Climate change and coasts

Question 1

What key factors contribute to sea level change

Answer 1

eustatic, isostatic, tectonic changes, human induced climate change.

Question 2

What is isostatic change?

Answer 2

Level of the land - influenced by ice ages.

Compression of land by ice during ice age, post ice age, melting ice causes land to rebound.

Question 3

What is tectonic change?

Answer 3

land either rises or sinks at tectonic boundaries.
sudden changes = rise or fall in seabed - changes sea level.
can trigger tsunamis.

Question 4

What is eustatic change?

Answer 4

Rising and falling of sea levels

Water stored in ice form during ice age - sea level falls.
sea level rises post ice age.

Question 5

What is the difference between isostatic and eustatic sea level change?

Answer 5

Isostatic = changes in land level
Eustatic = changes in sea level.

Question 6

What does IPCC stand for?

Answer 6

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.

Question 7

Give a stat showing sea level rise

Answer 7

IPCC say that from 1901 to 2010, average sea levels have increased by 0.19m!

Question 8

Give 2 disadvantages of higher sea levels

Answer 8

coastal flooding (higher tides)
More material removed from beaches - cliffs = less protected.

Question 9

How is climate change impacting

Answer 9

CC is changing the frequency and intensity of low-pressure depressions and tropical storms.

CC = ocean temps to warm - ITCZ expanding (5 - 30 degrees N and S of equator where tropical storms occur is expanding)