Geography notes form 2

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Geography

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2017/18

Geography

1. Discovering the Atlas

Stephanie Cann 0


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Atlases are books of maps that show physical territories, regional details, place names, etc. Most Atlases are divided into three parts: a) The first few pages are devoted to the special information which consists of:  The titles of the Map and the page number where they are to be found.  Tables of climatic data eg: temperature, and figures of certain places.  Short notes. b) The second part consists of different types of maps. Maps generally include: 1. 2. 3. 4.

name of place depicted at the top of the page scale of map grid for locating places specific features (e.g. sea level, location, place names)

Some types of maps included in the Atlas: 1.

A physical map uses symbols to show where mountains, deserts, forests,

2. 3.

and other features of the land are. A political map shows places where people live. A road map shows where roads

and streets are in a certain place. c) The third part of the Atlas consists of the INDEX. The index is always found at the end of the atlas. All atlases have an index while only some atlases include a glossary.

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Activity: 1.

What is the name of your Atlas?

___________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________ 2.

Look through the second part of your Atlas and say on which pages

you find: a.

The map of Italy ___________

b.

The map of Afghanistan ___________

c.

The map of Romania ___________

d.

The map of Australia ___________

e.

The map of South Korea ___________

3. Why is it important to have an Atlas? ___________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________ (10 marks) The best way to find the location of something in an Atlas is to use the Index. The Index can be found at the back of the Atlas. Find the Index in your Atlas.

Salavat Russia Name of place

Country it is located in

49

J5

53 19N 55 54E

Latitudes /Longitudes Page number of Grid square on page Atlas

Salavat is at 53 degrees, 19 minutes north and 55 degrees, 54 minutes east A. Find the following: 1.Rome is at ______ degrees, _______ minutes ________ and ________ degrees, _______ minutes ________ 2


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2.London is at ______ degrees, _______ minutes ________ and ________ degrees, _______ minutes ________ 3.Provo is at ______ degrees, _______ minutes ________ and ________ degrees, _______ minutes ________ 4.Krakow is at ______ degrees, _______ minutes ________ and ________ degrees, _______ minutes ________ 5.Sinai, Mount is at ______ degrees, _______ minutes ________ and ________ degrees, _______ minutes ________ 6.Barcelona is at ______ degrees, _______ minutes ________ and ________ degrees, _______ minutes ________ (3 marks) 2. Representing dimensions on maps We use maps because although we know that Malta is found in the Mediterranean Sea, if we are in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean with no computers to pin point our exact location, how are we going to find Malta? Of course the answer is with MAPs. On maps we can locate any place that we want. However do all maps contain the same detail?

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In reality large maps contain much more detail than small maps. Large maps are therefore called: large scale maps. ďƒ˜ Each map/picture must have a scale in the form of a ratio. ďƒ˜ To fully understand ratio, we can turn them into fractions, for example 1:18 is 1/18. These fractions are called Representative Fractions. Important: We have to remember that the SMALLER the ratio the BIGGER the size of the map/picture.

A

A

a

A. Go through the maps in your Atlas and write down the scales of the following countries. Write also the equivalent representative fraction as is shown in the example that follows.

Example : 1 2 3 4 5 6

Map of:

Page in Atlas:

France

42

Scale Ratio

R.F.

1:5,000,000

1/5,000,000

Germany China Greece Australia Norway Poland

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(3 marks)

B. Suppose you have 5 maps of Europe on the following scales. Arrange the maps in descending order of size, starting from the largest and ending with the smallest: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.

Map of Europe on scale 1:5,000,000 Map of Europe on scale 1:10,000,000 Map of Europe on scale 1:1,000,000 Map of Europe on scale 1:50,000,000 Map of Europe on scale 1:2,000,000

_____ _____ _____ _____ _____ (2.5 marks)

C. Find the map of the Mediterranean Region in your Atlas. Write down the answers to the following questions: 1. What is the given scale of the map? _______________________ 2. If the scale is larger, will the map contain less or more details? ____________ 3. If the scale is smaller, would the map of Malta in it be smaller or larger? ______________ (1.5 marks) 3. Latitudes and Longitudes Fill in the blanks with the following words: vertically, equal, East, pole, half, London, West, parallel, horizontally, Prime Meridian, North, Greenwich, South, equator.

