An introduction to environmental study. The book offers those studying or interested in the environment, an understanding of natural environments and the way they function. It covers the breadth of the environmental sciences, providing concise, non-technical explanations of physical processes and systems and the effects of human activities. In this second edition the scientific background to major environmental issues is clearly explained. These include global warming, genetically modified foods, desertification, acid rain, deforestation, human population growth, depleting resources and...

With the topics of weather and climate increasingly at the forefront of world attention, it is important to understand the relevant terms, definitions, and phenomena that one may be familiar with. Including more than 2000 entries, this handbook offers basic information about atmospheric processes, the sciences of climatology and meteorology, and the people who have made their mark in these disciplines.

Answering the most important questions students and non-specialists have about weather, this volume gives an overview of the current information that shapes the way weather is understood and studied and features discussions that explore various aspects of weather and weather science.

There are floods throughout the world, many of them devastating and deadly. This text explores their occurrence, explaining storms and cloudbursts, thunder and lightning, and the monsoons. There are also sidebars containing concepts from atmospheric science, including glacioisostasy.

Biomes of the Earth is a new 10-volume set that outlines the main features of each of Earth's major biomes. The biomes covered include the tundra habitats, the taiga and temperate forests, grasslands of the prairies and the tropical savanna, deserts of the world, tropical forests of the equatorial regions, wetlands of the world, vast oceans, rivers and lakes, and a manmade biome--"agricultural and urban areas. This richly illustrated set provides students with a basic understanding of Earth's biodiversity, the factors that influence it, and the future dangers that face the planet and our...

Illustrated with full-color, specially commissioned photographs and informative maps, the

In the years since the first edition of this award-winning encyclopedia was published, research in the atmospheric sciences has been intense and much has happened--making this revised edition an essential one. This new two-volume set has also been restructured--featuring a mix of new, expanded, updated, and rewritten entries along with new photographs and updated, redesigned line illustrations. Authoritative entries describe processes such as cloud formation, atmospheric phenomena such as rainbows, and some of the techniques and instruments used to study the atmosphere. The extensive coverage...

'Atmosphere' tells the story of the atmosphere sciences, beginning with the recognition that air is a material substance - a mixture of gases - and describes the unraveling of its chemical composition.

Exploring such topics as the size of the Earth and how its lands and seas are distributed, this book discusses the history of this planet, from the study of fossils to the development of the theory of plate tectonics.

Details some of the greatest surveyors and mapmakers, including Captain James Cook and Robert FitzRoy, as well as some of the explorations that made a huge impact on ocean research. This book also examines ocean basins. It contains chapters that include: Mapping the Oceans, The Origin of the Oceans, and Studying the Ocean Floor.