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S5 Geography Practice Paper: Weather, Climate, Plate Tectonics and Population
S5 Geography: Climate, Hydrology, Plate Tectonics and Population
S5 Geography practice paper: climate, hydrology, plate tectonics and population. 12 data-based questions, 100 marks, 75 minutes, with answers and marking points.
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Paper details Level: S5 | Subject: Geography | Time: 75 minutes | Marks: 100 | Questions: 12 | Answers included
Weather and Climate Systems
Section A: Multiple Choice and Short Questions (25 marks)
| # | Question | Answer and marking notes |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | On a certain day the sea-level temperature is 28.0 °C. Air rises along a slope to 3,000 m. Assuming a dry adiabatic lapse rate of 6.5 °C per 1,000 m, find the temperature at that height and explain why the actual lapse rate of moist air is smaller. The day is clear with no cloud, so no condensation occurs on the slope. | 28.0 – (3,000 / 1,000 x 6.5) = 8.5 °C (3 marks). Moist air releases latent heat when water vapour condenses as it rises, which offsets part of the cooling (3 marks). |
| 2 | A station records a January mean temperature of 16.5 °C and a July mean of 28.5 °C; January rainfall is 25 mm and July rainfall 240 mm, with an annual total of 1,450 mm. Calculate the annual temperature range and identify the climate type. The station lies on a coastal plain and is affected by continental cold air in winter. | Annual range = 28.5 – 16.5 = 12.0 °C (3 marks); annual rainfall of 1,450 mm with a strong summer maximum indicates a subtropical monsoon climate (3 marks). |
| 3 | A city has a population of 1,250,000 and a land area of 45 km2, of which 20% is undevelopable upland. Calculate the overall population density and the density in the developable area. The city has had continuous net in-migration in recent years. | 1,250,000 / 45 = 27,778 persons per km2 (4 marks); developable area = 45 x 0.8 = 36 km2, so 1,250,000 / 36 = 34,722 persons per km2 (3 marks). |
| 4 | A country has a birth rate of 8.5 per 1,000 and a death rate of 6.2 per 1,000. Calculate the rate of natural increase in per mille and in per cent, and state one likely feature of its population structure, and outline the pressure this places on public health care. | 8.5 – 6.2 = 2.3 per 1,000 = 0.23% (3 marks); low birth and death rates imply an ageing population and a rising dependency ratio (3 marks). |
Hydrology and Plate Tectonics
Section B: Data and Graph Analysis (30 marks)
| # | Question | Answer and marking notes |
|---|---|---|
| 5 | A river has a cross-sectional area of 24 m2 and a mean velocity of 1.8 m/s. Calculate the discharge in m3/s and the daily volume in m3. If the catchment area is 96 km2, find the runoff depth for that day in mm. The channel is straight and its cross-section is uniform at the measuring point. | 24 x 1.8 = 43.2 m3/s (3 marks); daily volume = 43.2 x 86,400 = 3,732,480 m3 (3 marks); 3,732,480 / 96 km2 = 38.9 mm (2 marks). |
| 6 | On a map two points are 6 km apart horizontally, and the ground rises from the 150 m contour to the 600 m contour. Calculate the average slope in m/km and as a percentage, and state one limitation of such a slope for farming, and suggest one soil conservation method. | Rise = 600 – 150 = 450 m; 450 / 6 = 75 m/km (3 marks); slope = 450 / 6,000 x 100% = 7.5% (2 marks); steep slopes hinder mechanised farming and increase soil erosion (2 marks). |
| 7 | A station records a 24-second difference between the arrival of P waves and S waves. P waves travel at 6.0 km/s and S waves at 3.5 km/s. Calculate the epicentre distance and explain why the time difference differs between stations. | Time difference per km = 1/3.5 – 1/6.0 = 0.119 s (4 marks); distance = 24 / 0.119 = 201.6 km (4 marks). |
| 8 | An oceanic plate subducts beneath a continental plate at 60 mm per year. Calculate the distance moved in 3 million years in km and name two landforms typical of this type of boundary and name one natural hazard common at such boundaries. | 60 mm x 3,000,000 years = 180,000,000 mm = 180 km (4 marks); a trench and a volcanic island arc, or fold mountains (3 marks). |
Population and Urban Environment
Section C: Structured Essay Questions (45 marks)
| # | Question | Answer and marking notes |
|---|---|---|
| 9 | A catchment receives 2,200 mm of rainfall a year and loses 900 mm to evapotranspiration, with no net change in soil storage. Calculate annual runoff in mm and as a percentage of rainfall, and explain how urbanisation alters runoff and affects flood control downstream. | 2,200 – 900 = 1,300 mm (4 marks); 1,300 / 2,200 x 100 = 59.1% (4 marks); urbanisation increases impervious surfaces, so infiltration falls, surface runoff rises and the flood peak arrives earlier (4 marks). |
| 10 | In a place, 15% of the population is aged 0-14, 65% is aged 15-64 and 20% is aged 65 or above. Calculate the total dependency ratio and the old-age dependency ratio, and suggest two measures to cope with an ageing population, giving one Hong Kong example for each measure. | (15 + 20) / 65 x 100 = 53.8% (4 marks); old-age dependency ratio = 20 / 65 x 100 = 30.8% (3 marks); raise the retirement age, import labour, develop silver-hair industries or expand long-term care (any two, 4 marks). |
| 11 | Explain how the winter Siberian high forms and how it affects the wind direction and weather of Hong Kong, and describe one impact of cold surges on farming and state the average winter temperature of Hong Kong. | Intense radiative cooling over the Asian continent in winter produces a strong high with subsiding air (3 marks); air flows from land to sea along the pressure gradient, giving Hong Kong dry, sunny, cool north to north-east winds (5 marks); cold surges can cause frost that damages crops and harms fishing (3 marks). |
| 12 | The urban area is 3.5 °C warmer than the surrounding countryside. Give three causes of this urban heat island and suggest two mitigation measures and explain how a green roof lowers urban air temperature. | Causes: buildings absorb and store heat, sparse vegetation weakens evapotranspiration, human heat release from air conditioning and traffic, air pollutants absorb long-wave radiation, and street canyons trap heat (any three, 6 marks); measures: green roofs and more parks, ventilation corridors, light-coloured materials and cutting anthropogenic heat (any two, 5 marks). |
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