How can we reduce climate change?



There are many ways you can help slow down climate change. Just by turning off your computer or the TV when you’re not using them, or the lights when you leave a room, or by walking to school, you reduce the level of waste gases in the atmosphere.



Renewable energy:



Use more energy from resources that there are plenty of, such as sunshine, wind, and waves. Wind and solar energy have experienced remarkable growth and huge cost improvements over the past decade with no signs of slowing down. Prices are declining rapidly, and renewable energy is becoming increasingly competitive with fossil fuels all around the country. In some places, new renewable energy is already cheaper than continuing to operate old, inefficient and dirty fossil fuel-fired or nuclear power plants.



Green transport:



Avoid transport that releases waste gases into the air. When you can, cycle or walk instead. Even when considering hybrid cars, bikes are still more environmentally friendly. Hybrid cars are still much larger than a bicycle and still require a battery, which clearly has known carcinogens. Hybrid cars often have nickel batteries and nickel mining contributes to air pollution as well. Hybrids also still require gas to run, while bikes do not.



When you choose a bike over a car, you are less likely to go further because it’s hard to ride a bike for long distances. When you’re in the car, it’s easier to travel further from home, which releases even more pollutants into the air around you.



Recycle:



Recycling helps reduce greenhouse gas emissions by reducing energy consumption. Using recycled materials to make new products reduces the need for virgin materials. This avoids greenhouse gas emissions that would result from extracting or mining virgin materials. In addition, manufacturing products from recycled materials typically requires less energy than making products from virgin materials.



Waste prevention and smart shopping are even more effective at reducing greenhouse gas emissions that result from energy consumption. When we buy less or reuse products, less energy is needed to extract, transport and process materials to manufacture products. Purchasing products made from recycled materials, such as paper, plastics, and metal, instead of virgin materials also helps to reduce energy consumption. In addition, waste prevention and recycling paper products allows more trees to remain standing, where they can continue to remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.



Save electricity:



Stop leaving your computer or the TV on standby, and turn off lights when you leave a room. When you consume less power, you reduce the amount of toxic fumes released by power plants, conserve the earth’s natural resources and protect ecosystems from destruction. By taking steps to reduce your energy intake, you’ll contribute to a healthier and happier world.



Grow your own food: 



Food grown at nearer home saves on the fuel needed to transport it to local shops. For the average American, about 8% of personal carbon footprint comes from food! Of that, 28.5% is from transporting the food, and 10% is from . By growing as much food as you can in your back yard – you are cutting down these percentages. Ambitious gardeners that use their garden to replace 20% of bought food, reduce their carbon footprint by about 68 lbs of CO2 per year!



 



Picture Credit : Google


What are the effects of climate change?



Extreme weather:



Heatwaves, droughts, heavy rain, and flooding are becoming more and more common, because of Earth’s atmosphere warming up. It may seem counter intuitive, but the increase in snowfall during winter storms may be linked to climate change.



Remember – a warmer atmosphere holds more moisture. So when the temperatures are below freezing, snowfall can break records.



Rise in sea levels:



Higher temperatures melt glaciers and ice caps. The water formed eventually flows into the ocean. Sea levels rise and areas near the coast are flooded. The causes of changes in sea level are not limited to those related to climate change. It is well known that the mean sea level has repeatedly had a large fluctuation due to the alternation of glacial and inter glacial periods for the past several hundred thousand years in the Holocene. This fluctuation of mean sea level reached about 120 m. There are also much shorter-term fluctuations in sea level, such as tide, waves and tsunamis.



Changing natural habitats:



Many animals live in special places, such as on sea ice or in coral reefs. Warmer temperatures can destroy both of these, so animals lose their home. As the Earth gets warmer, plants and animals that need to live in cold places, like on mountaintops or in the Arctic, might not have a suitable place to live. If the Earth keeps getting warmer, up to one–fourth of all the plants and animals on Earth could become extinct within 100 years. Every plant and animal plays a role in the ecosystem (for example, as a source of food, a predator, a pollinator, a source of shelter), so losing one species can affect many others.



 



Picture Credit : Google


What is Climate change? What are the causes of climate change?



Earth’s climate has always changed naturally over time. However, climate change now appears to be speeding up! Many recent changes in climate are caused by our modern way of life. Earth is getting warm, which can have a huge effect on the environment.



