Acid Rain

                                           pH Scale
Acid gases are produced into the eartrh's atmosphere when fossil fuels such as oil and coal are burned in factories, power stations and even in our own homes! Some of these gases get released into the sky, they then mix with the precipitation in the clouds to cause higher levels of acidic rain.
When this acidic rain falls it can cause alot of damage to trees, bulidings, soils, statues etc. If the acid rain falls into rivers etc, it can kill the fish and dirty the water (several cases of this in Scandinavia). Acid rain can also casue air pollution , when these harmful gases are released, they are then pushed by strong winds to other coutries. Acid rain can also affect the air quality. This endangers us of taking in harmful gases in the air around us.
The level of acidity can be measured on the pH Scale. It ranges from numbers 1-14. The greater the pH number,the more basic the acid is (eg. toothpaste.) The smaller the pH number, the more acidic the acid is (eg. lemon juice.) The more neutral the acid is at number 7 (eg. water.)

Smog is a combination of smoke and fog. When these two come into contact, they create a dusty grey like atmosphere that does not move away easily. When smog is present, it empares peoples' sight and it is hard to breathe. 

Hydropower electricity

'Hydro' means water in Greek. So 'hydropower' is made from water. you would think that the title hydopower power means that water and electricity combine to make power. However, this theory is wrong. The electricity and water never actually never come into contact.
How it all happens:

The power of the Water flowing down a river is used to spin the turbines inside the generator.

The turbine is connected to the generator. The generator then makes electricity as it spins.

This form of electricity supplied 20% of the world's electricity in 2oo6 .When water passes through the turbine its then released back into the water feature it was originally taken from. Hydroelectricity is one very popular because it is one of of the cleanest sources of energy and is extremely enviromentally friendly.It does however have one fault, which is the cost of the whole process, but in the long run, it is worth it. There are many hydropower stations situated in many different parts of r the world. E.g. The Three Gorges Dam in China (the largest hydroelectric plant in the world) and Guri Dam in Venezuela. 

hydroelectricity is a of renewable energy source (it will never run out).

Places such as Norway, Brazil and Switzerland produce a massive amount of electricity by using their hydroelectric power plant

here is a video showing the process of how hydroelectricity is formed. Includes useful diagrams and explanations

The Great Ice Age

Scientists believe that the world is 4.6 billion years old -and during that time approximately 11 different ice ages have occurred. The last one to occur was around 11,000 years ago and was called the "Great Ice Age". During this most recent ice age, over a third of the world's surface was covered in ice. Due to the cold weather at these times, it only snowed, never rained, which aided the freezing of the earth's surface.When temperatures began to rise, the glaciers started along valleys and rivers because they now sat on water from the melted ice. The ice continuously melted and froze,shaping the landscape we have today.

Then 10,000 years ago , temperatures dramatically increased and all the ice began to melt. As the ice melted away the once frozen rivers and valleys became fast flowing water features dragging along all the rocks and soil in its path. the only ice remaining was high up in the mountains ( higher altitude = colder temperature). The glaciers that exist today are from the last ice age.

Many animals that existed during the time of the ice age are extinct today. They couldn't adapt to the climate change. These are animals such as the cave bear, the woolly rhino and the woolly mammoth.We know of their existence because the people that lived during their time painted pictures of the animals on the cave walls that they lived in. We have also found the bones of these animals and scientists have carefully preserved them in places for the public places such as museums.

Hunter's knives have left holes in the animal's remains due the hunters killing them for their their meat and fur. In those days the role of men was to hunt and the women and children prepared the food and made the clothing for the family. No part of the hunted animal went to waste. The bones were used for weapons, tools and needles. The large stomach was used to carry water. The skin of the animal was used for shelter, blankets and clothes.

Dangerous Water

WATER WORLD

There are many different water features on our planet. Some have naturally occuring causes (tsunamis) and some are man made (dams). Certain water features can cause severe damage and sometimes result in death.

In 2011, there was a tsunami in Japan. This particular tsunami killed more than 18,000 innocent people. A tsunami occurs when a series of ocean waves occur due to an underwater eartquake, landslide or volcanic eruption. The first wave of the tsunami is not the strongest one, however, as time goes on, the waves grow stronger and higher (more violent.) An intensity scale is used to measure the damage that a tsunami causes. A magnitude scale is used to measure the strength of a tsunami.

Dams are man made structures that are made to hold back and control the flow of water in a certain area.They are made of materials such as:earth,rock, brick, concrete (or sometimes a combination of several things.)Dams prevent flooding. When heavy rainfall occurs, the water rushes down slopes sometimes results in water levels rising. This can cause rivers to flood. Dams prevent this by slowing or stopping fast flowing water.

17% of America's Rivers have Dams.

Here is an example of a dam-

Wonderful Water

Today we're going to learn and explore the different uses of water. As you already know, water has several different uses, all as beneficial as the other. Water can used to drink (however, we can only intake fresh water or else we are at risk to the consumption of dangerous bacteria's etc.),to cook with (eg. pasta tea etc.), to clean (brush teeth, mops floors etc.), the agricultural industry (watering plants, feeding of animals), to produce electricity (by using the force of water.),for recreational activities (sailing, swimming etc.), a habitat (for sea creatures) and for factory use (the cooling down of machinery.)

Some fun facts about water:

- water is made up of the two elements, hydrogen and oxgen = H2O

- water is essential for life on earth

- 70% of the earth is made up of water

- the freezing point of water is 0 degrees celcius

- the boiling point of water is 100 degrees celcius

- pure water is tasteless and odourless

- it's pH level is 7 (neutral)

As I have previously said, water is vital for human survival. The body can survive for 3 weeks without food. However, it can only survive for 3-5 without water. A man's body is made up of 60-65% water. A woman's body is made up of 50-60% water.

Introduction

Hello world, my name is Kathryn and this is my blog on wild waters! -hope you enjoy