Hurricanes form over warm ocean waters. Sometimes they strike land. When a hurricane reaches land, it pushes a wall of ocean water ashore. This wall of water is called a storm surge. Heavy rain and storm surge from a hurricane can cause flooding.

Once a hurricane forms, weather forecasters predict its path. They also predict how strong it will get. This information helps people get ready for the storm.

There are five types, or categories, of hurricanes. The scale of categories is called the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Scale. The categories are based on wind speed.

• Category 1: Winds 119-153 km/hr (74-95 mph) – faster than a cheetah
• Category 2: Winds 154-177 km/hr (96-110 mph) – as fast or faster than a baseball pitcher’s fastball
• Category 3: Winds 178-208 km/hr (111-129 mph) – similar, or close, to the serving speed of many professional tennis players
• Category 4: Winds 209-251 km/hr (130-156 mph) – faster than the world’s fastest rollercoaster
• Category 5: Winds more than 252 km/hr (157 mph) – similar, or close, to the speed of some high-speed trains

read more: Water pollution – Wikipedia

For more such videos : https://www.youtube.com/c/ExperiHub?sub_confirmation=1

For more Science related blogs and videos : https://experihub.com/did-you-know/

The summer solstice occurs during summer.This is the June solstice (usually 20 or 21 June) in the Northern hemisphere and the December solstice (usually 21 or 22 December) in the Southern.On the summer solstice, Earth’s maximum axial tilt toward the Sun is 23.44°. Likewise, the Sun’s declination from the celestial equator is 23.44°.

Since prehistory, the summer solstice has been seen as a significant time of year in many cultures, and has been marked by festivals and rituals. Traditionally, in many temperate regions (especially Europe), the summer solstice is seen as the middle of summer and referred to as “midsummer”; although today in some countries and calendars it is seen as the beginning of summer.

For more such videos : https://www.youtube.com/c/ExperiHub?sub_confirmation=1

For more Science related blogs and videos : https://experihub.com/did-you-know/

For more such videos : https://www.youtube.com/c/ExperiHub?sub_confirmation=1

For more Science related blogs and videos : https://experihub.com/did-you-know/

For more such videos : https://www.youtube.com/c/ExperiHub?sub_confirmation=1

For more Science related blogs and videos : https://experihub.com/did-you-know/

It is no news that the by-the-minute worsening condition of our climate is largely caused by us humans. Even though the earth has been equipped with powerful tools that are a solution to the climate problems, nothing seems to be working now. The situation is so far gone that there is an alarming need for everyone to come together and save the Earth. It is true that most governments as well as their citizens, do not see the depth of the problem. On the other hand, while the topic of climate change is a part of each student’s curriculum, we are not sure if they are urged to go beyond the basic book-based theory and do something to save their earth. 

While most articles, newspapers, documentaries talk about climate change, its causes, solutions, etc. We want to discuss some of the alarming facts that we have collated through in-depth research over the span of few weeks. These facts are 100% true as they have been approved by both national and international organizations. They are easy to understand by all age groups. Those who have already read this chapter as part of science will know how to contribute. The ones who are still in the process of understanding climate change, we feel keeping them updated about the environment will be of use. 

Here is a list of 10 alarming facts that are needed to remind us that it is time to reduce the output greenhouse gas emissions at the earliest. 

1. There is more Carbon Dioxide in our atmosphere than at any time in human history. Apart from CO2, the same is the condition with Methana and Nitrous Oxide.
2. Our governments are less than five years away (2025) from missing our last realistic chance to reduce global fossil fuel use sufficiently to prevent the die-off of much of humanity by 2050. 
3. Dengue fever can spread through most of the United States by 2050, making its way to India from there. It is a disease that is caused by a mosquito-borne virus, and currently kills 10,000 people and affecting around 100 million per year. 
4. The average wildlife population has dropped by 60 percent in just about 40 years. 
5. Tropical forests are incredibly effective at storing carbon, providing at least a third of the mitigation action needed to prevent the worst climate change scenarios. Yet nature-based solutions receive only 3% of all climate funding.
6. Humans have already caused 1.07C of global warming. The temperature of the earth has risen faster than in any 50-year-period over the last 2,000 years. 
7. Our remaining carbon budget is extremely tiny. To have a 50/50 chance of staying under 1.7C of warming, we can only release an extra 500 gigatonnes of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere – and that includes emissions from the beginning of 2020.
8. Natural climate solutions could create as many as 39 jobs per million dollars spent. This is a job-creation rate more than six times higher than the oil and gas industry.
9. Two-thirds of extreme weather events in the last 20 years were influenced by humans.
10. We have now reached a global warming acceleration level where only a worldwide government-driven mass mobilization similar in scope to the mass mobilization that occurred before World War II can save us from total extinction.

You must be wondering the purpose behind discussing these facts and explaining them in detail. Climate Changes are majorly due to excessive use of resources.  These in turn are due to the various technological “advancement” that we have made as humans. While we cannot physically make sure that each citizen is contributing in a positive way to the cause, all we can do is raise some awareness. The only solution left today is to make a conscious effort in eradicating climate problems and at the least, doing your bit. Who will educate all generations of this rising concern, if not all of us? 