Causes:



Humans are thought to be responsible for the most recent, major climate changes. Waste gases from industry, transport, and deforestation have built up in Earth’s atmosphere. These trap more heat around the Earth, so temperatures rise.



Industry:



Whenever we burn oil, coal, or natural gas, waste gases are released into the atmosphere. The most well-known and the most important greenhouse gas is CO2. The concentration of CO2 in the atmosphere is subject to variation even without human intervention. The carbon cycle causes an exchange of CO2 between the biosphere and the oceans on the one hand and the atmosphere on the other.

Vast amounts of CO2 are also released by the burning of fossil fuels. There is incontrovertible evidence that the CO2 concentration in the air has never been so high in 800,000 years (probably even 60 million years) as it is now. The trend suggests that CO2 emissions will continue to rise globally, although the economic crisis did prevent a rise in 2009. The Netherlands (per head of population) is high on the list of CO2 emitters in the world.

Besides CO2, methane (CH4), nitrous oxide (N2O), fluorinated gases, ozone (O3) and water vapor are important greenhouse gases. Water vapor plays a unique role as it strengthens the heat-trapping effect caused by other greenhouse gas emissions. This is because a warmer atmosphere retains more water. The amount of water vapor cannot be artificially increased or decreased.



Transport:



We now use cars, buses, and planes regularly. They all fill the air with lots of waste gases. Transportation is the single largest contributor to the nation’s carbon footprint, causing more damage than industry, homes or commercial buildings. More than four-fifths of transportation emissions come from the tailpipes of our cars, trucks and buses.



Three factors affect the amount of carbon released into the air from transportation: the type of fuel we use, the fuel efficiency of the automobiles we drive and the amount of driving we do. Some improvements are being made on the first two legs of this stool with the push for hybrid/electric vehicles and tighter fuel economy standards.



Progress is much slower on the third leg: curbing the demand to drive. Though driving is down now because of our economic malaise, studies show that even small increases will spew out so much carbon that they will wipe out the benefits of fuel-efficient cars and the expansion of clean-fuel alternatives.



Deforestation:



Trees help remove gases from the air. As more trees are cut down, more waste gases stay in the air. Water vapor is another greenhouse gas that keeps heat from the sun trapped in the Earth’s atmosphere and helps maintain a temperature at which life can flourish on our planet. However, deforestation also affects the amount of this in the air. Studies have shown that deforestation has contributed to the amount of water vapor in the air and, over just a few years, the amount of water vapor present has increased by four percent. Besides increasing the temperature of the Earth’s surface and atmosphere, this also has knock-on effects for weather patterns.



 



Picture Credit : Google


What is Climate change? What are the causes of climate change?



Earth’s climate has always changed naturally over time. However, climate change now appears to be speeding up! Many recent changes in climate are caused by our modern way of life. Earth is getting warm, which can have a huge effect on the environment.



Causes:



Humans are thought to be responsible for the most recent, major climate changes. Waste gases from industry, transport, and deforestation have built up in Earth’s atmosphere. These trap more heat around the Earth, so temperatures rise.



Industry:



Whenever we burn oil, coal, or natural gas, waste gases are released into the atmosphere. The most well-known and the most important greenhouse gas is CO2. The concentration of CO2 in the atmosphere is subject to variation even without human intervention. The carbon cycle causes an exchange of CO2 between the biosphere and the oceans on the one hand and the atmosphere on the other.

Vast amounts of CO2 are also released by the burning of fossil fuels. There is incontrovertible evidence that the CO2 concentration in the air has never been so high in 800,000 years (probably even 60 million years) as it is now. The trend suggests that CO2 emissions will continue to rise globally, although the economic crisis did prevent a rise in 2009. The Netherlands (per head of population) is high on the list of CO2 emitters in the world.

Besides CO2, methane (CH4), nitrous oxide (N2O), fluorinated gases, ozone (O3) and water vapor are important greenhouse gases. Water vapor plays a unique role as it strengthens the heat-trapping effect caused by other greenhouse gas emissions. This is because a warmer atmosphere retains more water. The amount of water vapor cannot be artificially increased or decreased.



Transport:



We now use cars, buses, and planes regularly. They all fill the air with lots of waste gases. Transportation is the single largest contributor to the nation’s carbon footprint, causing more damage than industry, homes or commercial buildings. More than four-fifths of transportation emissions come from the tailpipes of our cars, trucks and buses.



