Geophysical Phenomena
Share
Lost your password? Please enter your email address. You will receive a link and will create a new password via email.
Please briefly explain why you feel this question should be reported.
Please briefly explain why you feel this answer should be reported.
Please briefly explain why you feel this user should be reported.
In what ways are cyclones and anticyclones similar, and how do they differ?
Cyclones and Anticyclones are the two primary atmospheric systems where a ‘cyclone’, exemplified by Hurricane Katrina, involves the rapid inward circulation of air masses around a low-pressure center. Conversely, an 'anticyclone,' like the Azores High, features the swift outward circulation of air mRead more
Cyclones and Anticyclones are the two primary atmospheric systems where a ‘cyclone’, exemplified by Hurricane Katrina, involves the rapid inward circulation of air masses around a low-pressure center. Conversely, an ‘anticyclone,’ like the Azores High, features the swift outward circulation of air masses around a high-pressure center, exhibiting rotational patterns opposite to cyclones.
Ways in which Cyclones and Anticyclones are Similar
Differences between Cyclones and Anticyclones
The understanding of both the similarities and distinctions between these two atmospheric systems is crucial for predicting and responding to weather events and preparing for the diverse impacts these atmospheric phenomena have on our daily lives.
See lessDelve into the meteorological conditions associated with extratropical cyclones while elaborating on their distinctive characteristics.
Extratropical cyclones, often referred to as mid-latitude or frontal cyclones, are a prevalent weather phenomenon occurring mainly in the middle and high latitudes. Forming outside the tropical zones, these cyclones are significant weather systems with vast influences on the climate and weather pattRead more
Extratropical cyclones, often referred to as mid-latitude or frontal cyclones, are a prevalent weather phenomenon occurring mainly in the middle and high latitudes. Forming outside the tropical zones, these cyclones are significant weather systems with vast influences on the climate and weather patterns of the regions they affect.
Meteorological Conditions Associated with Extratropical Cyclones
Distinctive Characteristics of Extratropical Cyclones
Extratropical cyclones are dynamic weather systems which play a pivotal role in shaping the weather and climate of mid and high latitude regions. Understanding the meteorological conditions and distinctive characteristics of these cyclones is vital in weather forecasting and climate studies to mitigate their impacts effectively.
See lessDiscuss the conditions required for the occurrence of frontogenesis and give an account of the global distribution pattern of fronts.
When two different air masses meet, the boundary zone between them is called a front and the process of formation of the fronts is known as frontogenesis. There are four types of fronts, i.e., cold, warm, stationary, and occluded front. Fronts are characterized by steep gradients in temperature andRead more
When two different air masses meet, the boundary zone between them is called a front and the process of formation of the fronts is known as frontogenesis. There are four types of fronts, i.e., cold, warm, stationary, and occluded front. Fronts are characterized by steep gradients in temperature and pressure. They bring abrupt changes in temperature and cause the air to rise to form clouds and cause precipitation.
Conditions required for Frontogenesis:
Fronts and associated depressions tend to develop in a well-defined order.
The major regions of frontal development are as follows:
- East Asia and Eastern North America: Fronts are formed especially in winter, where there is a sharp temperature gradient between the snow-covered land and warm offshore currents.
- Pacific Arctic fronts are formed along the Rockies-Great Lakes region.
- Atlantic Polar fronts are formed when maritime tropical air masses meet continental polar air masses. Full development of this front takes place during winter.
- Also, the frontal frequency is very high in the North Atlantic whereas it decreases eastward in the North Pacific because of less gradient of sea surface temperature. Frontal activity is also very common in the Central North Pacific.
- Mediterranean: Here the polar front commonly referred to as the Mediterranean front is located over the Mediterranean-Caspian Sea areas.
- It is formed when the cold polar air masses of Europe meet the winter air masses of North African origin over the Mediterranean basin and initiate frontogenesis.
- In the summer, because of the anticyclonic conditions, the frontal zone is absent. The Atlantic Arctic Front is formed when the maritime polar air masses meet the air masses developed along the boundary of the Arctic source- region. The associated weather phenomena are different in each type of front. The cold front brings lots of precipitation and cold weather whereas the warm front brings drizzly rain and warmer weather.
See lessExplain the process of formation of a tsunami. Also, mention the tsunami preparedness and mitigation efforts taken by the government.
