natural hazards/disasters

Question 1

define a natural hazard

Answer 1

a natural hazard is a naturally occurring physical phenomenon caused by either rapid or slow-onset events.

Question 2

four types of natural harazards

Answer 2

geophysical, (earthquakes, landslides/mudslides, tsunamis, and volcanic activity.)
hydrological, (avalanches and floods.)
climatological, (extreme temperatures, drought, and wildfires. + tropical storms)
biological, (disease epidemics insects/animals plagues.)

Question 3

define natural disaster + criteria

Answer 3

a natural event such as a flood, earthquake, or hurricane that causes great damage and loss of life.
* report of 100 people affected
* a report of 10 or more people killed
* a declaration of a state of emergency by the relevant government
* a request by the national government for international assistance

Question 4

define risk

Answer 4

the probability of a hazard event causing harmful consequences (expected losses in terms of death, injuries, property damage, economy, and environment).

Question 5

define vulnerability

Answer 5

the geographic conditions that increase the susceptibility of a community to a hazard or the impacts of a hazard event.

Question 6

define hazard perception

Answer 6

the degree to which a hazard is considered to be a threat by different people.

Question 7

define secondary hazards

Answer 7

indirect effects or secondary effects of a natural hazard occurring after the initial primary hazards.

Question 8

define adaptation

Answer 8

ways in which human activities/actions are altered to take into account the increasing risk of hazards.

Question 9

define mitigation

Answer 9

he action of reducing the severity, seriousness, or painfulness of something / to manage risk to make something less severe.

Question 10

define magnitude

Answer 10

size of a geophysical event.

Question 11

define Richter scale

Answer 11

define Richter scalea scale that relates to an earthquake’s magnitude based on the size of its seismic waves.

Question 12

define Mercalli scale

Answer 12

a scale that describes the intensity of an earthquake according to how it feels + the damage it causes.

Question 13

define Ring of fire

Answer 13

the zone around the pacific ocean where volcanoes are most common. (75%)

Question 14

define epicentre

Answer 14

where the earthquake is felt most strongly on earth

Question 15

define vulnerable population

Answer 15

groups of people that require greater protection than other groups such as infants disabled and elderly people.

Question 16

define focus

Answer 16

where the earthquake originates from

Question 17

define hot spots

Answer 17

thin places in the earth’s crust where magma can escape

Question 18

composite volcanoes

Answer 18

along destructive plate margins. the magma is sticky so it forms steep mountain-like volcanoes.

Question 19

define shield volcanoes

Answer 19

along constructive plate margins, such as Iceland, and also where there are hat sports like the Hawaiian islands. The lava is runny, so it forms a volcano in the shape of a shield, or wide cone with gradual and shallow sides

Question 20

define crater

Answer 20

the circular depression in the ground caused by volcanic activity

Question 21

define magma

Answer 21

a very hot liquid/semi-liquid rock located under the earth’s surface.

Question 22

define lava

Answer 22

the same as magma but after it erupts from a volcano.

Question 23

define pyroclastic flow

Answer 23

a fast-moving hot gas and volcanoes bits. (very deadly)

Question 24

define ash cloud

Answer 24

consists of rock, mineral crystals, and volcanic glass, it’s created during eruptions.

Question 25

how can we predict hazards like earthquakes or tsunamis

Answer 25

using seismographic monitors

Question 26

what are the earth’s plates made out of? + why do they move

Answer 26

are made of continental crust and oceanic crust, and move due to the convection in the mantle

Question 27

what are earthquakes caused by?

Answer 27

underground rock suddenly breaking and there is rapid motion along a fault.(sends seismic waves)