Natural Disasters and Environmental Hazards Flashcards
7 cards from real Environmental Science practice questions. Tap to flip, then mark Knew It or Still Learning — missed cards come back until you master them.
Read the first 7 Natural Disasters and Environmental Hazards flashcards as text
The Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale classifies hurricanes into categories based primarily on which factor?
Answer: Sustained wind speed
The Saffir-Simpson scale categorizes hurricanes (Categories 1–5) based on their maximum sustained wind speed, which correlates with potential property damage.
What is the primary mechanism by which volcanic eruptions can cause short-term global cooling?
Answer: Sulfur dioxide emissions form sulfate aerosols in the stratosphere that reflect sunlight
Large eruptions inject sulfur dioxide into the stratosphere, where it converts to sulfate aerosols that scatter incoming solar radiation, temporarily reducing surface temperatures globally.
Which U.S. federal agency is primarily responsible for monitoring and providing warnings for severe weather events such as tornadoes and hurricanes?
Answer: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)
NOAA, through its National Weather Service, is the primary federal agency responsible for weather observation, forecasting, and issuing severe weather warnings in the United States.
An earthquake measuring 7.0 on the moment magnitude scale releases approximately how many times more energy than a 6.0 earthquake?
Answer: 32 times more
Each one-unit increase on the moment magnitude scale corresponds to approximately 31.6 (roughly 32) times more energy released, reflecting the logarithmic nature of the scale.
Which land use practice significantly increases a region's vulnerability to landslides and debris flows?
Answer: Clear-cutting forests on steep hillsides
Removing forest cover through clear-cutting eliminates tree roots that bind the soil, dramatically increasing erosion and the likelihood of landslides on steep slopes when rainfall saturates the ground.
What is 'disaster risk reduction' (DRR) in the context of environmental hazard management?
Answer: Systematic efforts to analyze and reduce risk factors that lead to disasters
Disaster risk reduction encompasses proactive policies, assessments, and measures aimed at preventing new risks and reducing existing vulnerabilities before a hazard event strikes.
Which phenomenon describes the tendency for disadvantaged communities to be disproportionately exposed to environmental hazards such as industrial pollution sites, flood zones, and contaminated land?
Answer: Environmental justice disparity
Environmental justice concerns address the disproportionate burden of environmental hazards and pollution borne by low-income communities and communities of color due to systemic inequities in land use and policy decisions.