Weather Hazards
Weather hazards are hazardous weather events, especially tropical storms and extreme weather in temperate countries such as the UK. Tropical storms (called hurricanes, cyclones or typhoons depending on where they occur) form over warm tropical oceans and bring intense winds, heavy rainfall and storm surges. The UK's weather is milder overall but can still produce extreme events such as heavy rainfall, strong winds, heatwaves, drought and snow, because it sits where several different air masses meet.
Before you start
Make sure you're comfortable with these topics first:
Method
- Learn how global atmospheric circulation creates belts of rising and sinking air, and how this links to where tropical storms tend to form.
- Learn the conditions needed for a tropical storm to form: warm ocean water of at least 26-27 degrees C to a good depth, low wind shear, and a location far enough from the equator for the Earth's rotation to make the storm spin.
- Learn the structure of a mature tropical storm: the calm central eye, the surrounding eyewall of the strongest winds and rain, and the spiralling rain bands.
- Learn how climate change may be affecting tropical storms, for example through warmer oceans providing more energy for storms to intensify.
- Learn why the UK experiences a wide range of extreme weather despite its generally mild climate, including its position where different air masses meet.
- Learn the case study facts, causes, effects and responses for Storm Desmond (UK, December 2015) and Hurricane Katrina (USA, August 2005).
- Practise sorting the effects of each case study into primary and secondary, and the responses into immediate (short-term) and long-term.
- Practise rainfall data calculations, such as totals and means, since these often appear alongside case-study questions.
Worked example
A weather station recorded the following hourly rainfall during a five-hour storm: 5mm, 12mm, 18mm, 24mm, 16mm. Calculate the mean hourly rainfall for the storm.
- Add the five hourly totals: 5 + 12 + 18 + 24 + 16.
- This gives a total of 75mm.
- Count the number of hours recorded: 5.
- Divide the total rainfall by the number of hours: 75 / 5.
- State the answer: the mean hourly rainfall was 15mm.
Practice questions
Try each question, then tap to reveal the answer.
Exam-style questions
Written in the style of a GCSE Geography exam paper, with a full mark scheme.
Table 1 shows the estimated economic damage cost of three tropical storms. Storm | Country income group | Estimated damage cost ($ billion) Storm X | Lower-income | 2 Hurricane Katrina (2005) | Higher-income (USA) | 125 Storm Y | Lower-income | 3 (a) Calculate how many times greater the estimated damage cost of Hurricane Katrina was than the estimated damage cost of Storm Y. [2 marks] (b) Suggest one reason why the economic damage cost of a tropical storm can be far higher in a higher-income country, even though a similar or smaller storm may kill fewer people there. [2 marks]
Compare the immediate responses to Storm Desmond in the UK with the immediate responses to Hurricane Katrina in the USA. In your answer, refer to the effectiveness of emergency planning in each case. [6 marks]
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