Even though there is no pressure to go out of the way as students and contribute, the least you can do is constantly update your siblings, parents, and grandparents about what is happening to the Earth and educate them in any way that you feel would help. If we consciously focus on clean technology and have a holistic approach to the use of science, it would reduce the problem. At the end of the day, as students of STEM, the onus is on us to make the world a better place.

At ExperiHub, we teach Science and Mathematics by bringing concepts from the real world into the classroom. We conduct science experiments and have myriad science projects for better learning and understanding of concepts. If you want to learn more about Experiential Learning and cool home experiments, browse through our Online Sessions and Youtube Channel! 

For more Science related blogs and videos : https://experihub.com/did-you-know/

Global warming and the change in climate are topics that have been trending in the news for years now, and scientists are constantly researching and showcasing their rising concern over these issues. The rising temperature of the atmosphere is a phenomenon that is becoming alarming by the second. Over the years, the changes in the climate have affected society in disruptive ways. Scientists predict calamities like heat waves and large storms are likely to get more frequent due to climate change.

Weather and Climate

In definition, Climate is defined as weather conditions over a long period of time and space. Its average duration of being observed is 30 years. It describes larger areas like cities/countries, and its records are maintained by the concerned centers of a particular place. Different places have different climates, which depends on a variety of factors like rainfall, changing seasons, temperature, humidity, precipitation, etc.

On the other hand, weather refers to the short-term conditions of any place, any day or any time. It can vary over minutes, hours, and days according to the different places in the world. The troposphere is the closest to the ground, and that is where changes in the weather are normally observed. The weather of a particular place can be predicted through factors like direction, temperature, air pressure etc.

Weather and Climate are often used in the same conversation but can be a bit confusing too. Even though they are interrelated, the difference between the two is significant. In the simplest of terms, the main difference between the two phenomena is the duration. While Climate is more or less the average weather status of a specific place over a long period of time, the Weather refers to the short-term changes in the environment. It can be used in our day-to-day conversation about the atmosphere and how it is changing.

To understand better, we have come up with a list of important differences between the two terms. To better understand trending and alarming issues like Global Warming and Rising Temperatures, the foundation is to realise the difference between Climate and Weather.

What are they affected by?

The climate consists of factors like sunshine, wind, rain, humidity, temperature etc. More or less, the climate is made of long-term observations of the environment and atmosphere at a specific location.

The weather is affected by multiple ranges of factors like pressure, cloudiness, temperature, wind, flooding, humidity, precipitation, cloudiness, and much more. While sometimes it can be just one of these factors, mostly it is a combination of all.

What do they affect? 

Climate has more long-term and deadly effects. Since climate change has been a concern for many years now, it has significantly affected people’s livelihood and will continue to affect even more in the future. Agriculture and Industries are two major sectors affected by climate.

Weather usually affects day-to-day routine and chores. Sometimes, we do not know till the very last what weather has in store for us. It can hamper transportation, daily plans, agriculture, public services etc.

Whom are they studied by?

The study of climate is known as climatology, and a reputable and recognised organisation known as the Climate Prediction Centre predicts climate.

The study of weather is known as Meteorology and is observed by the Meteorological Department in short spans of time. Different locations have different departments.

How are the changes in both observed?

The climate takes a long time to change, and even though the departments are at work around the clock, its changes come to notice after a longer period of time. Even though the climate is constantly changing, significant observations take time.

The weather condition changes frequently and so can be observed over short spans of time. In fact, sometimes, it can just be a matter of minutes before you observe a new change.

In conclusion, the weather has its effect for a few minutes/hours, whereas climate change lasts for a longer time and has more long-lasting effects.

Today, scientists worldwide are trying to understand both of these phenomena better and  wrap their heads around what the Earth has in store for the future. Unfortunately, the studies show a wide variety of predictions, and it will take a while before scientists and researchers reach a common consensus.

Now that you have understood how both Climate and Weather work, you are ready to understand, research, and deep dive into major issues like climate change, rising temperatures, global warming etc.

At ExperiHub, we teach Science and Mathematics by bringing concepts from the real world into the classroom. We conduct science experiments and have myriad science projects for better learning and understanding of concepts. If you want to learn more about Experiential Learning and cool home experiments, browse through our Online Sessions and Youtube Channel!  

References- 

1. “Difference between weather and climate” Rachna C., June 30th, 2019. https://biodifferences.com/difference-between-weather-and-climate.html#KeyDifferences
2. NASA – What’s the Difference Between Weather and Climate? NASA, February 1st, 2005. https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/noaa-n/climate/climate_weather.html

Currently, the most talked about issue in this field is about 2020 being the second hottest year on record since the 1880s! 

While we may feel that comparing temperatures from different years and concluding about the year that ranks the hottest is easy and might follow a simple, specific process, there is much more to this research than we can fathom. 

