Unit 3 AOS 1: GLOBAL LAND COVER

Question 1

PQE

Answer 1

Pattern: observe and identify the general pattern across a map by finding high and low concentration of a particular feature

Quantify: extract specific and accurate information from the map as evidence of pattern. involves statistics, amount, sizes and location

Exception: identify and quantify details that don’t fit the pattern identified ‘anomalies’

Question 2

SHEEPT

Answer 2

Social: culture and people
Historical: the past
Environmental: climate, landforms
Economic: earnings or spending of money
Political: government
Technological: tech

Question 3

Land Cover

Answer 3

the physical material covering the earths surface

Question 4

Land Use

Answer 4

the use people make of the earths surface and it resources

Question 5

Interconnections b/w Land Cover and Land Use

Answer 5

Land cover is often distributed by humans activity
land use are often distributed by the availability of particular soils, climate, minerals, vegetation, and wildlife

Question 6

Interconnections b/w Land Cover and Land Use

Answer 6

Land cover is often distributed by humans activity
land use are often distributed by the availability of particular soils, climate, minerals, vegetation, and wildlife

Question 7

Special Distribution of PRESENT DAY GLOBAL COVER

Forest

Answer 7

Widely distributed in all continents with the exception of Antarctica

● Largest areas of forest as land cover are found in the northern regions of South America, northern Russia, South
East Asia

● Also found in coastal regions of Australia and the Pacific, Central Africa, eastern and inland North
America and northern Europe

Question 8

Special Distribution of PRESENT DAY GLOBAL COVER

Grassland

Answer 8

● Widely distributed in all continents with the exception of Antarctica
● Over 50% of grassland area is found in the northern hemisphere
● Concentrated areas are located in South America and the eastern coast of Australia
● Not found in northern Africa

Question 9

Special Distribution of PRESENT DAY GLOBAL COVER

Tundra

Answer 9

● Linearly distributed across the North and Southmost part of the world
● Nearest arctic and antarctic circle
● Found in Canada, Greenland, northern Russia and Antarctica
● Found to be on the coastal regions of these continents

Question 10

Special Distribution of PRESENT DAY GLOBAL COVER

Barelands

Answer 10

● Densely distributed and not found on all continents
● Distributed between Arctic circle and tropic of cancer linearly
● Almost 60% of barelands are located in northern Africa and the other 40% in Asia

Question 11

Special Distribution of PRESENT DAY GLOBAL COVER

Wetlands

Answer 11

● Highly uneven distribution → approx 70% concentrated in North America
● Small areas of wetlands are concentrated on the coast of North America and southern South America
● Small and sparse areas of wetlands are found on every continent with the exception of Antarctica

Question 12

Special Distribution of PRESENT DAY GLOBAL COVER

Ice

Answer 12

● Highly uneven distribution
● Found only in Greenland near the Arctic circle with no major or minor exceptions

Question 13

Special Distribution of PRESENT DAY GLOBAL COVER

Water

Answer 13

● Widely distributed across the globe
● Largely concentrated in northern America particularly in Canada
● Significant bodies of water in Europe and Asia
● Smaller bodies found on the southern coast of South America and Central Africa
● No bodies are found on the Antarctic

Question 14

LAST GLACIAL MAXIMUM (LGM) - APPROX 20,000 YEARS AGO

Key Facts

Answer 14

● Earth’s temperature was approx 5-9 degrees cooler than present day temperatures
● Cold dry, dust laden atmosphere
● Precipitation was extremely low
● Sea level was approx 125m which in turn exposed land masses that are now (present day) under the sea

Question 15

LAST GLACIAL MAXIMUM (LGM) - APPROX 20,000 YEARS AGO

Ice cover

Answer 15

● Approx 30% of the Earth was covered in large ice sheets
○ They covered large areas of North America, Asia, Europe and Antarctica
● Glaciers were at their thickest and the sea levels were at their lowest

Question 16

LAST GLACIAL MAXIMUM (LGM) - APPROX 20,000 YEARS AGO

Deserts and grassland cove

Answer 16

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● Majority of continents were largely in deserts or semi desert environments
● North Africa was mainly desert whilst South Africa was mainly
● Mid latitudes covered in large areas of grasslands
○ Including Australia

Question 17

LAST GLACIAL MAXIMUM (LGM) - APPROX 20,000 YEARS AGO

Forest cover

Answer 17

● Small areas of tropical forest in the North and South of America as well as south East Asia
● Very small areas of temperate

Question 18

HOLOCENE CLIMATIC OPTIMUM - APPROX 8,000 YEARS AGO

Key facts

Answer 18

● Interglacial period
● Warmer and wetter climate than present day
● Population grew during this period
● Northern hemisphere was approx 0.5-3 degrees celsius warmer/higher in temp
● Sea levels rose
○ Tasmania was cut off from Australia
● Ice sheets in the northern hemisphere melted and retreated

