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- Fieldwork: investigating an extreme weather event
Fieldwork: investigating an extreme weather event
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For hazardous environments, your enquiry investigates the physical processes in an extreme weather event using primary and secondary evidence.
Primary quantitative data
Keep a weather diary recording temperature (thermometer), rainfall (rain gauge), wind speed (anemometer), wind direction (wind vane) and air pressure (barometer).
Local hazard mapping: mark areas at risk, such as flooded roads or fallen trees.
Structured questionnaires about how people perceive the hazard.
Local hazard mapping: mark areas at risk, such as flooded roads or fallen trees.
Structured questionnaires about how people perceive the hazard.
Primary qualitative data
Annotated field sketches showing evidence of extreme weather, such as flooding, wind damage or erosion.
Photographs or video before, during and after the event (taken only when safe).
Photographs or video before, during and after the event (taken only when safe).
Secondary data and analysis
Online weather station data, such as Wunderground, newspaper accounts and local records of past events.
Plot line graphs of pressure, rainfall and wind over time. A falling pressure usually comes before stormy weather.
Evaluate: were instruments accurate, were readings taken at the same time each day, and was the site sheltered?
Plot line graphs of pressure, rainfall and wind over time. A falling pressure usually comes before stormy weather.
Evaluate: were instruments accurate, were readings taken at the same time each day, and was the site sheltered?
Air pressure readings over five days were 1012, 1006, 998, 992, 1001 mb. Describe the trend and what it suggests.
- Pressure fell from 1012 mb to 992 mb over four days, then rose.
- Falling pressure suggests a low-pressure system, such as a storm, approached.
- The rise on day 5 suggests the storm was passing.
Answer: Falling then rising pressure: a depression passed over.
Weather enquiries use a weather diary (thermometer, rain gauge, anemometer, wind vane, barometer), hazard mapping and questionnaires, plus field sketches and photos. Secondary data: online weather stations, newspapers, local records. Falling pressure suggests an approaching storm.
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