Aspiring Asia Lesson 2: Monsoon - Causes and Impacts

Aspiring Asia Lesson 2: Monsoon: causes and impacts Aspiring Asia Monsoon: causes and impacts Objective To investigate the causes and impacts of monsoon on India. Success criteria  Explain the difference between a wet and dry monsoon. Outline the impacts of monsoons. Determine if Monsoons ar...

Aspiring Asia Lesson 2: Monsoon: causes and impacts Aspiring Asia Monsoon: causes and impacts Objective To investigate the causes and impacts of monsoon on India. Success criteria  Explain the difference between a wet and dry monsoon. Outline the impacts of monsoons. Determine if Monsoons are good or bad. TD Skills S1. Empathy: To understand and share the feelings of another person. Aspiring Asia What is climate? Climate is the average weather of a place and is usually calculated over 33 years. Climate describes what the weather condition is usually like for a place, for example: Qatar is usually hot and dry. Aspiring Asia What is the Monsoon? The word itself means season taken from the Arabic word ‘Mausim’ Aspiring Asia How does it work? Monsoons occur mainly in tropical regions – northern Australia, Africa, South America and the USA. However, the best-known area affected by monsoons is south-east Asia, particularly India. There are really 2 monsoons – one is wet, and one is dry. The wet one is when the heavy rain comes and dry one is when there is drought. The wet one happens from June to October and winds blow from the Southwest The dry one happens from November to May and winds blow from the Northeast Aspiring Asia Task 1: Wet and Dry Monsoon Copy the information on the next slide onto the maps of India to show the routes and summarise descriptions of both monsoons. Atmospheric pressure is the weight of the air around us pressing down on everything on earth. Atmospheric pressure is measured in millibars. Below 1000 millibars is classified as low pressure. Above a 1000 millibars is classified as high pressure. Aspiring Asia Wet Monsoon Dry Monsoon During the winter, air over the Siberian plateau becomes colder than air over the surrounding seas, producing a large highpressure system with winds circulating clockwise, thus causing cool north-easterly winds to blow across India and its neighbouring countries. This brings dry, pleasant weather. Wet Monsoon The Siberian plateau is now warmer than the seas, and low pressure develops over these seas. The winds circulate anticlockwise and approach India from the south-west, bringing very moist air. These south-westerly winds bring a drop in temperature and heavy downpours of rain. In fact, during this monsoon, which generally lasts from June to September, India receives virtually all its rainfall for each year. Dry Monsoon Aspiring Asia Task 2 Complete the fill-in-the-blanks. The answers? Aspiring Asia READ THE PARAGRAPH BELOW AND FILL IN THE BLANKS AS YOU GO. THE WORDS NEEDED TO FILL IN THE GAPS ARE ALSO BELOW IN THE BOX AND EACH WORD CAN ONLY BE USED ONCE. The monsoon is created mostly by the movement of ______. During the __________ monsoon wind is warm and wet and travels over the Indian Ocean bring lots of rain. The sun appears overhead and _______ up the land. When an object is heated, it causes the _____ above it to rise. When something rises the pressure on that object _________ - we call this low pressure. At the same time, a large area near Australia has high pressure. High pressure occurs when something is ______. Cold air descends on the earth and puts more _________ on it. Naturally, the air tries to escape from high pressure to low pressure therefore making the wind blow from northern Australia to India. The southwest monsoon is wet because the air picks up the _________ from the _______ Ocean and it is warm because the ocean has been heated by the sun. During the _________ monsoon the sun is no longer overhead and moves southwards. The land is cold and there is _____ pressure. Once again, air needs to move from this high pressure to the low pressure in Australia. However, there is no moisture in the air because the wind blows over cold and dry _____. This makes November to May colder and with very little rain. Aspiring Asia Answers The monsoon is created mostly by the movement of wind During the southwest monsoon wind is warm and wet and travels over the Indian Ocean bring lots of rain. The sun appears overhead and heats up the land. When an object is heated, it causes the air above it to rise. When something rises the pressure on that object decreases - we call this low pressure. At the same time, a large area near Australia has high pressure. High pressure occurs when something is cold. Cold air descends on the earth and puts more pressure on it. Naturally, the air tries to escape from high pressure to low pressure therefore making the wind blow from northern Australia to India. The southwest monsoon is wet because the air picks up the moisture from the Indian Ocean and it is warm because the ocean has been heated by the sun. During the northeast monsoon the sun is no longer overhead and moves southwards. The land is cold and there is high pressure. Once again, air needs to move from this high pressure to the low pressure in Australia. However, there is no moisture in the air because the wind blows over cold and dry land. This makes November to May colder and with very little rain. Aspiring Asia What are the Impacts of a Monsoon climate? Positive Negative Aspiring Asia Task 3: Positive impacts of monsoon Watch the video clip and note down some positive impacts of the monsoon season in India. https://youtu.be/OajERKeeD_U?si=s-9fF1v29mBcnfR5 Aspiring Asia Task 4: Negative impacts of Monsoon Watch the video clip and note down some of the negative impacts of the monsoon rainfall on India. https://youtu.be/CFXWBeg7GAI?si=aNejaVe9QqQbCDmI Aspiring Asia Task 5: Add the following impacts to your list created from the videos. Categorise the impacts using SEEP/Short term and long term/Scales Positives  - Very predictable! - Relief from hot season as monsoon cools areas that reach 45C so cities have power shortages - Reservoirs topped up - Crop growth = stable diet is rice and Indian agriculture built around monsoons - Monsoon clears out dust and pollution and rejuvenates vegetation Negatives  - Temperature restricts tourist season - Droughts and issues with water supplies - Flooding increases spread of water borne diseases - Restricts agricultural productivity - 500 died in 1994 flash flood in Bangladesh Aspiring Asia Task 6: Monsoon does more bad than good To what extent do you agree with statement? Justify your opinion. Use the guidance below to help. Aspect Introduction Explanation State your position (agree/disagree) and give a brief reason. Discus 2 positive effects Discus 2 examples of how monsoons are beneficial (e.g., farming, water supply). Discus 1 negative effects Discuss an example of how monsoons are harmful (e.g., flooding, destruction). Conclusion Summarise your opinion and justify it with your strongest point. Aspiring Asia Plenary - self-assessment (model answer) Use the model answer to self-assess your work. Highlight similarities and differences. Identify an area for development.