Natural Disasters

Natural disasters are extreme, sudden events caused by environmental

factors that injure people and damage property.
The Earth is surrounded by a blanket of air, which we call the atmosphere. The
envelope of gas surrounding the Earth changes from the ground up. Four
distinct layers have been identified using temperature changes, chemical
composition, movement, and density.
The hydrosphere is the liquid water component of the Earth. It includes the
oceans, seas, lakes, ponds, rivers
and streams. The hydrosphere
covers about 70% of the surface
of the Earth and is the home for
many plants and animals.
The biosphere is simply "life on
Earth"—the sum total, that is, of
all living things on Earth.
The lithosphere (geosphere) is
the "solid" part of Earth. It has
Lithosphere Hydrosphere two parts, the crust and the upper
mantle.
Cyclones are large revolving
tropical storms caused by winds
blowing around a central area of

low atmospheric pressure.

Biosphere Atmosphere
Cyclones develop over warm waters in the
tropical regions of the oceans where areas of
very low pressure are created by air being
heated by the sun. This causes the air to rise very rapidly and becomes
saturated with moisture that condenses into large thunderclouds. Cool air
rushes in to fill the void and is bent inwards and spirals upwards with a great
force of the earth spinning on its axis. The result of all this is - the winds begin
to rotate faster and form a large rotating weather system, in some cases up to
several thousand km in diameter.
Deep within the Earth it is so hot that some rocks slowly melt and become a
thick flowing substance called
magma. Because it is lighter than
the solid rock around it, magma rises
and collects in magma chambers.
Eventually some of the magma
pushes through vents and fissures in
the Earth's surface. A volcanic
eruption occurs. Magma that has erupted is
called lava.
 Earthquakes are usually caused when rock underground suddenly breaks
along a fault. This sudden release of energy causes the seismic waves that
make the ground shake. When two blocks of rock or two plates are rubbing
against each other, they stick a little. They don't just slide smoothly; the rocks
catch on each other. The rocks are still pushing against each other, but not
moving. After a while, the rocks break because of all the pressure that's built up.
When the rocks break, the earthquake occurs.
The Richter scale is a mathematical measurement of the intensity of the
ground shaking, as measured on a seismograph. It is actually a measurement of
the height (amplitude) of the waves produced by the earthquake. The Richter
scale is an absolute scale; wherever an earthquake is recorded, it will measure
the same on the Richter scale.
The Modified Mercalli scales measures how people feel and react to the
Biosphere
shaking of an earthquake. It is a relative scale, because people experience
different amounts of shaking in different places. It is based on a series of key
responses such as people awakening, the movement of furniture, and damage
to structures. In general, the further one is from the epicenter of an earthquake,
the less shaking is experienced.

There is a significant
difference to both of the
scales. Richter scale
measures with instruments
and the measurement will
Bioshphere always be the same.
However, the Mercalli scale
measures how people feel
and what will be the reaction
to the destruction. The
Richter scale is mainly
objective as it does not use
variables whereas the
Mercalli scale is Subjective as
it changes and there are
many variables to consider.