24/06/2020 - Geography

KEY POINTS

A Heat Wave is a period of abnormally high temperatures, more than the normal maximum temperature that occurs during the summer season in the North-Western parts of India. Heat Waves typically occur between March and June, and in some rare cases even extend till July.

Anthropogenic causes

• Urban Heat Islands in the cities due to the construction of roads and buildings and Global Warming due to the excessive emission of greenhouse gases.

Natural Climatic Phenomenon

El Nino

• They alter cloud cover, rainfall, wind patterns, jet stream location. El Nino results in poor monsoon for Indian and cause high aridity triggering heat wave

Hot local winds like Loo

• Loo is a hot wind that blows eastwards into the Indian plain region in the months of May and June, usually in the afternoons.
• Its temperature invariably ranges between 45°C and 50°C and causes severe heatwaves in the plain region.

Implications

·         If the body temperature of living creature is lower than external temperature or atmospheric temperature, then it is very often to get heat stroke, and heat cramps.

·         The abnormal hot temperature cause drought like situation. It drains the moisture content from the vegetation which causes bushfires and forestfires.

·         The excessive hotness of the atmosphere also affects the infrastructure. For example- Hot atmospheric temperature can crack the roads, burst the waterlines and led to the explosion of a transformer.

·         The excessive hotness of atmosphere reduces the human productivity and performance. It will also increase stress level that endorses the conflict.

Measures

·         Planting trees and or even smaller plants will reduce the surface and air temperatures by providing shade and cooling around your house.

·         Early warning system and inter-agency coordination, temperature forecasts and heat alerts  must be sent as bulk messages on mobile phones.

·         Getting help of NGOs and civil society organizations, building temporary shelters.

·         Green roofing: roofs covered with green vegetation (both the above methods reduce air conditioning).

·         Use light asphalt instead of dark asphalt in road construction and roofing.

Please review

Please review. Thank you.

Reviw please and thank you for your time.