WARMING UP OR COOLING DOWN?

Some scientists warn that another Ice Age is on the way. In a thousand of years time Britain and much of northern Europe, America and Asia may be covered with snow and ice all round.

In the meantime the Earth is getting warmer. Cars, truck, factories and power stations are polluting the air with carbon dioxide. This gas hangs in the air and forms a warm blanket around the Earth keeping in the heat. But don’t think the weather will get better as the Earth warms up. There will be more storms, Hurricanes and droughts. Much of Southern Europe will become like the Sahara.

The highest winds are whipped up by tornadoes. In 1958 winds of 450km per hours (280 miles per hour) hit Wichita Falls in Taxes, USA. That is faster than the fastest passenger train and as fast as a racing car.

Tornadoes seldom last more than an hour and move very slowly across the country. Yet in that time they do tremendous damage. In 1925 a tornado killed 700 people in the southern-central United States of America.

The world’s worst hurricanes hit Bangladesh in November 1970. A million people were killed by the floods whipped up by the winds and the rain.

FACTS INTERESTING ABOUT ATLANTIS

The Ancient Greeks write of an idyllic island called Atlantis which disappeared into the sea. Why did it disappear? According to the story, the sea God was so angry at how greedy and dishonest the people had become, he shook the island for a day and a night before the sea swamped it forever. Many people have wondered whether Atlantis really existed and historians think that the legend is based in the island of Thera, now known as Santorini. In 1450 BC a huge volcanic explosion shook the island. Most of the island disappeared beneath the sea and a tidal wave flooded the island round about, probably destroying the Minoan civilization of the nearby island, Crete.

BERMUDA TRIANGLE

There is an area in the Caribbean Sea known as the Bermuda Triangle. Many ships and planes have mysteriously disappeared here. Is there some supernatural force at work here, spiriting people away to another planet or pulling them to their death in the sea below? Although many disappearances are reported to have happen in the calm weather, investigations show that the area is given to sudden storms. Hurricanes often begin here and it is not surprising that many planes and ships have been lost.