Topic– geographical features and their location- changes in critical geographical features (including water bodies and ice-caps) and in flora and fauna and the effects of such changes.
1) Explain the difference between smog and haze? Examine the impact of haze on warming in South asia?(250 words)
Key demand of the question
The question expects us to explain what smog and haze is and explain the difference between them. Thereafter, it expects us to how haze impacts warming in South Asia.
Structure of the answer
Introduction – Explain that precipitation comes in several form including smog and haze.
Body
- Explain what smog and haze is
- Haze is traditionally an atmospheric phenomenon where dust, smoke and other dry particles obscure the clarity of the sky (No condensation). Sources for haze particles include farming (ploughing in dry weather), traffic, industry, and wildfires.
- Smog = smoke + fog (smoky fog) caused by the burning of large amounts of coal, vehicular emission and industrial fumes (Primary pollutants).
- Unlike fog and mist, haze is a suspension of very small, dry molecules in the air. Smog is a type of air pollution. It is a mixture of smoke, gases, and chemicals that makes the atmosphere appear thick and dark or yellow in colour.
- Smog is similar to haze but there is condensation in smog
- Discuss the impact of haze on warming in South Asia.
- composition of a class of carbon-carrying aerosols in the haze changes as it travels from above the landmass to the oceans. The light absorption capacity of brown carbon — a key component of the haze — decreases during transport but its bleaching half-life is 3.6 days compared to 9 to 15 hours in other regions. This means that brown carbon stays in the South Asian atmosphere for a longer duration and thereby may contribute to warming of the region, according to researchers.
Conclusion – Discuss what needs to be done.