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Latitudes are lines, drawn on maps running from __________ to __________. The principal of Latitude is the 0° called the __________. The equator is the largest circle running around the earth. One needs to remember that all circles run __________ to the equator and to each other. Longitudes are lines that run from __________ to __________ each joining at the North and South _________. The lines of longitude only form _________ circles. The lines of longitude are all _________ in size. The principal line of longitude is called the ________ __________ which passes through

__________.

It

is

also

known

as

__________.

Lines appear__________ __________ Linesofoflongitude latitude appear

The most important lines of Latitudes are:    

Tropic of Cancer (23°30’N) Tropic of Capricorn (23°30’S) Arctic Circle (66°30’N) Antarctic Circle (66°30’S)

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(7 marks) 4. Google Earth

Install it a. Download the latest version of Google Earth from the following location: http://dl.google.com/earth/client/current/GoogleEarthWin.exe b. Double-click the file and go through the installation process c. You should now be able to run Google Earth by going to Start > Programs > Google Earth and clicking on the Google Earth icon. Overview Google Earth allows you to travel the world through a virtual globe and view satellite imagery, maps, terrain, 3D buildings, and much more. Although the options within Google Earth are endless, here are a few things you can do:  Discover the Earth: Fly to any location in the world, learn about a city and its geographic features, find local businesses, and create tours.  Explore the Sky: Enjoy the wonders of the heavens and learn about our solar system.  Dive in the Ocean: Go beneath the surface and visit the depths of the ocean and explore the planet's deepest underwater canyons. Learn about ocean observations, climate change, and endangered species. You can even discover new places to surf, dive and fish.  Walk on the Moon: Take tours of landing sites narrated by Apollo astronauts and view 3D models of landed spacecraft.  Visit Mars: Travel the Red Planet and explore NASA's latest imagery of our galactic neighbor. 7


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Features

1.

____________________ 2. ____________________ 3. ____________________ 4. ____________________ 5. ____________________ 6. ____________________ 7. ____________________ 8. ____________________ 9. ____________________ 10. ___________________ 11. ___________________ 12. ___________________ 13. ___________________ 14. ___________________ 15. ___________________ 16. ___________________ (3 marks) Navigating The navigation controls appear in the top right corner of the 3D viewer. To view and use the navigation controls, move the cursor over the top right corner of the

3D

viewer.

The

navigation

controls

automatically appear whenever you do this; they fade from sight when you move the cursor elsewhere. Finding places 8


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You can search for specific locations using the Fly To tab in Google Earth. To do this, enter the location in the input box and click on the Search button. Each tab of the Search panel displays an example of a search term Creating maps a) Click on the My Places button under the search box. b) Click the Create Map button. c) Add a title and description for your map. You can make your map public or unlisted. We'll make ours public so that it shows up in search results. 5. The Mediterranean Region The Mediterranean region is defined as countries bordering the Mediterranean Sea between about 27° to 47°N and 10°W to 37°E. The Mediterranean, which literally means the “sea between lands”, offers favourable environmental conditions, such as: _______________________ _______________________ _______________________ (3 marks) Since earliest, the Mediterranean region is the birthplace of some of the oldest, most deeply rooted cultures and civilisations of our planet (Egyptian, Greek, Roman and Arab). The Mediterranean Sea: _________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________ 9


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_________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________ (3 marks)

The region includes the Northern countries such as: Albania, BosniaHergovina,

Croatia,

France,

Greece,

Italy,

Malta,

Monaco,

Serbia-

Montenegro, Slovenia, Spain; and the South-Eastern Countries such as: Algeria, Cyprus, Egypt, Israel, Lebanon, Morocco, Libya, Palestinian Authority, Syria, Tunisia, and Turkey.

1. Define the Mediterranean Region. _________________________________________________________________________ 2. The Mediterranean Region offers favourable environmental conditions. What are they? _________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________ 3. By how many countries is the Mediterranean Sea surrounded? _________________________________________________________________________ 4. How many visitors is the Mediterranean Region hosting per year? _________________________________________________________________________ 5. The Mediterranean Sea is linked to many Seas. Mention ONE of these Seas. _________________________________________________________________________ (5 marks) 6. Internal Structure of the earth 10


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Fill in the blanks with the following words: Fig 1: Inner Core, Crust, Outer Core, Upper Mantle, Lower Mantle, Atmosphere Fig 2: Continental Crust, Oceanic Crust

Fig 1.

Fig 2.