Three factors affect the amount of carbon released into the air from transportation: the type of fuel we use, the fuel efficiency of the automobiles we drive and the amount of driving we do. Some improvements are being made on the first two legs of this stool with the push for hybrid/electric vehicles and tighter fuel economy standards.



Progress is much slower on the third leg: curbing the demand to drive. Though driving is down now because of our economic malaise, studies show that even small increases will spew out so much carbon that they will wipe out the benefits of fuel-efficient cars and the expansion of clean-fuel alternatives.



Deforestation:



Trees help remove gases from the air. As more trees are cut down, more waste gases stay in the air. Water vapor is another greenhouse gas that keeps heat from the sun trapped in the Earth’s atmosphere and helps maintain a temperature at which life can flourish on our planet. However, deforestation also affects the amount of this in the air. Studies have shown that deforestation has contributed to the amount of water vapor in the air and, over just a few years, the amount of water vapor present has increased by four percent. Besides increasing the temperature of the Earth’s surface and atmosphere, this also has knock-on effects for weather patterns.



 



Picture Credit : Google


What is Climate? What are the climate zones?



The climate of an area is the type of weather it usually experiences. It includes the amount of rainfall, hours of sunshine, and highest, lowest, and average temperatures. Earth is divided into climate zones that are based on their distance from the equator.



Tropical zone:



This area is very hot and damp all year round. It rains a lot and thunderstorms are common. Nevertheless, this belt still receives considerable sunshine, and with the excessive rainfall, provides ideal growing conditions for luxuriant vegetation. The principal regions with a tropical climate are the Amazon Basin in Brazil, the Congo Basin in West Africa and Indonesia.



Because a substantial part of the Sun’s heat is used up in evaporation and rain formation, temperatures in the tropics rarely exceed 35°C; a daytime maximum of 32°C is more common. At night the abundant cloud cover restricts heat loss, and minimum temperatures fall no lower than about 22°C. This high level of temperature is maintained with little variation throughout the year. The seasons, so far as they do exist, are distinguished not as warm and cold periods but by variation of rainfall and cloudiness. Greatest rainfall occurs when the Sun at midday is overhead. On the equator this occurs twice a year in March and September, and consequently there are two wet and two dry seasons. Further away from the equator, the two rainy seasons merge into one, and the climate becomes more monsoonal, with one wet season and one dry season. In the Northern Hemisphere, the wet season occurs from May to July, in the Southern Hemisphere from November to February.



Subtropical zone:



Here, summers are long, dry, and hot. Winters are wet, but usually short and mild.  In general, the mean temperature year round is above 20 °C (68 °F), the coldest month of the year has a temperature below this mark. Mediterranean climates are considered subtropical. Different subtropical areas have different types of plants. Humid subtropical areas have evergreen and deciduous trees, Mediterranean areas have scrub, and deserts have cacti.



Temperate zone:



Extreme conditions are rare here. Summers are warm and winters cold, but not freezing. The changes between summer and winter are generally invigorating without being frustratingly extreme. There are two types of temperate climate: maritime and continental. The maritime climate is strongly influenced by the oceans, which maintain fairly steady temperatures across the seasons. Since the prevailing winds are westerly in the temperate zones, the western edge of continents in these areas experiences most commonly the maritime climate. Such regions include Western Europe, in particular the UK and western North America at latitudes between 40 and 60° north.



Polar zone:



 It is icy and dry all year round here. Winters are long round dark, while in summer the Sun shines most of the time. During the long polar nights, which last six months at the poles, temperatures can fall to extremely low values. The lowest temperature ever recorded occurred in Antarctica, where a value of -88 degree Celsius was reported.



The North Polar Region includes the ice-covered Arctic Ocean, the Greenland continent and much of Northern Canada and Northern Siberia. In the Southern Hemisphere, the vast mountainous continent of Antarctic is covered by snow and compacted ice several kilometres thick.



Polar climates tend to be dry because the descending air is cold and lacks significant moisture, precluding the formation of clouds and snowfall. Some polar regions receive less than 10 inches or 250 millimetres of precipitation each year, and can be as dry as the hot deserts of the subtropical climate zone. The continental ice sheets of Greenland and Antarctica have taken many millions of years to form.



 



Picture Credit : Google


How seasons change?



During the year, the seasons change depending on the amount of sunlight reaching the Earth as it revolves around the Sun.



