Letter about a volcanos DRAFT

Dear Senor Jose Cruz You asked me to find out about your volcano poco-poco. I am going to tell you where volcanoes occur and why they erupt in these places, the dangers of them and the dangers of them happening in Mount Isle, what happens when they erupt and the process of getting to the eruption, why volcanoes erupt in the Caribbean region, other examples of eruptions in the Caribbean region, how scientists can monitor and predict volcanic eruptions, why there has been little research on Poco-poco in the past and how the citizens of Iguana Cay could prepare for a possible eruptions and what they should do in the event of an eruption. Volcanic eruptions occur only in certain places in the world and do not occur randomly. That's because the Earth's outermost shell is broken into a series of slabs known as tectonic plates. These plates are rigid, but they float on the hotter, softer layer in the Earth's mantle. There are 16 major plates as you can see in the map. As the plates move about, they spread apart, collide, or slide past each other. Volcanoes occur when this movement occurs. As you can see the Caribbean is next to a plate boundary. This explains why eruptions happen in this area. There have been several eruptions in the Caribbean region such as Montserrat in 1995. St. Kitts has erupted 27 times and St. Eustatius last erupted 1,600 years before present. Future volcanic

  • Ranking:
  • Word count: 955
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: Geography
Access this essay

Earthquakes in MEDC's and LEDC's

A well-known principle states that the impact of earthquakes in LEDC's or Less Economically Developed Countries is generally more severe when compared with MEDC's or More Economically Developed Countries. This shall be illustrated by comparing the Kobe Earthquake in Japan of 1995 with the Kashmir Earthquake of 2005. The Kobe Earthquake occurred on Tuesday, January 17, 1995, at 05:46 JST in the southern part of Hyogo Prefecture, Japan. It measured 7.2 on the Richter scale and lasted for 20 seconds. The duration of the tremors was around 20 seconds long. The focus of the earthquake was located 16km below the epicentre, on the northern edge of the Awaji Island, approximately 20km from Kobe. The proximity to the city was a major factor of its widespread devastation. The ground moved 18cm horizontally and 12 cm vertically. The Kashmir Earthquake was caused by the Eurasian and Indian tectonic plate boundaries colliding. Its epicentre was located in Azad Kashmir near the city of Muzaffarabad. It occurred at 08:52:37 Pakistan Standard Time (03:52:37 UTC) on 8 October 2005. According to the authorities, 79000 people died. A major factor in the severity of the earthquake was the poor construction - a salient feature of LEDC's. The Indian Plate which was moving 40 mm a year north collided with the Eurasian plate and was forced beneath it. It measured 7.6 on the Richter Scale. As is

  • Ranking:
  • Word count: 1536
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: Geography
Access this essay

Sea Defence. Which is better: hard or soft engineering?

Which is better: hard or soft engineering? Hard engineering options tend to be expensive, short-term options. They may also have a high impact on the landscape or environment and be unsustainable. Hard engineering is the controlled disruption of natural processes by using man-made structures. An example of hard engineering is a sea wall, these walls are built on the edge of a coastline and made to protect the base of cliffs and also to limit the amount of coastal erosion on a cliff-face were land is being absorbed by the sea. These walls could also prevent coastal flooding. This type of hard engineering is good as it has many aspects and is effective. Disadvantages of creating a sea wall are that it is very expensive to build; the curves in the sea wall reflect the wave's energy back to into the sea, therefore the waves remain powerful. Another disadvantage is that the walls erode after time and the cost of maintenance is high. Another example of hard engineering is groyne, a groyne is a wooden barrier built at a right angle to the beach. Groynes are built to prevent the movement of beach material along the coast by long shore drift. This allows the build-up of a beach; beaches are a natural defence against erosion and also an attraction for tourists. Disadvantages of building a groyne are that it can be seen as unattractive and is also costly to build and maintain. A

  • Ranking:
  • Word count: 489
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: Geography
Access this essay

Mount Sakurajima volcano report.