(3.5 marks)

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7. Plate tectonics Fill in the blanks with the following words: Subduction, earthquake, Lateral Slipping Plate Movement, continental, Seafloor spreading, Oceanic Plate and Continental Plate, Two Continental Plates, zone of divergence, Convergent Plate Movement, Two Oceanic Plates, oceanic, Divergent Plate Movement TYPES OF PLATE MOVEMENT: Divergence, Convergence, and Lateral Slipping

At the boundaries of the plates, various deformations occur as the plates interact: 1. _____________ _______ ______________: ___________ ____________ is the movement of two ___________ plates away from each other, which results in the formation of new oceanic crust (from magma that comes from within the Earth's mantle). Where the oceanic plates are moving away from each other is called a ______ ___ _____________ . 12


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2. _____________ _______ ______________: When two plates collide, some crust is destroyed in the impact and the plates become smaller. The results differ, depending upon what types of plates are involved.  _________ ________

_______

_____

_____________

- When a thin, dense oceanic

plate collides with a relatively light, thick continental plate, the oceanic plate is forced under the _____________ plate; this phenomenon is called _______________.  ______

____________

________- When two

oceanic plates collide, one may be pushed under the other and magma from the mantle rises, forming volcanoes in the vicinity.  ______ ____________ ________ - When two continental

plates

collide,

mountain

ranges are created as the colliding crust is compressed and pushed upwards. 3. ________________

_____________

_______

______________: When two plates move sideways against each other, there is a tremendous amount of friction which makes the movement jerky. The plates slip, then stick as the friction and pressure builds up to incredible levels. When the pressure is released suddenly, and the plates suddenly jerk apart, this is an ________________. (6 marks)

8. Geological development of the Mediterranean Sea

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Today the Mediterranean Sea is a large inland body of water. The only outlet to the oceans of the world is through the western portal adjacent to Gibraltar. The Mediterranean Sea is but a remnant of a great seaway, the Tethys that formed a continuous passageway

between

the

Indo-

Pacific and the Atlantic. This seaway separated

Africa

from

Eurasia

throughout the Mesozoic (Age of Dinosaurs) and continued as a barrier until some 18 to 14 million years ago when the eastern connection with the Indian Ocean closed forming the Mediterranean. The geologic history of the Mediterranean The Mediterranean Sea has an average depth of 1,500 m and the deepest recorded point is 5,267 m in the Calypso Deep in the Ionian Sea. The geologic history of the Mediterranean is complex. It was involved in the tectonic break-up and then collision of the African and Eurasian plates and several smaller microplates. This process was driven by the differential seafloor spreading along the Mid-Atlantic Ridge, which led to the closure of the Tethys Ocean.

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__________________________________: Fill in the blank boxes with the words underneath

latitudes, longitudes, Asia, Europe, North America, South America, Central America, Caribbean, Africa, Antarctica, Arctic Region, New Zealand, Pacific Islands, Middle East, Australia. 15


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26. Liechtenstein 1. Albania 27. Lithuania 2. Andorra 28. Luxembourg 3. Armenia 29. Macedonia 4. Austria 30. Malta 5. Azerbaijan 31. Moldova 6. Belarus 32. Monaco 7. Belgium 8. Bosnia & Herzegovina 33. Montenegro 34. The Netherlands 9. Bulgaria 35. Norway 10. Croatia 36. Poland 11. Cyprus 37. Portugal 12. Czech Republic 38. Romania 13. Denmark 39. Russia 14. Estonia 40. San Marino 15. Finland 41. Serbia 16. France 42. Slovakia 17. Georgia 43. Slovenia 18. Germany 44. Spain 19. Greece 45. Sweden 20. Hungary 46. Switzerland 21. Iceland 47. Turkey 22. Ireland 48. Ukraine 23. Italy _____________________________________________: Mark 10 European Countries on the map 49. United Kingdom 24. Kosovo 25. Latvia

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_____________________________________________: Fill in the blank boxes with the words underneath

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France, Spain, Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Libya, Egypt, Turkey, Greece, Italy.

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9. Volcanoes A volcano is a landform (usually a mountain) that opens downward to a pool of

molten

rock

(magma)

below the surface of the earth. As pressure in the molten needs

rock

builds

to

up

it

escape

somewhere. So it forces its way up to the narrow cracks in the earth's crust. Once the magma erupts through the earth’s surface it is called lava.

Did you know? The name "volcano" has its origin from the name of Vulcan, a god of fire in Roman mythology.