The seasons are caused as the Earth, tilted on its axis, travels in a loop around the Sun each year. Summer happens in the hemisphere tilted towards the Sun, and winter happens in the hemisphere tilted away from the Sun. As the Earth travels around the Sun, the hemisphere that is tilted towards or away from the Sun changes.



The hemisphere that is tilted towards the Sun is warmer because sunlight travels more directly to the Earth’s surface so less gets scattered in the atmosphere. That means that when it is summer in the Northern Hemisphere, it is winter in the Southern Hemisphere. The hemisphere tilted towards the Sun has longer days and shorter nights. That’s why days are longer during the summer than during the winter.



In general, the further away from the equator you travel, the cooler summer and winter temperatures become. At the equator there are no seasons because each day the Sun strikes at about the same angle. Every day of the year the equator receives about 12 hours of sunlight. The poles remain cool because they are never tilted in a direct path of sunlight. Much light is scattered by the atmosphere before reaching the Earth surface at the poles. During midwinter, when a pole is tilted away from the Sun, there is no daylight at all. The sun never rises! However, during the summer, a pole receives sunlight all the time and there is no night!



 



Picture Credit : Google


What are Seasons? What are different types of season?



Earth takes a year to travel, or orbit, around the Sun. At the same, it spins on its axis, an imaginary line between the Poles. This means the amount of sunlight falling on any area of Earth varies during the year, changing weather and creating seasons – spring, summer, autumn, and winter.



Spring:



 Spring is a time of change between summer and winter. Days gradually get brighter, warmer, and wetter. Animals that have been hidden away in a deep sleep called hibernation wake up and come out from dens. Many birds and animals return from their winter homes and start to breed. In the northern hemisphere, Earth’s upper half, spring begins in March. In the southern hemisphere, Earth’s lower half, spring begins in September.



Summer:



Summer is the hottest season. The days get longer and the nights become shorter. Plants grow well in the warm sunlight. There are lots of green leaves on the trees. People spend time outside, enjoying the long, sunny days. In the northern hemisphere, Earth’s upper half, it is summer from June to September. In the southern hemisphere, Earth lower half, it is summer from December to March.



Winter:



Winter is the coldest season. Days get shorter and nights get longer. Some animals grow thick coats to keep them warm in winter. Others just fall asleep, or hibernate. People need to heat their homes and wear thicker clothes to keep warm. The freezing winds often bring snow and ice. Winter lasts from December to March in the northern hemisphere, Earth’s upper half, and from June to September in the southern hemisphere, Earth’s lower half.



Autumn:



Autumn is when summer gradually changes into winter. In some places, rainfall increases. In areas with icy winters, some trees, such as oak, sycamore, and birch, prepare to lose their leaves. These trees are called deciduous trees. They stop producing chlorophyll, which is a chemical that helps plants make food from sunlight and also gives leaves their green color. As chlorophyll gradually disappears from the leaves, they turn to shades of red, orange, yellow, and brown. Many plants make seeds that will become new plants in spring. Some animals grow thicker fur to get ready for the cold winter. Others gain weight to prepare for a deep sleep called hibernation to take them through winter. In the northern hemisphere, Earth’s upper hals, fall takes place from September to December, and in the southern hemisphere, Earth’s lower half it is from March to June.



 



Picture Credit : Google


What is Weather? What are the different conditions of weather?



Weather is the state of the atmosphere at any given period of time. The atmosphere is made up of the gasses, like oxygen, that surround the Earth. What is happening in the atmosphere is the weather. Weather includes several different factors that we can measure. Sunshine, clouds, wind, rain, frost, and snow are some of the different weather conditions that we experience on earth. The Sun plays a major role in the way one set of weather conditions changes to another set.



Sunshine



Heat from the Sun warms up the air, creating dry, bright weather conditions. Most people find sunny days pleasant. With the absence of clouds, the sun is able to shine through and provide warmth. A sunny day doesn't always mean it's warm, though. Cold temperatures and wind can be present on sunny days.



Clouds



Sunlight warms water in lakes and rivers, turning it into vapor that rises, and then forms tiny water droplets that gather together as clouds. The amount of water in a cloud, the height, and the air temperature, all affect what the cloud looks like. There are three main types of clouds, stratus, cumulus, and cirrus, and lots of combinations of these.



Wind



The sun warms the air to different places. As warm air rises, cooler air rushes in to replace it, creating wind. Light winds, called breezes, rustle leaves and twigs. In stronger gusts, whole branches sway. Very powerful winds may snap or uproot trees and cause damage. A wind that blows most often in a particular area is called a prevailing wind.



