B)Explain why the amount of solar radiation absorbed by the earth's surface varies from place to place and from time to time.
A)Define the terms insolation and albedo. Insolation is a combination of the phrase 'Incoming Solar Radiation'. It is the name for all energy which comes from the sun to the earth. The sun does not give out heat, but energy which is converted to heat when it reaches the earth. The albedo of an object is the measurement of how reflective it is against the sun. Snow will have a high albedo as is it is white and therefore a colour which reflects the sun's rays. Dark coloured surfaces such as a freshly ploughed field or rock will have a low albedo as it cannot reflect heat and will instead absorb it. It is also energy which goes straight back into space without having been converted into heat. B)Explain why the amount of solar radiation absorbed by the earth's surface varies from place to place and from time to time. The sun radiates solar energy which reaches the earth and is converted to heat. The location and time of this reaction, however, is variable due to the shape and tilt of the earth and the fact that it turns. This means that the energy reaches different places at different intensities at different times of day and different times of the year. This is dependent on many factors, not just those to do with the physical state of the earth. The shape, tilt and spin of the earth is the first factor which effects how much energy is absorbed by an area of earth. Due to the
Central Business District (Cbd) Investigation
Introduction: The inner city is the zone between the central business district (CBD) and the suburban housing areas. In British cities the inner city grew during the industrial revolution. Factories were built on the edge of the historic towns, now the CBD. Many people view inner city areas as rather dull and depressing as they tend to be overcrowded and polluted. Unfortunately even though the problems of inner city areas are apparent the local councils and business and invested a greater proportion of money in CBD rather then inner cities, which has lead to an escalating problems. The Diagram illustrates the burgess conurbation model, which highlights the various areas of a conurbation settlement: The burgess model of urban land consists of five concentric circles arranged around a CBD inner core. All conurbation models initiates with the central business district (CBD), which forms the heart of a settlement. Large businesses exist here since they are the only ones able to afford the high land values and rents. The inner city is the 2nd zone in the burgess model. This zone represents old industry established at the birth of the city. The third zone is known as the "Low-class residential" which is located in the inner city close to the old industries. This was because the poor who worked in these industries had to be local. The medium class residential represents
Examine the factors influencing the movement of glaciers.
Examine the factors influencing the movement of glaciers. Glacier is defined as, 'a mass or river of ice moving very slowly'. Glaciers range in size considerably, Antarctica being the largest ice mass at 12.5 million km and a smaller ice mass of 12km existing in Africa. Glaciers move due to the force of gravity from areas of high altitude to lower areas. There are different mechanisms of glacial movement depending on the type of glacier. Cold (polar) glaciers are frozen to the underlying rock surface. These are found in high-latitude locations where the relief is low and basal temperatures are below the pressure melting point. Cold glaciers have very slow rates of movement, e.g. The Meserve glacier in Antarctica moves only 3-4 metres per year. Warm (temperate) glaciers on the other hand are not frozen to their bed. This type of glacier is found in high-altitude locations where the relief is steep and basal temperatures are at or near the pressure melting point. Temperate glaciers move very rapidly, e.g. The Franz Josef glacier in New Zealand moves approximately 300m per year. It is the basal temperature that determines the mechanism of movement. In what follows I will explain the factors influencing different mechanisms of movement. Temperate glaciers move mainly by basal sliding. If the basal temperature is at or above pressure melting point, a thin layer of meltwater
Evaluate the potential impact on individuals, communities and cultures of the changing retail structure of clone towns.
Evaluate the potential impact on individuals, communities and cultures of the changing retail structure of clone towns. Recently, the large number of chain stores around the UK has led to the creation of many “clone towns”: towns similar in appearance and atmosphere with the same shops as the rest of the country filling their high street. Naturally this shift in environments as places begin to lose their individuality and heritage affects everybody and has a great impact on individuals, communities and cultures. One benefit of these “clone towns” is that the increase in supermarket chains leads to consumers being able to choose from a wider selection of goods as they tend to stock more products than smaller, local shops which cannot afford to buy very large quantities of things. The fact that the supermarkets buy in bulk also means products are cheaper as they benefit from economies of scale. It is easy to say that one should support local, individual retailers, however if they cannot price competitively and offer all of the goods we need it’s natural for people to go to larger chain stores which meet their needs. Communities also benefit from increased employment opportunities provided by larger retail outlets which can afford to hire larger volumes of staff and provide additional employee benefits. For example, a large supermarket like Morrisons can afford to