There are around 1510 'active' volcanoes in the world. We currently know of 80 or more which are under the oceans.

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What is the Ring of Fire? Over half of the world’s volcanoes arise in a belt around the Pacific Ocean called the Ring of Fire. Volcanic Eruptions As well as the danger from the hot lava, an erupting volcano can trigger life threatening things. List THREE of these life threatening things:   

___________________ ___________________ ___________________ (1.5 marks)

Mention THREE effects of Volcanoes on people and the environment:  _____________________________________________________  _____________________________________________________  _____________________________________________________ (1.5 marks) 10. Volcanic activity around the Mediterranean Region On 14 April 2010 the Icelandic volcano Eyjafjallajökull erupted after having been dormant for just under 200 years. All of a sudden a commercial catastrophe hit Europe and all air traffic completely shut down.

As

a

result

thousands

of

passengers got stranded around the globe. Volcanic ash clouds have not affected Europe in such an immediate way in living memory and to most people this is an extraordinary event. However, looking at the historical record volcanic eruptions have affected Europe and other parts of the world in significant ways and sometimes even altered the course of history. 20


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Eruption of Thera The island of Thera is what remains of a large volcano that erupted more than 3600 years ago (ca. 1600 BC). Thera was not uninhabited when it erupted and sported a major urban settlement that was probably similar size to Pompeii. The town and its population were closely linked to the Minoan civilisation that had developed on the island of Crete and flourished from approximately the 27th century BC to the 15th century BC. The Minoan civilisation came to an abrupt end when Thera erupted violently around 1600 BC. Earthquakes preceding the eruption must have rocked the buildings on Crete and throughout the region. This in turn led to a collapse of Minoan society and many of the survivors fled Crete to settle on the Greek Mainland, Egypt and other parts of the eastern Mediterranean. Vesuvius and Pompeii The eruption of Vesuvius in 79 AD is probably the best know volcanic eruption in world history. It buried the Roman

towns

of

Pompeii

and

Herculaneum. In terms of size, this eruption pales in comparison to the Thera eruption 1700 years earlier. In other words, the Thera eruption was 20 times more powerful than Vesuvius in 79 AD. The heavy ash falls buried Herculaneum under 20 metres of ash and Pompeii under 4 metres, preserving them perfectly for posterity. Over time, the two towns were forgotten but rediscovered in the 18th century.

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The real significance of Pompeii, Herculaneum and the Vesuvius eruption is that the towns offer a snapshot of Roman life in the 1st century, frozen at the moment it was buried on that fateful day in 79 AD. Vesuvius is perhaps the best known and most depicted volcano in Western culture. 11. Earthquakes An earthquake is the

shaking

of

the

ground

caused

by

the

sudden

breaking

and movement of

tectonic

plates. The edges of the

tectonic

plates are marked

by faults

(or fractures). Most earthquakes

occur

the fault lines when

along the

plates slide past each other or collide against each other. The shifting masses send out shock waves that may be powerful enough to: 1.

alter the surface of the Earth, thrusting up cliffs and opening great cracks in the ground.

2.

cause great damage, collapse of buildings and other man-made structures, broken power and gas lines, landslides, snow avalanches, tsunamis (giant sea waves) and volcanic eruptions.

Important terms

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 _________________ = is the planar (flat) surface along which there is a slip during an earthquake.  ______________ = the location below the earth’s surface where the earthquake starts.  ______________ = the location on the surface of the earth directly above the hypocenter.

 ____________ = one of a series of minor tremors occurring after the main shock of an earthquake.  _____________ _________ = Seismic waves

are

the

vibrations

from

earthquakes that travel through the Earth;

they

are

recorded

on

instruments called seismographs.  _____________ _________ = A scale used to express the total amount of energy released by an earthquake. Its values typically fall between 0 and 9, with each increase of 1 representing a 10-fold increase in energy.

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(3 marks)

Earthquake devastation Earthquakes with magnitude of about 2.0 or less are usually called ___________ earthquakes; they are not commonly felt by people and are generally recorded only on _________ seismographs. Earthquakes with magnitudes of about 4.5 or greater are __________ enough to be recorded by _________ seismographs all over the world. (2 marks) Great earthquakes, such as the 1964 Good Friday

earthquake

in

Alaska,

have

magnitudes of 8.0 or higher.