Rain



Rain is droplets of water that fall from clouds. Heat from the sun turns moisture from plants and leaves, as well as oceans, lakes, and rivers, into water vapor, which disappears into the air. This vapor rises, cools, and changes into tiny water droplets, which form clouds. The water droplets in the clouds join together to form bigger drops. When the water droplets get too large and heavy, they fall as rain. Big, heavy droplets falling to the ground are called rain and small droplets are called drizzle. You know that it’s likely to rain when you see dark clouds approaching. They are dark because they are full of big water droplets that block out the light from the sun.



Snow



Snow is water that has frozen solid. Water is in the atmosphere in the form of water vapor. When there is a lot of vapor, clouds form, become heavy with water droplets, and then the water falls as rain. But if the temperature in the cloud is below freezing point, the water droplets turn into ice crystals, forming snowflakes, and fall as snow. In very cold weather, snowflakes fall as showers of powder snow. In warmer temperatures around 0 degrees Celsius, snowflakes join up to form big, fluffy clumps of wet snow. The heaviest snowfalls happen when the temperature is just below 0 degree Celsius.



Extreme Weather



We say that we have extreme weather when conditions are very different to those that we are used to. Extreme weather can suddenly appear without warning, and may last for hours or even days, bringing death and destruction to an area. Flooding, heatwaves, blizzards, hurricanes, and tornadoes are all types of extreme weather.



 



Picture Credit : Google


How is our Earth affected?



When people fail to conserve resources, Earth is affected in a number of ways:



Energy:



Natural fuels, such as gas and coal, are used up too quickly, and cannot be replaced. When petroleum products such as gasoline are burned for energy, they release toxic gases and high amounts of carbon dioxide, a greenhouse gas. Carbon helps regulate the Earth’s atmospheric temperature, and adding to the natural balance by burning fossil fuels adversely affects our climate.



There are huge quantities of petroleum found under Earth’s surface and in tar pits that bubble to the surface. Petroleum even exists far below the deepest wells that are developed to extract it. 



However, petroleum, like coal and natural gas, is a non-renewable source of energy. It took millions of years for it to form, and when it is extracted and consumed, there is no way for us to replace it. 



Pollution:



Waste gases in the atmosphere trap heat from the Sun, so the Earth gets hotter. We release a variety of chemicals into the atmosphere when we burn the fossil fuels we use every day. We breathe air to live and what we breathe has a direct impact on our health. Water Pollution Effects Just like the air we breathe, water is vital to our survival. We need clean water to drink, to irrigate our crops and the fish we eat live in the waters. We play in rivers, lakes and streams – we live near bodies of water. It’s a precious resource that can easily be polluted and the contamination can be transferred to us and affect our health.



Water:



Higher temperatures, along with low rainfall, will eventually lead to drought. The more that greenhouse gases saturate the atmosphere, the more intense global warming becomes. Global warming, or climate change, is a major causing factor of droughts. It’s unfortunate that human activities contribute to the emission of greenhouse gases, which in turn cause the abnormal elevation of global temperatures.



Higher temperatures will obviously lead to dryness and an increased rate of moisture loss from water sources, as well as in the soil. 



This directly contributes to dry conditions, drier weather, and of course, droughts.



Food:



Drought and soil pollution can damage crops, so there is not enough food. The effects of soil erosion go beyond the loss of fertile land. It has led to increased pollution and sedimentation in streams and rivers, clogging these waterways and causing declines in fish and other species. And degraded lands are also often less able to hold onto water, which can worsen flooding. Sustainable land use can help to reduce the impacts of agriculture and livestock, preventing soil degradation and erosion and the loss of valuable land to desertification.



Forests:



Cutting down trees can lead to plants and animals losing their homes. The lack of trees also allows a greater amount of greenhouse gases to be released into the atmosphere. Presently, the tropical rainforests of South America are responsible for 20% of Earth’s oxygen and they are disappearing at a rate of 4 hectares a decade. If these rates are not stopped and reversed, the consequences will become even more severe. As large amounts of forests are cleared away, allowing exposed earth to whither and die and the habitats of innumerable species to be destroyed, the indigenous tribes who depend on them to sustain their way of life are also irreparably damaged.



The loss of forests has an immediate and direct effect on their lifestyle that we in the modern world, despite our own dependency on what the rainforest provides, will never know. The level of immediacy is exponentially greater.