Now, the question that arises is; why is it so important to have knowledge about the year that turned out to be the hottest? 

Clearly, temperatures play a major role and matter enough for scientists to measure and report about it every other year. The announcement of the average temperatures is a default annual event and is followed by a collection of data from around 4,600 weather stations around the Globe. Media coverage is a must, and organisations like NASA and The Met Office play a major role every year. While some organisations share their results, others participate for the sake of debate and putting forth views that are not yet popular. 

Since giving reports about a single year does not give a clear picture of what the future holds, a comparison is drawn between the top 3 years. According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 2020 is officially the 2nd hottest year on record, after 2016 since the 1880s. In fact, 2020 turned out to be just two-hundredths of a degree cooler than 2016! 

After analysis, NOAA scientists found out that the average land and ocean surface temperature across the globe was 1.76 degrees F above average in 2020. Statistically, this means that the year 2020 was just 0.004 F of a degree cooler in comparison with 2016. To top it all off, 2020 was also the Earth`s 44th consecutive year with Global land and ocean temperatures way above the 20th century average. 

All the data that has been gathered from various centres and organisations shows that the coming years will without a doubt, be hotter and more problematic. 

It is time for all of us to ask ourselves; what are we doing about this alarming situation?

The governments, corporations, and individuals are deciding how to tackle the situation. As data suggests, there have already been more than 15 climate related disasters in the last 10 years and the damage they have caused has resulted in heavy damage to the economy of different countries. Hurricanes, wildfires, less ice and longer heat waves are some of the long lasting effects that the earth will face as a consequence of 2020 being the second hottest year.

It is no surprise that the condition of the earth is slowly deteriorating, and climate change seems to worsen by the year. Scientists say that the data is alarming and it is time that we move towards a more permanent solution to save the Earth. After 2020 being the hottest year on record, governments are in discussion to take measures and precautions that will turn out positive for the future of the earth. 

All we can do from our side is to stay updated, spread awareness, and do our part as citizens in saving the Earth where us, and our future generations are ultimately going to live in! 

At ExperiHub, we teach Science and Mathematics by bringing concepts from the real world into the classroom. We conduct science experiments and have myriad science projects for better learning and understanding of concepts. If you want to learn more about Experiential Learning and cool home experiments, browse through our Online Sessions and Youtube Channel!  

That is, approximately 61 percent of all fresh water on the Earth is held in the Antarctic ice sheet, an amount equivalent to 70 m of water in the world’s oceans. In East Antarctica, the ice sheet rests on a major land mass, but in West Antarctica the bed can extend to more than 2,500 m below sea level. The land in this area would be seabed if the ice sheet were not there.

The icing of Antarctica began with ice-rafting from middle Eocene times about 45.5 million years ago and escalated inland widely during the Eocene – Oligocene extinction event about 34 million years ago. CO2 levels were then about 760 ppm and had been decreasing from earlier levels in the thousands of ppm. Carbon dioxide decrease, with a tipping point of 600 ppm, was the primary agent forcing Antarctic glaciation.

The glaciation was favored by an interval when the Earth’s orbit favored cool summers but Oxygen isotope ratio cycle marker changes were too large to be explained by Antarctic ice-sheet growth alone indicating an ice age of some size. The opening of the Drake Passage may have played a role as well though models of the changes suggest declining CO2 levels to have been more important.

Ice enters the sheet through precipitation as snow. This snow is then compacted to form glacier ice which moves under gravity towards the coast. Most of it is carried to the coast by fast moving ice streams. The ice then passes into the ocean, often forming vast floating ice shelves. These shelves then melt or calve off to give icebergs that eventually melt.

If the transfer of the ice from the land to the sea is balanced by snow falling back on the land then there will be no net contribution to global sea levels. A 2002 analysis of NASA satellite data from 1979 – 1999 showed that while overall the land ice is decreasing, areas of Antarctica where sea ice was increasing outnumbered areas of decreasing sea ice roughly 2:1.

The general trend shows that a warming climate in the southern hemisphere would transport more moisture to Antarctica, causing the interior ice sheets to grow, while calving events along the coast will increase, causing these areas to shrink. A 2006 paper derived from satellite data, measures changes in the gravity of the ice mass, suggests that the total amount of ice in Antarctica has begun decreasing in the past few years.

Another recent study compared the ice leaving the ice sheet, by measuring the ice velocity and thickness along the coast, to the amount of snow accumulation over the continent. This found that the East Antarctic Ice Sheet was in balance but the West Antarctic Ice Sheet was losing mass. This was largely due to acceleration of ice streams such as Pine Island Glacier. These results agree closely with the gravity changes.

The estimate published in November 2012 and based on the GRACE data as well as on an improved glacial isostatic adjustment model indicates that an average yearly mass loss was 69 ± 18 Gt/y from 2002 to 2010. The West Antarctic Ice Sheet was approximately in balance while the East Antarctic Ice Sheet gained mass. The mass loss was mainly concentrated along the Amundsen Sea coast.

Source : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mhMdmuagjVk