On the average, one earthquake of such size occurs somewhere in the world each year. 12. Mediterranean countries which experience earth tremors

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The entire north

part of the sea

100

years,

side

floor.

ocean

water

of

the

Mediterranean

Finally

about six million

cascaded

years ago, the

the basin until it

earthquake

plates closed off

filled

prone. The basin

the

level,

consists

Mediterranean

the

series of deep

basin

Mediterranean

trenches

ends—at

between Africa

Gibraltar

and Europe. The

the

trenches

are

end of the Red

across

the

products of the

Sea. The entire

region.

For

processes

Mediterranean

example,

the

involved in plate

Basin dried up

islands

tectonics.

except for a few

Corsica, Sardinia

small salt lakes.

and Sicily were

Then about 5.3

created in large

ocean floor until

million

part by volcanic

about 67 million

ago, a horrific

activity

around

years ago when

series

the

collision

the African and

earthquakes

zones

of

Eurasian

along east-west

Mediterranean

faults

plates.

Basin

is

of

trenches part

The were

of

began

a

the

plates moving

together.

at

both

to

into sea

forming

Sea. and

northwest

years of

at

Volcanic activity also

occurs

of

the

Mount

Gibraltar

Etna is but one

suddenly

of

collision

opened and the

volcanoes

intensified about

ocean began to

located on the

40 million years

flow

island

ago, it formed

Mediterranean

and

the

Basin. For about

more than 200

When

Alps

the

from

into

the

several

of

Sicily

has

had

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recorded eruptions,

most recent in the

2001.

http://gisetc.com/european-earthquake-risk-concentratedaround-the-mediterranean/ 13.

The reasons why people live in high risk tremors areas

In many places, where natural hazards occur with varying frequency, people appear to go on living there and in quite large numbers. Why? It must be the pluses far outweigh the minuses. People make decisions on the basis of: o _________________________________ – how often will I be at risk? The climate is good (warm enough and wet enough), soil is fertile, the natural resources for fishing, farming are there

to

make

a

good

living

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o ______________________ – the family has always lived there, there is a community, work, it is a pleasant place to be, do not have a choice or do not see themselves as having one, lack of education to do other work. There are things that

can

be

done

to

reduce

the

risk.

o _____________________ – work, from farming, tourism maybe, fishing, it is where property is owned. (3 marks) The advantages of living near volcanoes: The soil is excellent. Lava breaks down over time to produce the most fertile soil on earth. e.g. around Vesuvius where much of Italy’s tomato crop is grown. Along plate edges, geothermal power is often a cheap and clean source of power – e.g. Iceland Usually, there are sufficient signs to move to safer places, so while property could be as risk, increasing people are less so, e.g. Mount Pinatubo in the Philippines in 1991 was the 2nd largest eruption in the 20th century but only 300 died because of mass evacuation of the area. Tourism is a strong pull, e.g. in Uganda, a country trying hard to increase its tourist industry, the volcanic region around Mt Elgon is being heavily

promoted

for

its 27


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landscape, huge waterfalls, wildlife, climbing and hiking and its

remote

'get

away

from

it

all'

location.

The advantages of living in earthquake zones: o Many earthquake areas are close to the coast – the climate is good, fishing and farming are easy. Many of these places like Japan get daily earthquakes and they have learnt to deal with them. They cause little or no damage as they adjust building methods for example. The big ones are very infrequent – 1906 and 1989 in San Francisco,

so

people

believe

they

can

manage.

14. The Water Cycle and the Hydrological Cycle The water cycle is the cycling of water between the Earth’s waters, atmosphere, and land. The first step of the water cycle starts with the sun. This causes evaporation of water from the Earth’s surface. As the air rises, it cools. The water vapor condenses into tiny droplets of

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water. The droplets crowd together and form a cloud. This is called condensation. The tiny droplets join together and fall as precipitation to the ground. The water soaks into the ground and collects in rivers and lakes. Precipitation can take the form of rain, snow, sleet, hail or freezing rain. (3 marks)

15. The three types of rainfall ( 3 m a r k s ) There are three common types of rainfall: Convectional rainfall

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___________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________ _________ Frontal rainfall ___________________________________________________________ ______________________________________ ______________________________________ ______________________________________ ______________________________________ ______________________________________ _______________________________ Relief rainfall

___________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________ 16. Supply and distribution of water

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Precipitation is the main source of water for drinking purposes. A percentage of rainfall evaporates soon after it falls, a percentage runs off the ground to join streams and rivers and a percentage seeps through the ground to join underground supplies.