By Joseph Hemingway Location: Kyushu, Japan Height: 3,665ft Type: Stratovolcano - also called a composite volcano, is a tall, conical volcano composed of many layers of hardened lava, tephra, and volcanic ash. Last Eruption: 2007 914 * The 1914 eruption has been the most powerful in the Japanese twentieth century. * During the eruption lava flows filled in the narrow strait between the island and the mainland, converting it into a peninsula. * Before 1914, the volcano had been dormant for over a century. * The eruption began on 11 January 1914. * Almost all residents had left the island in the previous days, in response to several large earthquakes which warned them that an eruption was imminent. * Initially, the eruption had been very explosive, generating eruption columns and pyroclastic flows, but after a very large earthquake on 13 January 1914 which killed 35 people, it became effusive, generating a large lava flow. * Lava flows are rare in Japan-the high but the lava flows at Sakurajima continued for months. * The island grew, engulfing several smaller islands nearby, and eventually becoming connected to the mainland by a narrow isthmus. Recent Activity * The volcano resumed activity in 1955, and has been erupting almost constantly ever since. * Thousands of small explosions occur each year, throwing ash to heights of up to a few kilometers above the

  • Ranking:
  • Word count: 458
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: Geography
Access this essay

Volcanoes - Comparing Mount Fuji and Vesuvius

Volcanoes Location Page 1 Why did they erupt? Page 2 Human Impact Page 3 Physical Impact Page 4 Similarities & Differences Page 5 Conclusion Page 6 Bibliography Page 7 The volcano, Fuji, is found on the southern Honshu Island in Japan. It is the largest and most popular volcano in Japan, rising to 12,388 feet (3,776 m) above sea level and has a perimeter base of 50km. Fuji is a typical cone shaped volcano and has kept its shape for around 5,000 years. Fuji consists of three different volcanoes called Komitake, Ko-Fuji and Fuji which lie one upon the other. Mount Vesuvius is a volcano in the east of Naples in Italy. The volcano is over 17 000 years old and is still at this moment, active. It is only 4190 feet tall (1277 m) with a base of 48km (3 miles) but its past eruptions have been very dangerous, killing a vast amount. So far Vesuvius has had 50 eruptions and in only one of these eruptions, it has killed over 3 000 people. The volcano is moderately young but has erupted several times and most of these eruptions have been somewhat large in size, but overall, Fuji has had 2 mainly damaging eruptions. Any volcanic eruption is normally caused by plate boundaries. Mount Fuji is an island-arc volcano which means that three

  • Ranking:
  • Word count: 992
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: Geography
Access this essay

Debden Brook Rivers Cousework Analysis and Conclusion

Analysis and Conclusions In this section I intend to analysis my results and state whether my hypothesis were verified (proved correct) or nullified (proved incorrect) I will provide reasons as to why by showing a detailed analysis of actual figures from my graphs. In the second part of this section I will evaluate the results by looking at factors that could have affected the accuracy of my results and conclusions i.e. limitations. I shall look at ways in which my methods might have been improved. I must also look at the Bradshaw model and see if the characteristics of this specific river follow the general trend of his model. Hypothesis 1 - The Width of the River Increases with Distance Downstream This hypothesis was proved correct because figure one shows that the width of the river steadily increases with distance downstream. The water width of the river increased from 0.83m at site 1 (Debden Brook) to 1.95m at site 2 (Debden Brook) and 8.53m at site 3 (The River Roding). This is because streams generally carry more water in their channel as distance from the source increases because water is added to them from tributaries, however there are some exceptions (e.g. The River Mersey due to human activity). This will also increase lateral erosion as the water will be moving faster and carrying more load. As a result, the width increases. This hypothesis corresponds

  • Ranking:
  • Word count: 1562
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: Geography
Access this essay

Why does Green Peace want Antarctica as a World Park?

Christian German 8A Why does Green Peace want Antarctica as a World Park? Antarctica has become a unique place in the modern world, the only continent that remains relatively untouched by human interference and therefore arguably the only pristine wilderness left on Earth. For Greenpeace it seemed imperative to keep it that way. Some ecologists have even argued that Antarctica could provide important information for future generations seeking to reverse the environmental degradation wrought by humanity in the Twentieth Century. Paradoxically, despite winds of up to 450 kilometres per hour and temperatures reaching -50C Antarctica has the most delicate ecosystem of any place on earth. Ever since humankind began to explore the continent, from Amundsen and Scott's famous battle to the South Pole onwards, it had been noted that Antarctic ecosystems take years to recover from damage if they recover at all: a footprint in the moss can linger for decades before it disappears. This proposed World Park can also protect the delicate ecosystem like the Antarctic Treaty but even better let scientists make experiments while not harming the environment to see ways on how to deal with climate change. This shows it would be better for Antarctica to become a World Park because the animals will get a better protection from all those people in there while without it will just encourage

  • Ranking:
  • Word count: 503
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: Geography
Access this essay

Discuss the environmental imapact of Mt. St. Helens tectonic eruption.

