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Deserts Flashcards

1
Q

Explain the different ways that people living in the desert do to overcome lack of water?

A

-people in the Atacama desert use nets to catch water droplets which can add up to 500ml of water.

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2
Q

Name all the hot deserts in the world?

A
  • Atacama
  • Sahara
  • Arabian
  • Thar
  • Kalahari
  • Australian
  • Namib
  • Sonora
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3
Q

Name the 4 types of desert?

A
  • Trade wind desert
  • Coastal desert
  • Rain-shadow desert
  • Monsoon desert
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4
Q

What is trade-wind?

A

Trade winds air which blows from the sub-tropics with high pressure towards the equator where there is low pressure, these winds are very dry and carry little moisture.

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5
Q

What are cold ocean currents?

A

Cool the air, prevent it from rising and condensing so there is no rain.

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6
Q

What are deserts effected by/ what makes them that type of desert?

A
  • Trade wind

- Cold ocean currents.

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7
Q

How much of the earths surface do deserts cover?

A

1/3 of the lands surface.

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8
Q

How long can a human survive without water?

A

Only a few days.

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9
Q

How is the Gobi desert in Asia different to the Sahara in Africa?

A

The Gobi desert is a cold desert above has snow.

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10
Q

How is a desert defined?

A

Having less then 250mm of precipitation.

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11
Q

Why are deserts hot in the day but cold at night?

A

Deserts are hot in the day due to the direction of the Suns energy hitting the earth and rising over 40 degrees but due to no clouds, the heat escapes leaving freezing nights.

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12
Q

What are xerophytes?

A

Plant with physical characteristics that help them survive in the desert e.g cactus/cacti

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13
Q

What are ephemerals?

A

Plants that lie dormant for months or years and then grow flowers and seeds in just a few weeks usually after rain.

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14
Q

How is a cactus adapted for the desert?

A
  • Thick waxy layers reducing water loss.
  • Extensive root system which soaks up large amounts of water.
  • Large fleshy stems store water.
  • spikes rather then leaves protect them from animals and shortens the surface area preventing transportation.
  • white upper surface to reflect sun rays.
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15
Q

What is transpiration?

A
  • when water leaves a plant.
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16
Q

How is a camel adapted to the desert?

A
  • Hump which allows them to survive longer without food.
  • long powerful legs, covers large distances between meals.
  • Broad, flat hooves which have a large surface area so won’t sink into the sand.
  • thick, wooly fur so helps prevent cold at night and protect skin from the sun rays.
  • large drinking ability so it never knows when it will drink next.
  • Tough leathery kneecaps to help stand up and get down from the hard handy floor.
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17
Q

What are the difficulties of living in a desert?

A
  • lack of water
  • extreme temperatures
  • animals
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18
Q

What can change a desert?

A
  • weathering
  • erosion
  • deposition
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19
Q

What is the plateau?

A

A high, flat area of land.

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20
Q

What is a canyon?

A

Deep, steep, sided valley.

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21
Q

What is the butte?

A

Small, isolated, flat-topped mountain.

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22
Q

What is the alluvial fan?

A

A fan shaped river depositors at the foot of a steep desert.

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23
Q

What is the yardong?

A

A narrow, steep-sided ridge.

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24
Q

What is the wadi?

A

Gully formed by flash floods.

