Storm Surges

Question 1

Storm surge events can lead to severe coastal flooding with dramatic short-term impacts
Storm surges are caused by:

Answer 1

Depressions (low pressure) leading to storm events

Tropical cyclones

Warmer ocean temperatures combined with higher sea levels are predicted to make storms and tropical cyclones more frequent and more severe

Question 2

depression is an area of low pressure
The low-pressure area forms due to air rising from the surface

As it rises, it cools, condenses and forms clouds, bringing rain
In the northern hemisphere, depressions move:
West to east
In an anticlockwise direction

Question 3

Storms are

Answer 3

deep, active low-pressure areas, which bring strong winds and heavy rain
In the UK, when the storm is likely to have a significant impact on people and the environment, it becomes a named storm

Question 4

Tropical cyclones
A tropical cyclone is an

Answer 4

area of very low air pressure

Question 5

tropical cyclones As in a depression, it is formed by warm rising from the ocean surface, forming

Answer 5

towering cumulonimbus clouds, which rotate around a central eye

Question 6

A tropical cyclone brings

Answer 6

heavy rain and strong winds

Question 7

A storm surge is a

Answer 7

rise in the sea level as a result of a storm or tropical cyclone and affect approximately 1.5 million people a year with a range of short-term impacts including:

Deaths and injuries

Homes destroyed leading to homelessness
Increase in water borne diseases

Destruction of infrastructure

Businesses destroyed leading to loss of employment and decrease in GDP

Loss of power

Loss of agricultural land

Destruction of crops and livestock

Question 8

Climate Change & Flood Risk
Climate change & flood risk
Climate change may increase coastal flood risk
The two main factors which increase the flood risk are:

Answer 8

Global sea level rise due to warming oceans and melting ice sheets and glaciers
Increased frequency and magnitude of
storms

The pace and magnitude of this increased risk are uncertain

Question 9

IPCC predicts a rise of between 26-77cm by 2100
A 50cm sea level rise would:
Impact 800 million people around the world
In the UK, 200km of coastal flood defences would be vulnerable; leaving £………..billion worth of infrastructure and resources at risk of flooding

Answer 9

120bn

Question 10

The increase in sea levels, intensity of tropical storms and changing weather patterns caused by climate change, all have the potential to increase the risk of coastal flooding
The magnitude and timing of these changes is uncertain, as the extent of climate change and the impacts it will have, are, at present, uncertain