weather event that has been caused by a high pressure system.
(ii) Describe the weather event.
(iii) Explain how the weather event affected people and the environment.

These questions could also be answered using the Summer 2003 anticyclone in Europe:

A weather event (June 2001)

(i) Name a weather event you have studied.
(ii) Describe how the weather event affected different groups of people and the environment.
(iii) Explain why the weather event took place.

A weather event caused by a high or low pressure weather system (June 2003)

(i) Name a location where you have studied a weather event.
(ii) State whether the weather event was caused by a high or low pressure system.
(iii) Describe how the weather event affected people and the environment.
(iv) Explain what caused the weather event (use diagrams if you wish).

OK, now for the lesson materials - the PowerPoint and the MindMap:

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| View | Upload your own

Case study questions

On the Higher Tier paper, the case study is marked like this:

Level 1 (1-2 marks) Provides simple description or explanation only.
Level 2 (3-4 marks) Provides an account in which description is accompanied by some explanation. Choice of case study applied reasonably well.
Level 3 (5-6 marks) Names an appropriate example. Provides a balanced account with accurate descriptive points and detailed explanation. Appropriate choice of case study applied well.
Level 4 (7-8 marks) Names an appropriate example. Provides a balanced account which includes specific detailed description and specific detailed explanation. Appropriate choice of case study applied very well.



1. The overall quality of the geographical response is judged rather than the ability to make continuous points.
2. The higher levels and marks can be accessed by knowledge and understanding of greater accuracy and specificity e.g. referring to the advantage of increased access for deliveries by locating a shopping centre next to Junction 21 of the M1 motorway rather than just giving a reason as being next to a motorway.
3. If a candidate chooses to use as their case study any material taken directly from the examination paper resources, marks will only be credited for knowledge and understanding that could not have been taken directly from the examination paper.
4. It is possible to gain all the marks by drawing fully annotated sketch maps and/or diagrams for any case study. Sketch maps need to contain some explanatory labels to get beyond level 1; descriptive labels alone do not meet the explanation criteria.
5. To ensure coverage of syllabus breadth it is sometimes necessary to include an exclusion clause in the question e.g. from an MEDC, outside the UK or to specify a choice where another response is not wanted e.g. a weather event (i.e. not climate). In order to ensure that good understanding of Key Ideas and Questions being examined from that part of the Unit in that question receive some credit, candidates may still be awarded up to a maximum of half marks on each case study where the choice is inappropriate but related. This also applies if a relevant case study is discussed but not clearly named or identified where requested.