ELSS SG5 Flashcards
How have oceans helped to prevent the scale of atmosphere CO2 and the global warming?
Oceans sequester CO2 from the atmosphere store meaning more heat can escape from the atmosphere so there is less global warming
How and why have oceans become more acidic?
When CO2 is absorbed by oceans, carbonic acid is made so as more CO2 is absorbed the pH decreases
What impact does ocean acidification have on sea creatures and phytoplankton with shells?
The carbonic acid dissolves their shells as they are made of calcium carbonate
What impact does ocean acidification have on phytoplankton and the levels of carbon stored in oceans?
More acidic waters make it difficult for the phytoplankton to absorb nutrients, rendering them vulnerable to disease and toxins. Less photosynthesis
What are the two main sources of water?
Surface water and Groundwater
Which country uses more groundwater than surface water: Iceland or Australia?
Australia - rapid evaporation and little precipitation means there is little surface water
In the UK, what % of water is from surface water?
80%
In the UK, what % of water is from groundwater?
20%
Where is the Aral Sea?
The northern part is in Kazakhstan and the southern part is in Uzbekistan
What is the area of the Aral Sea Basin?
1.8 million km2
What are the two main rivers which feed into the Aral Sea?
The Syr Delta and Amu Delta
Why was water extracted from the Aral Sea from 1930s onwards?
The Aral Sea was part of the Soviet Union, who wanted to grow cotton and rice in the deserts of Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan. To do this they diverted water from the rivers which fed the Aral Sea to irrigate the cotton and rice fields
By 2007, how had the Aral Sea changed in size?
It had shrunk by 10% of its original size
What happened to the Aral Sea in 1987?
It split into the North Aral Sea and South Aral Sea
What happened to the South Aral Sea in 2003?
It split into western and eastern basins
What were two changes resulting from the extraction of the Aral Sea?
Loss of plants and animals due to the changing environment, Declining health due to pollutants in the water/lots of dust/declining food
Groundwater extraction near the River Kennet, South England led to a falling water table and resulted in what % decrease in the flow of the river?
10-14%
Define Aquifer
A water bearing band of porous or permeable rock, An underground reservoir
Define Aquitard
Non-porous rock which restricts the flow of water from an aquifer
Define Water Table
The top of the saturated zone
Define Confined Aquifer
Permeable rocks that hold large amounts of groundwater that is capped by impermeable rock
Define Unconfined Aquifer
Permeable rocks that hold large amounts of groundwater that are not capped by impermeable rock
Define Artesian Well
Water in a confined aquifer is under pressure causing the water to rise up a borehole and flow out itself without need for pumping
Define Spring
Where the water table reaches the surface
Define Recharge Area
Where the aquifer is unconfined, and rainwater can percolate
Define Artesian Basin
A confined aquifer which occupies a syncline. This results in groundwater which will rise to the surface under its own pressure without the need for pumping
What is the level which water will rise to in an artesian basin determined by?
Height of the water table
What did overexploitation in the 19th century cause in the London Basin?
90m fall in the water table
What are the three types of land use change?
Urban areas, Farming, Forestry
What is the total percentage of fossil fuel consumption?
67%
Fossil fuels are…
Finite (will run out) and CO2 emitters
How much CO2 is released from fossil fuel combustion each year?
10 billion tonnes per year
What has been the mean increase in global temperatures since 1880s?
0.85 degrees C
What % of the worlds global energy consumption is from oil?
33.3%
What % of the worlds global energy consumption is from coal?
29%
What % of the worlds global energy consumption is from natural gas?
23.9
What % of the worlds global energy consumption is from HEP?
6.6%
What % of the worlds global energy consumption is from nuclear?
5.2%
What % of the worlds global energy consumption is from renewables?
1.9%
What has the carbon dioxide concentration in the air increased by between 2012 and 2017?
17ppm
What was the carbon dioxide concentration in the air in 2012?
393ppm
What was the carbon dioxide concentration in the air in 2017?
410ppm
What are five anthropogenic sources of carbon emissions?
Coal, Oil, Gas, Cement, Land-use
What are the three main sinks for carbon emissions to go?
Atmosphere, Ocean, Land
Define Carbon Sequestration
Technologies are used to capture CO2 and store it underground, after turning it into a liquid
What happens at Snøhvit Gas Power Station in Hammerfest, Norway?
Carbon Capture and Storage
How deep is the CO2 buried at Hammerfest?
2,600m below ground, into sandstone with an impermeable shale caprock
How much CO2 is buried at Hammerfest each year?
700,000 tonnes/year
What are three benefits of CCS?
Helps achieve government and global targets to decrease CO2, Help fossil fuel power stations decrease CO2 emissions by 80-90%, Petroleum companies pay less tax than if offshore - benefits financially
What are three weaknesses of CSS?
Risk of leakage, Expensive (money would be better spent on building renewable energy sources), Uses a lot of energy to separate and compress the CO2
What seven things can be monitored to see changes in global cycles?
Mass of Arctic sea ice, Atmospheric carbon dioxide, Sea surface temperatures (SSTs), Mass of ice caps and glaciers, Primary productivity in oceans, Water vapour, Deforestation
Define Remote Sensing
Obtaining information from a distance, typically from aircraft satellites. This is often carried out by organisations such as NASA and NOAA
Define Geographic Information Systems (GIS)
An integrated computer tool for gathering, storing, processing and analysing geographical data e.g. using ArcGIS to present data. The digital data can be plotted on maps to help the person visualise patterns