Waste:



Waste pollutes the environment. Also, if we waste resources, they will run out! Some ecosystems, like the marine and coastal ones, can be severely affected by poor management of waste, or by littering. Marine litter is a growing concern, and not only for aesthetic reasons: entanglement and ingestion constitute severe threats to many marine species.



Waste impacts the environment indirectly as well. Whatever is not recycled or recovered from waste represents a loss of raw material and other inputs used in the chain, i.e. in the production, transport and consumption phases of the product. Environmental impacts in the life-cycle chain are significantly larger than those in the waste management phases alone.



Directly or indirectly, waste affects our health and well-being in many ways: methane gases contribute to climate change, air pollutants are released into the atmosphere, freshwater sources are contaminated, crops are grown in contaminated soil and fish ingest toxic chemicals, subsequently ending up on our dinner plates…



Illegal activities such as illegal dumping, burning or exports also play a part, but it is difficult to estimate the full extent of such activities, or of their impacts.



 



Picture Credit : Google


What is Conservation?



We need to preserve and take good care of the Earth and resources – the air, water, soil, plants, and animals on which we depend. This is what conservation is all about.



If we really care about nature, then surely conservation has to be practical; it needs to work. Everything we hear on the news seems to say the opposite: nature continues to go down the tube; extinction rates are increasing; new threats like climate change are emerging; and beautiful places are being destroyed before our eyes. All this is true; and yet, paradoxically, there is increasing evidence that conservation is working. How so?



Surely, if things are getting worse, it is obvious that conservation is failing. Well, no. For sure, the overall situation is getting worse, but not as fast as would be the case if we were doing no conservation at all. For example, in 2006, scientists at BirdLife International showed that conservation action had prevented 16 bird species from going extinct during the 1994-2004 time period. In 2014, scientists from the Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust found that sustained conservation action from 1988 to 2012 resulted in eight species being down-listed to lower categories of threat on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species (meaning they are now less at risk of extinction). In a pivotal study in 2015, a group of researchers from the IUCN Species Survival Commission found that without conservation action that took place between 1996 and 2008, the status of the world’s ungulates (deer, antelopes, cattle and their relatives) would have been nearly eight times worse (as measured by the IUCN Red List Index) than was actually observed.



There is one clear conclusion from these and similar studies: conservation does work, but we do not do anywhere close to enough of it. The threats to nature are certainly growing and this means that we have to spend more on conservation just to stand still. On the other hand, if some of the commitments made by the world’s governments are actually acted upon, such as the 2010 Aichi Biodiversity Targets and the 2015 Sustainable Development Goals, then the amount of resources to be allocated to conservation is set to increase. Let’s hope that this will indeed be the case. In practice, to achieve the level of success that we need, governments will need to do much more, but so will all of us, including commercial corporations.



 



Picture Credit : Google


What are Biomes? What are the types of Biomes?



Earth can be divided up into a number of different types of landscape. These zones are called biomes. Every biome is home to a particular group of plants and animals that are suited to the conditions found there.



A biome is different from an ecosystem. An ecosystem is the interaction of living and nonliving things in an environment. A biome is a specific geographic area notable for the species living there. A biome can be made up of many ecosystems. For example, an aquatic biome can contain ecosystems such as coral reefs and kelp forests.



Mountains



Mountains are high places with a cold, windy climate. It gets colder the higher up you go, so different groups of plants and animals are found at different heights. Winds are another factor that make mountain biomes different from the areas around them. By nature of their topography, mountains stand in the path of winds. Winds can bring with them precipitation and erratic weather changes.



That means that the climate on the windward side of a mountain (facing the wind,) will likely be different from that of the leeward side (sheltered from the wind.) The windward side of a mountain will be cooler and have more precipitation, while the leeward side will be drier and warmer. 



 Deserts



Deserts are very dry, as there is little or no rainfall. They can be very hot or very cold. The plants and animals found in deserts have adapted to living in these extreme conditions. Due to the availability of little moisture in the air to capture and hold on to the heat emanating from the high temperatures during the day, desert nights are typically cold. A combination of extreme temperature fluctuations and incredibly low levels of water makes the desert biome a very harsh land mass to live in.



Temperatures are so extreme during the day because there is very little moisture in the atmosphere to block out the sun’s rays. This means that the sun’s energy is absorbed on the ground surface. The ground surface then heats up the surrounding air.