Sources of water supply consist of surface water and underground water. What is surface water? ___________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________ ________________________________ ___________________________________________________________ ________________ (1 mark) What is underground water? ___________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________ ________________________________ ___________________________________________________________ ________________ (1 mark) _________________:

There

are

two

types of springs. A main spring is usually deep and connects to the aquifer layer. A shallow or simple spring

connects

to

underground

surface water.

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_______________: Wells are different to springs as the ground has to be bored to reach the water. Springs occur naturally. The upper part of a well must be lined to exclude surface water entering it as it may be polluted. Water to be used in a public water supply is required to be fit for drinking. This implies that it poses no danger to health, and it should be colourless, clear, odourless, sparkling and pleasant to taste. (2 marks) Maltese Rocks Rocks can be:  ________________ - able to hold fluid in the pores (gaps) of the rock.  ________________ - allow fluid to pass through.

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 ________________ - a rock that will not allow fluid to pass through it. (1.5 marks) 17.

Uses and misuses of water

Use the following websites to answer the questions: http://www.k5geosource.org/1content/1sc/water/ http://wwf.panda.org/about_our_earth/teacher_resources/webfie ldtrips/water/ http://www.waterfootprint.org/?page=files/GlobalWaterFootprint

1. Why is water a vital resource? ___________________________________________________________ ________________ (1 mark) 2. Explain the possible domestic, agricultural and Industrial uses of water. Domestic: ___________________________________________________________ ______ Agricultural: ___________________________________________________________ ____

Industrial:

___________________________________________________________ ______ (3 marks) 3. List THREE ways how you can reduce water consumption at home. ___________________________________________________________ ________________

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___________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________ ________________________________ (2 marks) 4. Describe potential sources of pollution to our drinking supplies and make suggestions how these problems can be properly managed. Sources of pollution: _______________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________ ________________ Suggestions: ___________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________ (2 marks) 18. Deserts Deserts are part of a wider classification called

of

"drylands."

regions These

areas exist under a moisture deficit, which means they can frequently lose more moisture

through

evaporation receive

than

from

they annual

precipitation. Three major types of desert 34


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Deserts cover more than one fifth of the Earth's land, and they are found on every continent. A place that receives less than 10 inches (25 centimetres) of rain per year is considered a desert. There are three types of deserts on the basis of their location in the temperature zones. a) ________________________________

are

located between 10 ° and 30 °N and S of the equator on the western margin of the continents in the trade wind belt. The

diurnal (daily)

range of

temperature is high. The trade winds are off-shore here, e.g., Atacama Desert in S. America, Arabian and the Thar Desert in Asia, Kalahari Desert in Africa,

and

the

Western

Australia

desert. b)

_______________________ are

located

temperate

in

belt

in

the the

interior of contents. They are

away

from

the

influence of the sea. They are surrounded by high mountains; therefore, they are in the rain shadow area. Annual range of temperature is high, e.g., in Gobi desert, Tibet.

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c) _____________ are located in the Frigid Zone. They are extremely cold and dry. Precipitation is in the form of snow. Annual range of temperature is high, e.g., Greenland, Antarctica. And despite the common conceptions of deserts as dry and hot, there are cold deserts as well. The largest hot desert in the world, northern Africa's Sahara, reaches temperatures of up to 122 degrees Fahrenheit (50 degrees Celsius) during the day. But some deserts are always cold, like the Gobi desert in Asia and the desert on the continent of Antarctica. (3 marks)

36


Read the definitions below, and then label the major deserts on the world map

(6 marks) 1. Atacama - running down the western coast of South America. 2. Australian - hot deserts covering much of western and central Australia. 3. Iranian - northeast of the Arabian peninsula and west of the Thar desert.

7. North American - rain shadow deserts in south-western

North America, in the USA and Mexico. 8. Patagonian - in south-eastern South America. 9. Saharan - a huge desert covering much of northern

Africa - the biggest desert in the world. 10. Takla Makan-Gobi - a continental desert in central Asia.

4. Kalahari - covering much of the south-eastern tip of Africa.

11. Thar - in northwest India.

5. Namib - running down the south-western coast Africa.

12. Turkestan - in southern Russia .

6. Arabian - covering most of the Arabian peninsula.


19. The Sahara Desert The Sahara, with a size of 8.6 million

km²,

is

the

world's

largest desert, covering large parts of North Africa. Around 4 million

people

live

here.