Question 19

HOLOCENE CLIMATIC OPTIMUM - APPROX 8,000 YEARS AGO

Ice cover

Answer 19

● Two large ice sheets covered Antarctica and Greenland
● Glaciers were widely distributed in high altitudes and latitudes
○ Distribution is very similar to present day
● In the Himalayan region lots of ice cover melted [rapid retreat]
● Lots of ice cover located on the borders/coastal lines of countries retreated

Question 20

HOLOCENE CLIMATIC OPTIMUM - APPROX 8,000 YEARS AGO

Deserts and grassland cover

Answer 20

● Smaller percentage of land cover is deserts and grassland compared to the LCM
● Concentrated on the east coast of South America and Central Asia, small areas of central Australia, the Middle
East and northern Africa
● Present day Sahara desert was predominantly temperate grassland

Question 21

HOLOCENE CLIMATIC OPTIMUM - APPROX 8,000 YEARS AGO

Forest

Answer 21

● Natural vegetation grew were desert previously covered the land
● 47% of the Earth’s surface was covered in forest → biomes thrived with more water vapour
● Both temperate and tropical forest increased in size during this time period
● Large areas of North and South America, the east and north coast of Australia, and large areas of Europe, Asia (in
particular China), and southeast Asia were covered in forest

Question 22

HOLOCENE CLIMATIC OPTIMUM - APPROX 8,000 YEARS AGO

Agriculture

Answer 22

● Occurring predominantly in Asia, Europe and the America’s

Question 23

PRESENT DAY
Key facts

Answer 23

● Ice cover has almost diminished but fluctuates each year
● Over 1.9 million forests have been cleared
● Less forest cover, even though temperatures are still warm and rising
● 31% of land cover is forests whilst deserts have expanded
● 90% of ice cover is concentrated in the arctic
● If all of Greenland’s glaciers melt, sea levels will be 7 metres above present day

Question 24

what are the types of distribution of land cover (8)

Answer 24

1. cultivated and managed
2. natural and seminatural vegetation
3. cultivated aquatic or regularly flooded areas
4. natural and semi natural aquatic land cover or regularly flooded vegetated area
5. artificial surface and associated area
6. bare areas
7. artificial water bodies, snow and ice
8. natural water bodies snow and ice

Question 25

Distribution of land cover

1. Cultivated and Managed

Answer 25

people must have removed the natural vegetation and replaced it with another type of vegetation. further human activity is needed to sustain this land cover

eg. market garden, wheat farm, oil palm plantation

Question 26

Distribution of land cover

2. Natural and Seminatural vegetation

Answer 26

land cover is made up of
natural vegetation: developed as a result of interconnection b/w climate, soil, hydrology, landforms, animals and plant life

semi natural vegetation: influenced by human activity such as grazing on natural grassland, vegetation that has grown back after the original vegetation has been cleared

Question 27

Distribution of land cover

3. Cultivated Aquatic or Regularly Flooded Areas

Answer 27

predominantly aquatic crops, purposely planted, cultivated and harvested. areas developed for irrigation and require continuous watering

eg. wet rice cultivation

Question 28

Distribution of land cover

4. Natural and Semi Natural Aquatic Land Cover or Regularly Flooded Vegetated Area

Answer 28

strong interconnection b/w vegetation and water. vegetation has adapted to water that is either close to or on the surface of land. often protected by human because of its unique and important habitat for plants and other life forms

eg. coastal wetland supporting mangroves and salt marshes

Question 29

Distribution of land cover

5. Artificial Surface and Associated Area

Answer 29

the natural cover that once covered areas like urban areas has been replaced with a variety of constructed surfaces

also includes transport, network of roads, airports, water port facilities, waste dump, from urban areas, factories, and mines

Question 30

Distribution of land cover

6. Bare Areas

Answer 30

Areas with less then 4% vegetation cover are considered to have a bare land cover

hot deserts: Simpson desert, Aus desert, the Sahara
climatically cooler deserts: Atacama desert

Question 31

Distribution of land cover

7. Artificial Water Bodies, Snow and Ice

Answer 31

Dams on river forms, reservoirs of water or artificial bodies of water that serves urban, industrial or rural needs
- natural lakes maybe dammed to regulate outflow and thereby expand their surfaces

eg. lake Nassar formed from damming the Nile
-canals with water and where snow and ice are manufactured

Question 32

Distribution of land cover

8. Natural Water Bodies Snow and Ice

Answer 32

wide ranging land cover category has developed in response to particular characteristics of the earths natural environment. where large volumes of water have accumulated. natural water bodies are formed

eg. lakes, the ocean, snow, glaciers, ice caps, ice sheets