Wetlands



Wetlands are permanently flooded with water. This can be salt water, fresh water, or a mixture of both. Swamps, bogs, marshes, and deltas are all types of wetlands. Many birds thrive in this environment. Plant matter is released into freshwater biomes from a wetland biome. The importance of this is that it allows for fish to have plenty of types of food for them to survive. Florida has one of the largest wetland biomes in the world. The humid conditions are perfect for such forms of plant and animal life to be able to survive.



Rainforests



Rainforests get a lot of rain. Most of then also get a lot of sunlight, and are very hot all year round. They are home to many different plants and animals. The largest rainforest is the tropical Amazon rainforest in South America.



Rainforest plants have made many adaptations to their environment. With over 80 inches of rain per year, plants have made adaptations that helps them shed water off their leaves quickly so the branches don't get weighed down and break. Many plants have drip tips and grooved leaves, and some leaves have oily coatings to shed water.



Many species of animal life can be found in the rain forest. Common characteristics found among mammals and birds (and reptiles and amphibians, too) include adaptations to a life in the trees, such as the prehensile tails of New World monkeys. Other characteristics are bright colors and sharp patterns, loud vocalizations, and diets heavy on fruits.



Insects make up the largest single group of animals that live in tropical forests. They include brightly colored butterflies, mosquitoes, camouflaged stick insects, and huge colonies of ants.



Deciduous forests



The temperature and rainfall in deciduous forests changes from season to season. During the autumn and winter, most trees change colour and lose their leaves. The animals adapt to the climate by hibernating in the winter and living off the land in the other three seasons. The animals have adapted to the land by trying the plants in the forest to see if they are good to eat for a good supply of food. Also the trees provide shelter for them. Animal use the trees for food and a water sources. Most of the animals are camouflaged to look like the ground.



The plants have adapted to the forests by leaning toward the sun. Soaking up the nutrients in the ground is also a way of adaptation.



Coniferous forests



These forests have long, cold, snowy winters and short, warm summers. Trees here have adapted to this harsh climate. They are mostly evergreen, meaning they stay green all year round. Precipitation is significantly high in coniferous forest biomes. The average annual precipitation in coniferous rain forest biomes ranges from 300 to 900 mm. A few temperate coniferous forests get more than 2000 mm of rain annually. The total amount of precipitation received in this biome hinges on its location. For instance, in northern coniferous forests, winters tend to be lengthy, cold and relatively dry, whereas the short summers tend to be moderately warm and moist. In areas of lower latitudes, precipitation tends to be equally spread out all year round. During winter months, precipitation falls as snow, while in the summer, it falls as rain.



Grasslands



Grasslands get little rainfall only grass and a few small trees and bushes can grow in these dry places. But many animals, such as zebras and elephants, manage to live there. There is a large area of grassland that stretch from the Ukraine of Russia all the way to Siberia. This is a very cold and dry climate because there is no nearby ocean to get moisture from. Winds from the arctic aren't blocked by any mountains either. These are known as the Russian and Asian steppes.



In the winter, grassland temperatures can be as low as -40° F, and in the summer it can be as high 70° F. There are two real seasons: a growing season and a dormant season. The growing season is when there is no frost and plants can grow (which lasts from 100 to 175 days). During the dormant (not growing) season nothing can grow because its too cold.



Tundra



It is usually very cold and windy in the tundra, and there is not much rain. The ground is often covered in snow, so only a few plants and animals can live there. Mountain goats, sheep, marmots, and birds live in mountain—or alpine—tundra and feed on the low-lying plants and insects. Hardy flora like cushion plants survive in the mountain zones by growing in rock depressions, where it is warmer and they are sheltered from the wind. The Arctic tundra, where the average temperature is -30 to 20 degrees Fahrenheit (-34 to -6 degrees Celsius), supports a variety of animal species, including Arctic foxes, polar bears, gray wolves, caribou, snow geese, and musk oxen. The summer growing season is just 50 to 60 days, when the sun shines up to 24 hours a day.



Polar ice



This is the coldest biome on Earth. The freezing temperatures make it difficult for any plants to survive. During the summer, the sun could shine for 24 hours per day and the temperature would still not go over 0 degrees Celsius. In the winter, the opposite occurs; there is no sunshine whatsoever during the winter and as a result, the temperatures will go even lower than usual. Animals, such as polar bears, penguins, and seals, have adapted well to life here. One of the most recognizable feature of a polar ice biome is the presence of permanent ice. As a result, no vegetation can grow here except for some microscopic algae.