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25
What is the inselberg?
A large, isolated outcrop of hard rock.
26
What is the salt pan?
Dried out salt lake with a crusty salt surface.
27
What is the blowout?
Large hollows scooped from the surface by the wind.
28
What is a sand dune?
Ridge or mound of sand.
29
What is a desert pavement?
A flat, rocky area with a smooth, polished surface.
30
What is an oasis?
Fertile area formed where a hollow reached the under lying water table.
31
What is erosion?
The wearing away of rocks, in a desert the two main agents are wind and occasionally water (in flash floods).
32
What is deposition?
This is the laying down of material that had been eroded, the main two agents are wind and water.
33
What is weathering?
The decay or disintegration of rock, most weathering is caused by extreme environments in the desert.
34
How are rocks broken down?
By weathering and erosion.
35
Where are the Bedouin people from?
Sahara desert in North Africa.
36
What/who are the Bedouin people?
They are nomads, people who do not have a permanent home, they move around place to place looking for fresh water and for fresh pasture for animals to graze.
37
How are the Bedouin people adapted to the Sahara desert?
- Camels for transport. - Loose clothing for air to circulate (breathable). - White clothing to reflect the suns rays. - Tents to live in until they travel.
38
How do the Bedouin people an their journeys?
They plan them across water sources like oasis'.
39
Name the different types of weathering?
- biological weathering - salt weathering - freeze thaw - isolation weathering
40
Name two depositions?
- wind | - river
41
Name the two different erosions?
- deflation | - abrasion
42
Why might Bedouins give up their nomadic lifestyle?
For better opportunities, children could go to schools, better social life and modern technology.
43
What is renewable energy?
Infinite energy from the earths elements such as the sun, water or rain.
44
What are some environmental impacts of digging for oil and gas?
- Wells in the desert are drying up because the water is coming from them to be used in mining for the oil. - Creates lots of pollution oil and gas is burnt. - Can effect the wildlife in North Africa.
45
What are 3 problems with producing energy from fossil fuels?
- the fuels used make acid rain which can damage rivers and lakes. - increases co2 which can warm up the atmosphere because it's a Green house gas. - fossil fuels are non renewable, they will run out.
46
What is sustainable development?
Development that meets people's needs without harming the environment, so that needs can still be met in the future.
47
Advantages and disadvantages of Solar Power?
Advantages: - it renewable, so won't run out. - provides jobs for people. - environmentally friendly. Disadvantages: - far more expensive to generate electricity. - only works during the day. - takes up a lot of land.
48
How do people use the desert?
- holidays - energy - exploring/investigation - research
49
Positives of tourism? In the desert
- Income - new experience - creates jobs for both host and donor countries - increase and improve services e.g. roads and mobile communications - new languages
50
Negative of tourism? In the desert
- more pollution form rubbish left behind. - threat of lifestyles and cultures. - leakage of money.
51
Give an example of a case study for why people use the desert?
-The Namibia desert, people go because it's the oldest desert in the world and 35% of the population live on $1 a day. When people visit, they get ether income and services improve but there can be an affect on the fragile environment.
52
What is desertification?
The process where the land slowest dries out due to human activity and the changes in environment.
53
Why do we use the case study of the Sahel?
It runs through Mauritiana, Mali, Niger, Chad, Sudan and Ethiopia. It was used for farming but in 1968 the climate began to change. There was no rainfall and the cattle died because they were starved. There was no vegetation so 250,000 people died.
54
What is drought?
Far less water in a particular area over a period of time compadres to what is normal for that same period of the year.
55
What is Overgrazing?
Herders allow too many animals to graze, this causes the natural grasses to die out and the topsoil blows away.
56
How do people manage desertification?
They grow trees, store water, stop over grazing and do ingrated farming.
57
What is ingrated farming?
Keeping animals and growing crops so they can use animals mature to fertilise the soil and help grow the crops.
58
How does planting more trees reduce desertification?
They protect the soil from wind and rain.
59
Why does stopping overgrazing reduce desertification?
It reduced the number of animals grazing to allow the vegetation to grow back again.
60
How do they store water to reduce desertification?
They build earth dams to collect water in the wet season. Stored water is used to irrigate the crops in the dry season.
61
What are the 4 forms of weathering?
Exfoliation or onion skin weathering. Freeze thaw Salt crystallisation Hydration
62
What is a mesa?
An isolated mountain ......
63
Definition of an extreme desert?
An environment that presents challenges that make it difficult for people to survive, for example, extreme temperature or lack of water.
64
Name 4 sustainable farming methods?
planting more trees stop overgrazing integrated farming storing water
65
using examples from the namib desert, explain ways that tourism is beneficial?
- the namib desert can be a big tourist attraction and is also used for research. - improves the economy due to to money being paid in. - improves their services such as roads and mobile communications. - provides an overall better lifestyle for them.
66
Why has the population increased?
- better living conditions - improved healthcare - better education - more developed countries - modern fertility treatment
67
whats a food chain?
a series of organisms each dependant on each other as a food source.
68
whats a trophic level?
position of an organism in a food chain.
69
what is a food web?
number of food chains interlinked and dependant on each other.

Geography (7 decks)

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