Massive ocean waves called tsunamis often spring from big sea surface shakeups.Undersea quakes,volcano blasts,seafloor slides or even space rocks smaching the ocean can spark them.It kicks off when water gets shoved around fast spawning waves that race to nearby shores and across vast seas.these wavRead more
Massive ocean waves called tsunamis often spring from big sea surface shakeups.Undersea quakes,volcano blasts,seafloor slides or even space rocks smaching the ocean can spark them.It kicks off when water gets shoved around fast spawning waves that race to nearby shores and across vast seas.these waves stretch long and stay low in deep waters.But as they near the cost,they slow down and shoot up in height.Once they hit land ,tsunami waves can tower sky-heigh and flood far inland leaving a trail of wreckage in their wake.
Government tackle tsunami threats heads on with smart plans.They set up early alarm systems- a mix of earthquake detectors under the sea special buoys that feels water changes and tools to watch the tides.Coastal town run leassons and practice drills so folks know where to run when danger strikes .Clear signs show escape routes and safe spots pop up in risky areas.They even build stuff to stand up to big waves.Nature gets a helping hand too – mangroves and coral reefs cat like shields against the ocean’s fury. It’s whole bag of tricks to keep people safe when the sea gets angry.
See lessDefine volcanic hotspots and expound upon their key characteristics.
Hotspots or volcanic activities are sources of volcanic eruptions from the Earth's interior or deep magma which do not result from its plate tectonics movements. This is because they remain fixed as it moves over them leading to a line of volcanic islands or mountains through many geological eras. Read more
Hotspots or volcanic activities are sources of volcanic eruptions from the Earth’s interior or deep magma which do not result from its plate tectonics movements. This is because they remain fixed as it moves over them leading to a line of volcanic islands or mountains through many geological eras.
Features:
Examples:
Hawaiian Hotspot, Central Pacific Ocean
Yellowstone Hotspot, Western United States
Iceland Hotspot, North Atlantic Ocean
See lessLike earthquakes, the spatial distribution of volcanoes across the globe is well-defined in belts or zones. Discuss.
Earthquakes and volcanoes are natural phenomena and are closely linked with seismic events. An earthquake is caused by to release of energy along a fault in the earth's crust, which generates waves that travel in all directions. A volcano is a place where gases, ashes, and/or molten rock material laRead more
Earthquakes and volcanoes are natural phenomena and are closely linked with seismic events. An earthquake is caused by to release of energy along a fault in the earth’s crust, which generates waves that travel in all directions. A volcano is a place where gases, ashes, and/or molten rock material lava – escape to the ground. The spatial distribution of earthquakes and volcanoes shows a close relation between the two as indicated in the figure below: Most of the largest earthquakes that ever happened on Earth, were along the Circum-Pacific belt, which is also called the ‘Ring of Fire. After this, earthquakes have been more frequent in the Alpide or Alpine-Himalayan earthquake belt, which runs from Java to Sumatra through the Himalayas, the Mediterranean, and out into the Atlantic. The third prominent belt follows the submerged mid-Atlantic Ridge. The map of volcanoes also shows a similar pattern. They are distributed along three major belts or zones in the world, namely-
(i) Circum-Pacific belt: Also known as the ‘volcanic zones of the convergent oceanic plate margins’, it includes the volcanoes of the eastern and western coastal areas of the Pacific Ocean, of island arcs and festoons off the east coast of Asia and of the volcanic islands scattered over the Pacific Ocean. (ii) Mid-continental belt: Also known as ‘the volcanic zones of convergent continental plate margins’, it includes the volcanoes of Alpine mountain chains and the Mediterranean Sea and the volcanoes of the fault zone of eastern Africa. (iii) Mid-oceanic ridge belt: This belt includes the volcanoes mainly along the mid-Atlantic ridge which represents the splitting/divergent zone of plates. The spatial distribution of volcanoes and earthquakes show similarities as both events are closely linked with the Theory of Plate Tectonics, which explains the formation of convergent and divergent boundaries and the motion of plates. 
See lessHighlighting the different types of earthquake waves, discuss the emergence of shadow zones.
Answer: Earthquake waves, also called seismic waves, are basically of two types- body waves and surface waves. Body waves are generated due to the release of energy at the focus and move in all directions traveling through the body of the earth. Body waves are of two types: P-waves: They are the firRead more
Answer: Earthquake waves, also called seismic waves, are basically of two types- body waves and surface waves. Body waves are generated due to the release of energy at the focus and move in all directions traveling through the body of the earth. Body waves are of two types:
When body waves interact with the surface rocks, they generate a new set of waves called surface waves. These waves move along the surface. They cause displacement of rocks, and hence, the collapse of structures occurs. Surface waves are of two types:
Shadow zone: Though earthquake waves get recorded in seismographs located at far-off locations, there exist some specific areas where the waves are not reported. Such zones are called ‘shadow zones’. It was observed that seismographs located at any distance within 105° from the epicenter, recorded the arrival of both P and S-waves. However, the seismographs located beyond 145° from the epicenter, record the arrival of P-waves, but not that of S-waves. Thus, a zone between 105° and 145° from the epicenter was identified as the shadow zone for both types of waves. The entire zone beyond 105° does not receive S-waves. The shadow zone of the S-wave is much larger than that of the P-waves and is a little over 40 percent of the earth’s surface.