Sahara is very dry but there is an annual rainfall in most regions, although just a few dozens of millimetres. It Sand sheets and dunes represent about 25% of the Sahara; the other parts are mountains, stoney steppes and oases. Pyramidal dunes can be as high as 150 metres, while mountainous sand ridges as high as 350 metres. There are several rivers running through the Sahara, of which the Nile River and Niger River are the only permanent ones. The rest being seasonal, involves that most of the time, there is only a dry river bed, which may carry water for brief periods following uncommon rainfalls. There may be years in between this happening. Metallic minerals are very important to most Saharan countries. Algeria and Mauritania have several major deposits of iron ore, while smaller deposits are found in Egypt, Tunisia, Morocco, Western Sahara and Niger. Copper is found in Mauritania and manganese in Algeria. Of the Sahara's around 4 million people, most live in Mauritania, Western Sahara, Algeria, Libya and Egypt. Dominant groups of people are Sahrawis, Tuareg and Negroids. The largest city is Nouakchott, Mauritania's capital. 20. Life in the desert


About 1 billion people live in deserts. Many of these people rely on centuriesold customs to make their lives as comfortable as possible. Civilizations have adapted their clothing to the hot, dry conditions of the Sahara and Arabian deserts. Clothing is versatile and based on robes made of rectangles of fabric. Long-sleeved, full-length, and often white, these robes shield all but the head and hands from the wind, sand, heat, and cold. White reflects sunlight, and the loose fit allows cooling air to flow across the skin. These robes of loose cloth can be adjusted (folded) for length, sleeves, and pockets, depending on the wearer and the climate. A thobe is a full-length, long-sleeved white robe. An abaya is a sleeveless cloak that protects the wearer from dust and heat. A djebba is a short, square pullover shirt worn by men. A kaffiyeh is a rectangular piece of cloth folded loosely around the head to protect the wearer from sun exposure, dust, and sand. Besides animals like camels and goats, a variety of desert vegetation is found in oases and along the shores of rivers and lakes. Figs, olives, and oranges thrive in desert oases and have been harvested for centuries. Some desert areas rely on resources brought from more fertile areas—food trucked in from distant farmlands or, more frequently, water piped from wetter regions. Large areas of desert soil are irrigated by water pumped from underground sources or brought by canal from distant rivers or lakes.


Oases in desert climates have been popular spots for tourists for centuries. Spas ring the Dead Sea, a saline lake in the Judean Desert of Israel and Jordan. The Dead Sea has had flourishing spas since the time of King David. Deserts can hold economically valuable resources that drive civilizations and economies. The most notable desert resource in the world is the massive oil reserves in the Arabian Desert of the Middle East. More than half of the proven oil reserves in the world lie beneath the sands of the Arabian Desert, mostly in Saudi Arabia. The oil industry draws companies, migrant workers, engineers, geologists, and biologists to the Middle East. Rain is usually the main source of water in a desert, but it falls very rarely. Many desert dwellers rely on groundwater, stored in aquifers below the surface. Groundwater comes from rain or other precipitation, like snow or hail. Underground sometimes

water rises

to

the

surface, forming springs or seeps. A fertile green area called an oasis, may exist near such a water source. About 90 major, inhabited oases dot the Sahara. These oases are supported by some of the world’s largest supplies of underground water. People, animals, and plants all surround these oases, which provide stable access to water, food, and shelter. When groundwater doesn’t seep to the surface, people often drill into the ground to get to it. Crossword


8. 6. 3.

5. 1.

2.

4.

7.

___________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________ Across: Down: ___________________________________________________________________________ 1. An area of land where little 5. An example of this type of desert is ___________________________________________________________________________ precipitation occurs. the Gobi desert, in Tibet ___________________________________________________________________________ 2. Cold deserts are located in this 6. The largest desert in Africa. ___________________________________________________________________________ zone. 7. This is a rectangular piece of cloth ___________________________________________________________________________ 3. An area in a desert where there is folded loosely around the head to ___________________________________________________________________________ water and plants. protect the wearer from sun exposure, dust, and sand. ___________________________________________________________________________ 4. These minerals are very important ___________________________________________________________________________ to most Saharan countries 8. Is usually the main source of water in a desert, but it falls very rarely. ___________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________ (4 marks) ___________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________


___________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________


___________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________


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