Natural disasters - MG421P21
Title: Přírodní katastrofy
Czech title: Přírodní katastrofy
Guaranteed by: Institute of Geology and Paleontology (31-420)
Faculty: Faculty of Science
Actual: from 2024
Semester: summer
E-Credits: 2
Examination process: summer s.:
Hours per week, examination: summer s.:2/0, Ex [HT]
Capacity: unlimited
Min. number of students: unlimited
4EU+: no
Virtual mobility / capacity: no
State of the course: taught
Language: Czech
Additional information: http://web.natur.cuni.cz/ugp/main/staff/kachlik/Prirodni%20katastrofy/
https://dl2.cuni.cz/course/view.php?id=898
Note: enabled for web enrollment
priority enrollment if the course is part of the study plan
Guarantor: doc. RNDr. Jakub Trubač, Ph.D.
doc. RNDr. Václav Kachlík, CSc.
Teacher(s): doc. RNDr. Václav Kachlík, CSc.
Opinion survey results   Examination dates   SS schedule   
Annotation -
The lecture gives an outline to natural disasters (geological, climatologic, oceanographic). Causes of natural disasters, their course and impact on nature and society are briefly explained. The basic methods of their prediction, prevention and mitigation are outlined. Students present in the frame of semester works orally or in the written forms case studies of different aspects of natural disasters and hazards.
Last update: KACHLIK (17.03.2007)
Literature -

bbott, P., 1996. Natural Disasters. Wm. C. Brown Publishers Chicago, Toronto, 438 pp.

Alexander, D., 1993. Natural Disasters, Kluwer Academic Publishers,.

Bell, F.G., 1999. Geological Hazards: Their Assesment, Avoidance, and Mitigation. Eand F.N. Spon, 608 pp.

Bolt, B., A.,, Horn, W.L., MacDonald, G.A. and Scott, R.R., 1975. Geological hazards. Spriger Verlag, Heidelberg, New York.

Bradford, M., ed., Carmichael. R.S., Irons-Georges, T., 2000. Natural Disasters. Salem Pr;.

Bryant, E., 1991. Natural hazars. Cambridge Univ. Press, 294 pp.

Casale, R. and Margottini, C., 1999. Floods and Landslides. Springer Verlag, Berlin, 373 pp.

El Sabh, M.I., ed. (Editor), 1998. Earthquake and Atmospheric Hazards : Preparedness Studies. Kluwer Academic Publishers;.

Erickson, J. (Editor), 2001. Quakes, Eruptions, and Other Cataclysms : Revealing the Earth's Hazards. Living Earth Series.

Erisman, T.H. and Abele, G., 2001. Dynamics of Rockslides and Rockfalls. Springer, 316 pp.

Chapman, D. (Editor), 1995. Natural Hazards. Meridian Australian Geographical Perspectives, 192 pp.

Kovach, R., 1995. Earth´s Fury: An introduction to Natural Hazards and Disasters. Prentice Hall, 241 pp.

Last update: Kachlík Václav, doc. RNDr., CSc. (25.10.2019)
Requirements to the exam -

knowledge of the presented topics within the scope of presentations provided to students with regard to the recommended literature, written exam

Last update: Kachlík Václav, doc. RNDr., CSc. (21.02.2024)
Syllabus -

1. Natural disasters (introduction), definition of the term, relationship between antropogenous and natural hazards, disasters in geological past, recent disasters, impact of natural disasters on evolution of organism, climate etc.,

2. Climatic hazards and disasters:

  • tropical and extra tropical cyclones and related hazards
  • storms, dust storms, tornadoes and related hazards (hail, lightning, freezing rain snowstorms),
  • flash floods, regional floods and related hazards,
  • climatic oscillation (drought, desertification, bushfires),

3. Oceanographic hazards - waves related hazards, sea ice, fluctuation of the sea level, sea-bank erosion etc.

4. Geological disasters and hazards

  • earthquakes (geological and plate tectonic background, genetic types, classification, distribution of earthquakes, examples of earthquakes effects, earthquake monitoring and prediction, earthquake mitigation, seismic engineering, warning systems, crisis management, mitigation of earthquake impacts,
  • tsunamis, tsunamis generated by earthquakes, volcanic explosion generated tsunamis, landslide generated tsunamis,
  • disasters and hazards related to volcanic processes, types of volcanic eruption, examples from the world, distribution of volcanoes, relation of volcanism to geological processes in the earth crust and mantle (plate tectonic and geodynamic background),
  • major types of volcanic hazards (gas plumes, lavas flows, lahars, ash-clouds, landslides, debris flows, pyroclastic flows),
  • mass movements - (rheological properties of soils and rocks, classification of mass movements, solifluction, creep, landslides, earthflows, debris flows, mud flows, rocks avalanches, debris avalanches, snow avalanches,
  • movements associated with subsidence,

5. Disaster related to large meteorite impacts (examples from the geological past), impact processes, influence of large impact on the earth ecosystems.

Last update: Kachlík Václav, doc. RNDr., CSc. (06.01.2012)
Learning outcomes -

Learning Outcomes for the Course: Natural Disasters

After completing the course, students will be able to:

  1. General Understanding of Natural Disasters:

    • Define natural disasters and explain the relationship between anthropogenic and natural risks.
    • Analyze historical and contemporary natural disasters and their impacts on organisms, climate, and ecosystems.
    • Assess the role of natural disasters in shaping Earth's biological and climatic history.

  2. Disasters Related to Climatic Phenomena:

    • Explain the mechanisms and risks associated with tropical and extratropical cyclones.
    • Describe the occurrence and effects of windstorms, tornadoes, and dust storms.
    • Analyze hazards linked to heavy rainfall, hailstorms, and lightning strikes.
    • Evaluate long-term climate oscillations (e.g., shifts between arid and humid periods, desertification) and their effects, such as wildfires in arid regions.
    • Discuss the risks and impacts of snowstorms and icing events.

  3. Oceanographic Hazards:

    • Describe the risks associated with wave activity, ice movement along coasts and open seas, sea-level fluctuations, and coastal erosion.

  4. Geological Disasters and Hazardous Processes:

    • Analyze the causes and types of earthquakes, including their geological and tectonic contexts.
    • Classify earthquakes by intensity and understand their global distribution.
    • Explain mitigation measures for earthquake impacts, including seismic engineering and early warning systems.
    • Understand the origins and effects of tsunamis caused by earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, and landslides.
    • Characterize volcanic hazards, including gas emissions, lava flows, pyroclastic flows, lahars, and sudden glacial melt.
    • Discuss volcanic activity distribution and its relation to geological processes in Earth's crust and mantle.
    • Explain slope movements, including solifluction, landslides, debris flows, avalanches, and rockfalls, as well as subsidence-related phenomena.

  5. Impacts of Extraterrestrial Bodies:

    • Describe the impact process of cosmic bodies and analyze historical examples from Earth's geological record.
    • Assess the consequences of impacts on global ecosystems and Earth’s environment.

If you need any additional refinements or further elaboration, feel free to ask! ����

Last update: Kachlík Václav, doc. RNDr., CSc. (20.12.2024)