Seismologists have concluded that the emergence of the shadow zone is because of the internal structure of the earth which is not homogeneous. Earth’s interiors have an uneven density which leads to the emergence of shadow zones. The shadow zone of P waves has led to the identification of boundaries between the mantle and core. Further, it has also been deduced that the outer core is made of liquid, as S-waves cannot travel through liquid mediums and P-waves are refracted by the liquid core. Thus, the concept of the shadow zone has helped seismologists get information about the interior of the earth’s surface.
See lessGive an account of the global distribution of volcanoes and explain why they are mainly concentrated along the Pacific Ring of Fire.
Answer: A volcano is a rupture in the crust of the Earth where gases, ashes, and molten lava escape from a magma chamber below the crust. The process of eruption of volcanoes is called Volcanism. Global distribution of volcanoes: Volcanoes are located in a fairly defined pattern around the world, moRead more
Answer: A volcano is a rupture in the crust of the Earth where gases, ashes, and molten lava escape from a magma chamber below the crust. The process of eruption of volcanoes is called Volcanism. Global distribution of volcanoes: Volcanoes are located in a fairly defined pattern around the world, mostly associated with the weaker zones of the earth’s crust and generally overlap with zones of seismic activities like earthquakes. They also occur along coastal mountain ranges, as off-shore islands, and in the midst of the oceans, but there are few in the interiors of continents. The main volcanic belts are as under: Circum-Pacific Belt: It includes the volcanoes of the eastern and western coastal areas of the Pacific Ocean. This belt is also known as the Ring of Fire of the Pacific Ocean. Most of the high volcanic cones and volcanic mountains are found in the Circum-Pacific Belt. Examples include Cotopaxi in the Andes (the highest volcanic mountain in the world), Fujiyama (Japan) Shasta, Rainier, and Mt. St Helena (USA).
Mid-Continental Belt: These are volcanoes of the Alpine mountains and the Mediterranean Sea. The volcanic eruptions are caused due to the convergence and collision of the Eurasian plate and the African and Indian plates. Examples include Stromboli, Vesuvius, Etna, etc. Mid-Atlantic Belt: It includes the volcanoes along the mid-Atlantic ridge which is the divergent plate zone. They are mainly of the fissure eruption type. Iceland is the most active volcanic area. As per the US Geological Survey, there are around 1,350 potentially active volcanoes worldwide and 75% of them are found along the Circum-Pacific Belt or the Ring of Fire. Also, about 90 percent of the world’s earthquakes occur here. The abundance of volcanoes along the Ring of Fire is caused by:
The entire Pacific Ring of Fire has active volcanoes except at some gaps in the Ring such as at the San Andreas Transform plate boundary, where the Pacific plate and the North American plate move sideways. This type of boundary generates a large number of shallow earthquakes as tension in the Earth’s crust builds up and is released, but sufficient magma is not formed to create volcanic eruptions.
See lessEnumerate the conditions favorable for the formation of tropical cyclones. Also, differentiate between tropical and temperate cyclones.
Answer: Cyclones are caused by atmospheric disturbances around a low-pressure area distinguished by swift and often destructive air circulation. They are usually accompanied by violent storms and bad weather. The air circulates inward in an anticlockwise direction in the Northern hemisphere and clocRead more
Answer: Cyclones are caused by atmospheric disturbances around a low-pressure area distinguished by swift and often destructive air circulation. They are usually accompanied by violent storms and bad weather. The air circulates inward in an anticlockwise direction in the Northern hemisphere and clockwise in the Southern hemisphere. Based on the position of occurrence of cyclones, they are categorized as tropical (10-30 degrees N and S of the equator) and temperate (35-65 degrees N and S of the equator) cyclones. Various conditions favorable for the formation of tropical cyclones are:
Differences between Tropical and Temperate Cyclones:
It is projected that with ongoing climate change, there is a greater likelihood of a future increase in tropical cyclone precipitation rates; tropical cyclone intensity, and an increase in the frequency of very intense tropical cyclones.
See less