Discuss the environmental impact of a Mount St. Helens tectonic event. Introduction Mount St Helens is an active volcano, south-western Washington in the Cascade Range. The volcano which had been dormant since 1857, began to show signs of renewed activity in early 1980. On May 18 1980, it erupted with such violence that the top of the mountain was blown off and a cloud of ash and gases was sent to an altitude of 19 km (12 mi). The blast killed 57 people and destroyed all life in an area of some 180 sq km (70 sq mi); an even wider area was covered with ash and debris. It continues to emit ash and steam intermittently. As a result of the eruption, the mountain's elevation was decreased from 2,950 m (9,677 ft) to 2,550 m (8,365 ft). A National Volcano Monument was established here in 1982. May 18th 1980 a kryptodome appeared on the north side of the volcano, before this the volcano hadn't erupted for over 120 yrs. March 20th an earth quake happened right underneath the volcano signalling an eruption. Unfortunately Lavafrom the last eruption had acted as a plug, and blocked the volcano. Magma was rising at a rate of six feet a day, casing a bulge on the side of the mountain (Kryptodome). Scientists were using GPS (global Positioning satellites) to monitor the Volcano. March 31st state of emergency announced, 20m exclusion zone was placed around the volcano. May

  • Ranking:
  • Word count: 836
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: Geography
Access this essay

Earthquake in Kobe – A Natural Disaster Waiting to Happen

h/w Saturday, 05 October 2002 Earthquake in Kobe - A Natural Disaster Waiting to Happen Introduction It all happened on the morning of January the 17th 1995, the second most populated and industrialized city in one of the biggest economies of the world, was struck by a powerful earthquake causing thousands of injuries and hundreds of deaths. It was a disaster waiting to happen. Situated in the south-central region of Japan, Kobe was the second largest city in Japan people and industrial-wise, after Tokyo. It was the biggest earthquake to hit Japan, after the great Kanto earthquake of 1923, where around 140,000 people were killed, most after the impact. The strong shock occurred across the fault that runs through the city of Kobe, and the Awaji island. The earthquake lasted for around 20 seconds, with around 5,500 deaths resulting from it. The number of injuries reached about 35,000 in total, and nearly 180,000 buildings were said to have collapsed. The damage was recorded over a radius of 100 km from the epicentre. The earthquake also hit the cities of Osaka and Kyoto. The economic loss was worse than anything. It was the largest ever to be lost directly from a natural disaster. Directly from the shaking itself, around 13 trillion yen worth of damage was caused. This is around £100 billion and before, the loss of life, production, and business

  • Ranking:
  • Word count: 1173
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: Geography
Access this essay

Deforestation in Amozonia.

Deforestation in Amozonia The Amazon rainforest in Brazil is the world largest rainforest with over 30 million different species of plants, animals and insects. The rainforest used to cover of the earths surface but today only covers . This is mainly because some parts of the forest are being rapidly deforested because the forest is so useful to so many people. Deforestation provides benefits for many different companies which wish to make large amounts of money. Also Brazil owes large amount of Depts. and so the government believe that by developing the forest it will help to contribute towards the payment of these depts. Nevertheless it causes many problems for the ecosystems of the forest and the world. Deforestation in Amazonia has led to many conflicts between different groups of people. Some people argue that deforestation has its economic benefits and that developing the Amazon will have benefits for the people and economy of Brazil. However certain groups like world wildlife fund (wwf) are concerned because large amounts of animals and plant are becoming extinct. They argue that it is a global mistake and that in the long term this will only cause more problems for Brazil and the rest of the world. The best uses of the rainforest are those that help the people to improve their standard of life help the country to become more developed and wealthier and use

  • Ranking:
  • Word count: 1650
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: Geography
Access this essay