 



Picture Credit : Google


Which is the world’s tallest waterfall?



Spectacular Angel Falls is the world’s tallest waterfall. With a drop of 979 m (3,212 ft), it is more than twice the height of New York’s Empire State Building. American pilot Jimmy Angel first spotted the waterfall from the air in 1933.



Lying within the Canaima National Park, Angel Falls is part of the plateau that underlies the lands located in Venezuela to the south of the Orinoco River. The plateau's age is estimated at two billion years. Important geological transformations can be seen at the park, from its beginnings in the Precambrian period dating back to the time of the formation of the super continent Pangaea.



This continent began to separate due to the formation of a fracture in the planet's crust resulting in the formation of the Atlantic Ocean, and the creation of different portions of lands called shields. The geographic region in Venezuela, known as the Guyanese Shield, existed from the start as a great plain at an elevation roughly as high as today's visible tepuis, about 6500 to 9800 feet. After the formation of the great plain, during a long period of time—approximately 400 to 200 million years ago—a series of climate-related phenomena caused important changes in the geography of the Guyanese Shield.



The transformation of the landscape was due to drastic variations of arid climate to humid and vice versa; of strong, constant and lingering precipitations; droughts, freezing, discharges with high and low temperatures; storms, hurricanes, and the tectonic movements of the earth. The erosion was caused by atmospheric agents removing the material deposited in the great plain during millions of years. In places where the rock was less resistant, the erosion was greater resulting in this great transformation, the Tepuis, and the fantastic scenery at the Falls.



 



Picture Credit : Google


Which is the driest place on earth?



Covering 1,000 km (600 miles), Atacama Desert, Chile South American desert is one of the driest places on Earth. Some parts have not seen rainfall since records began at least 400 years ago! The northern part of the Atacama Desert contained valuable minerals. Bolivia and Chile attempted to claim the area in the 1800s, causing the War of the Pacific from 1879 to 1884. Chile claimed victory and won control of the region. The extreme ecosystem of the Atacama makes survival difficult for animals. However, red scorpions, grey foxes, desert wasps and butterflies are among the species able to cope with the dry environment. You can also find penguins, sea lions and pelicans nearer the Pacific side.



The Atacama Desert was at the centre of the world’s attention in 2010. Famous for the ‘Copiapo mining accident’, whereby 33 miners survived a record 69 days buried in a 120-year-old copper-gold mine. Thankfully, all 33 miners were safely rescued on 13th October 2010. Often compared to the planet Mars, the Atacama’s landscape and soils are unique. Its appearance is unlike other deserts and several movies and television programmes have been filmed in the area. One of the most famous of which is A Space Odyssey. The Atacama Desert is one of the top three destinations for visitors to Chile. The other top attractions include Easter Island and Chile’s Lake District.



 



Picture Credit : Google


Which is the world’s deepest cave?



Krubera Cave, Georgia is the world’s deepest cave lies in Asia, Stretching down 2,197 m (7,208 ft), it is nearly as deep as seven of Paris’s Eiffel Towers. Russians call the cave Voronya, meaning “crow’s cave”, after the many crows nesting at the entrance.



Krubera Cave is a deep, mostly vertical cave system. Passages in the cave system can be narrow and difficult to pass or wide and very large. In order to explore the caves completely cave divers need to be prepared to put on scuba gear because tunnels in the caves can sometimes become flooded. Flooded tunnels are referred to as sumps. Some of the passageways in Krubera Cave had to be widened to make it possible for cave divers and explorers to venture further.



 



Picture Credit : Google


Which is the world’s longest river?



The world’s longest river is the Nile, at 6,825 km (4,238 miles) in length. It flows through 11 African countries, from Burundi to Egypt, where it meets the Mediterranean Sea. The Nile takes its name from the Greek for “river valley”.



The availability of water from the Nile throughout the year, combined with the area’s high temperatures, makes possible intensive cultivation along its banks. Even in some of the regions in which the average rainfall is sufficient for cultivation, marked annual variations in precipitation often make cultivation without irrigation risky.



The Nile River is also a vital waterway for transport, especially at times when motor transport is not feasible—e.g., during the flood season. Improvements in air, rail, and highway facilities beginning in the 20th century, however, greatly reduced dependency on the waterway.



 



Picture Credit : Google