Year 9 Exams – May 2009

The Year 9 Exams will be held in the week before half term. Please make sure you revise all your notes carefully (it is only the Olympics that will not be tested) and listen to the advice given to you by your teachers on what to revise. To help you test yourself you can make use of the following powerpoint (answers appear when you have answered all the questions)

Olympics 2012

For those of you in Mr Chambers’ Year 9 group who are currently writing their London Olympics Assessment task – you should find the following two links useful:

• Background to the Olympics 2012 games
• Interactive guide to changes to be bought about by the Olympics (links to the interactive used in class)

The Great S Californian Shake Out!

Southern Californian Shake Out

On July 29th 2008, S California was shaken an earthquake measuring 5.4 on the richter scale. Lying on the San Andreas fault the area is prone to earthquakes and it is only a matter of time before the area is struck by an earthquake of much higher magnitude, as it has been in the past! The Great South Californian Shake Out is a project based on a scenario of a potential magnitude 7.8 earthquake on the South San Andreas fault. A group of scientists and engineers led by the USGS are studying the potential effects of such an earthquake in detail. Estimates suggested that an earthquake of this magnitude would cause severe damage in the area and predictions estimate up to 2,000 deaths and 50,000 injuries could result from such an event. The aim of the project is to look at preparedness and what can be done to minimise the impact of such a disaster by planning and preparing for the inevitable. At 10am on November 13th, millions of South Californians are therefore taking part in an earthquake preparedness event based on just such a scenario with the slogan “Drop, Cover and Hold”. You can find out more about the event on the website, which also includes some excellent resources on what to do in the event of an earthquake, including videos, articles and other resources. An excellent resource for all those of you studying earthquakes and earthquake preparedness!

Thanks to virtual colleage B Lang for pointing this out!

Good Luck!

Good luck to all GCSE, AS and A2 students with your exams – you have worked very hard and you deserve every success!!

Year 9 Revision Quiz

YEAR 9 EXAMS – JUNE 2008

You can use the following revision powerpoint to test yourself – the answers to the questions are on the slides at the end. Remember to check the date of your exam with your individual geography teacher.

Quizzes and Games

Glacial & Periglacial Features

1000s feared dead in China Quake!

1000s are feared to have died in a strong earthquake, measuring 7.8 on the Richter Scale China’s south-western Sichuan province. more to follow…..

• BBC News – Thousands dead in China Quake
• China Earthquake Kills thousands (Guardian)
• In Pictures: China Earthquake

350 Dead as Cyclone Nagris hits Myanmar

Myanmar, formerly known as Burma  was hit by Cyclone Nargis on Saturday as it ripped through the Irrawaddy Delta and the commercial capital Yangon. Five regions have been declared disaster zone and tens of thousands have been left homeless with over 350 deaths already reported.

With many communication networks down including roads and bridges and many remote villages having been affected it is difficult to get a full overview of the damage caused. UN International agencies are working to co-ordinate their response, however the movement of foreign aid workers is restricted in military ruled Myanmar. Travel permits and official escorts are required and the transport of supplies and materials has restrictions on it.

Current aid priorities include water purfication tables and mosquito nets and with many thousands now left homeless in the current rainy season, waterproof sheeting is required to provide some shelter.

For more details on the cyclone, follow up some of the news links below

• Hundreds killed by Burma Cyclone (BBC News)
• Burma Cyclone death toll rises to 351
• Death toll rises in devastating Burma Cyclone (ABC News)

Video clips on the cyclone:

• ITN – Burma Cyclone Video
• Cyclone batters Myanmar’s main city Yangon
• Burma Must allow agencies in (Video from the BBC)

Chaiten Volcano – Eruption threatens parts of Southern Chile

Over a 1000 people have already been evacuated from the area around Chaiten in Southern Chile as Chaiten volcano contains to spew ash and other volcanic materials since it began erupting in the early hours of May 2nd.

The video clip below gives a brief overview of the status of the eruption so far:

Find out more about the eruption and the rescue / evacuation attempts which are under way by following some of the links below. Also think about the nature of the volcanic hazards involved.

• One dead as Chilean volcano spews ash for third day
• Chaiten volcano erupted, hundreds evacuate
• Town evacuated as volcano erupts (Sky)
• Tourists and locals flee Chaiten
• Hundreds of Chileans flee volcano (CBS News)
• Volcano blows its top in Chile (Newsround)
• Chile volcano prompts evacuation (includes video clip) – BBC News
• In Pictures: Chile Volcano erupts – BBC News
• Eruption at Chaiten Volcano, Chile (The Volcanism Blog)
• Satellite Image of Chaiten (The Volcanism Blog)
• Chaiten Update – 3^rd May (The Volcanism Blog)
• Chile Volcano Erupts, village evacuated (The Guardian)
• Chilean town nearly deserted after Chaiten volcano erupts, spews ash 
• Thousands flee as Chilean volcano erupts (Telegraph)

England shook by Earthquake! 27th Feb 08

So did you feel the earthquake last night? Just before 1.00 am last night an earthquake measuring 5.3 on the Richter scale struck, with the earth tremors felt by people across the UK, including Yorkshire, E Anglia, South East, the Midlands and part so of Wales! The epicentre of the earthquake was near Market Rasen in Lincolnshire. So how do earthquakes happen? Well if you are in Year 9 or above you should know about earthquakes already – but it is worth reminding yourself using these two excellent guides, one from the BBC and another excellent one from the Guardian which explain the cause of earthquakes.

For many people this is the biggest earthquake they have experienced (and for many their first!), in fact this is the biggest earthquake to have struck the UK since 1984.

News Articles on the Earthquake:
Earthquake hits much of England (BBC News)
Earth Tremors felt across England and Wales
“The Room just started shaking”- interviews with people who felt the earthquake (BBC News)
BGS – Press Release – 27th February – Earthquake hits the UK (British Geological Survey)
Massive earthquake hits Rasen (Market Rasen)
Initial USGS report on the earthquake

Video Clips:
The Moment the Quake hit (BBC News)
Residents reactions to quake  (BBC News)
Seismologist on Tremor  (BBC News)