• Question: why do natural disaters accour ?

    Asked by eliciamcnally to Hannah, Ian, Jono, Mark on 26 Jun 2013.
    • Photo: Hannah Brotherton

      Hannah Brotherton answered on 26 Jun 2013:


      Hi eliciamcnally

      Natural disasters occur because of the movement of the earth and the weather. So an earthquake is when two earth plates move and cross each other, making vibrations through the planet. But people think it is the earth telling us it is healing itself. The Earth is moving because it is growing or shrinking. By trying to heal itself (because tbh we do damage the earth a lot)we get unpredictable weather like tornadoes.

      But because of all the pollution we are getting, we can cause natural disasters
      Like the more carbon dioxide produced by cars the more sea levels rise, which can cause huge tidal waves to happen.

      Natural disasters occur because the world is naturally changing. But more natural disasters are happening because we are polluting the planet.

    • Photo: Ian Wilson

      Ian Wilson answered on 26 Jun 2013:


      Hi eliciamcnally,

      Different natural disasters happen for different reasons:

      The Earth is made up of massive plates of rock resting on magma (molten rock), which makes up the Earth’s core. Earthquakes happen when these plates either rub up against each other or move away from one another, shaking everything that rests on them. That’s why you get cracks in the ground as the shockwaves tear through the ground.

      When the earthquake comes from under the water in the ocean, you can get tidal waves or tsunamis. These are massive waves caused by the plates shifting under the water and moving the water.

      Volcanoes erupt when the Earth’s plates move apart and magma bursts out from between them. Volcanoes are found in places where the plates are particularly likely to move apart and let the magma burst out.

      As for things like tornadoes and hurricanes, these are caused by weather systems – when strong winds meet storm fronts they whip them up into a frenzy and you get a superstorm like the one that hit New York last year.

      Hope that helps!

      Ian

    • Photo: Jono Bone

      Jono Bone answered on 26 Jun 2013:


      Hi Elicia,

      There’s lots of different types of natural disaster and as a result lots of different causes. Floods, volcanic eruptions, earthquakes and tsunamis are all natural occurances and part of the dynamics of this planet. They only become a disaster when they happen in areas that are highly populated. In this way you could argue that over population creates natural disasters.

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