Students' Learning Checklist
Gateway 1: Why do different places experience different weather and climate?
What is the difference between weather and climate?
What are the elements of weather?
Temperature
Air humidity, clouds and rainfall
Pressure and winds
Why do different places experience different temperatures?
Latitude
Altitude
Distance from the sea
Cloud cover
How is rain formed?
Relative humidity, clouds and rainfall
Convectional rain
Relief rain
How are land and sea breezes formed?
How are monsoons formed?
What are the climatic types and where are they experienced?
Gateway 2: What is happening to the earth's climate?
How has global climate changed?
Global records since 1880 show a significant, but irregular upward trend in temperature with fluctuations of 0.3°C to 0.6°C
Global warming over the last century: world is warming on average by 0.74°C, with most of the increase since the 1970s
Global temperatures in the last decade reached the highest levels on record
What are some natural causes of recent climate change?
Variations in solar output
Volcanic eruptions – cooling influence
What is the greenhouse effect and how does it work?
·Greenhouse effect is a natural process by which greenhouse gases trap heat in the atmosphere
What is the enhanced greenhouse effect?
Human activities have contributed substantially to climate change by adding greenhouse gases to the atmosphere, hence enhancing the greenhouse effect
How do human activities lead to enhanced greenhouse effect?
Deforestation and associated increase in atmospheric carbon dioxide
Changing land use and associated increase in greenhouse gases
○ Agriculture (e.g. burning of fossil fuels to provide energy to operate machines in rice farming, methane produced by cattle farming)
○ Industries (e.g. burning of fossil fuels to provide energy for manufacturing, greenhouse gases as by-products of manufacturing)
○ Urbanisation (e.g. burning of fossil fuels to provide energy for household activities and transport)
How does climate change affect people?
Sea level rise
More frequent extreme weather events
Spread of some infectious insect-borne diseases
Lengthen the growing season in certain regions
How do countries respond to climate change?
International agreements
○ Kyoto Protocol
National responses
○ Singapore - Strategies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions focusing on energy efficiency and energy conservation, new building requirements and technologies
Gateway 3: Is the Weather becoming more extreme? (Full Geography)
What are the characteristics of tropical cyclones?
Strong winds
Low central pressure
Where are tropical cyclones found?
8–15° latitude from the Equator
Warm sea temperature greater than 26.5°C
What are the hazards associated with tropical cyclones?
Storm surges
Strong winds
Torrential rains
What are the impacts of tropical cyclones?
Physical
o Damage to infrastructure
o Disruption of communication
Economic
○ Cost of repair to infrastructure
○ Loss of income due to ruined crops
Social
○ Disruption to water supply
○ Spread of diseases
○ Displacement of people from their homes
How do people respond to tropical cyclones?
Emergency action
Mitigation measures
– Prediction and warning (e.g. based on analysis of satellite data, climatological records, computer models of cyclone activity and tracks)
– Land use control
o Coastal plain management
o Flood plain management
o Reducing vulnerability of infrastructure (e.g. wind and water resistant building designs, regular inspection of levees, river embankments and coastal dikes for breaches due to erosion, locating utility lines underground)