Hands On Physics
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Teaching Climate Change Principles Through Practical Physics Lessons!
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Climate Change
We treasure our environment and believe it is VITALLY important to teach our young people about climate change, Physics is a brilliant way to explore what happens to our environment and planet as the climate changes.
Teacher Professional Development
Global Warming
The world began to warm in 1830 at the end of the first Industrial Revolution (1760-1830). Between 1830 and 2021 the average temperature of the surface of the Earth has increased by 1.2 °C. The temperature of the Arctic has been increasing over twice as fast as the rest of the world, as seen from this NASA map (the north is redder).
Melting Ice
The increase in the average temperature of the Earth is causing permanent ice, which currently covers 10% of the land area of the Earth, to melt. Most of this ice resides in Greenland (1.2%), Antarctica (8.3%) and glaciers (0.5%). In 2020, the total loss of ice was estimated to be 820 billion tonnes contributing to an annual increase in sea level of 1.75 mm.
Fires
Global warming has increased the frequency and severity of forest fires. In 2021 Siberia experienced record temperatures. Verkhoyansk experienced a record temperature of 38 °C, which was 18 °C above the average June temperature of 20 °C. At their height, the area of Siberian fires was larger than Greece and greater than all other fires in the world at the same time.
Wind Power
A GE Haliade-X wind turbine part of the Dogger Bank Wind Farm on a sandbank 100 km off the east coast of England. The turbine is 260 m tall and blades 107 m in length. Just one rotation produces enough electricity to power the average UK home for two days. The turbine is part of a group of 190 supplying power to 4.5 million homes in the UK.
The Sun
The Sun provides all energy required for life on the surface of the Earth. The power of the solar energy arriving at the Earth is 170,000 trillion watts, about 100,000 times more than the entire power requirement of the world, so renewable energy makes sense.
Electric Vehicles
A major step in reducing greenhouse gas emissions is to switch vehicles from internal combustion engines to electric motors. Currently, transportation accounts for 29% of all greenhouse gas emissions. Electric vehicles have zero greenhouse gas emissions. It is estimated that by 2025, 20% of all cars sold will be electric, 40% by 2030 and 100% by 2040.
What Others Say
“Very practical and well explained. Gives teachers confidence to explain the concepts to students.”
“Very interesting content. Well presented too. Experiments along the way are why this is so engaging. And, I learnt lots of new things along the way. I recommend for anyone who is looking for interesting ways to engage and interact with their audience. Thank you!!!”
“Thank you, it was very good.”