Natural hazards
Edexcel GCSE Geography revision on Natural hazards. Aligned to the Pearson Edexcel GCSE Geography B 1GB0 specification. This bank has 10 practice questions on this topic.
Sample questions (3 of 10)
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Question 1
A constructive plate margin is where two plates...
- A) Move towards each other
- B) Move apart and new crust forms
- C) Slide past each other
- D) One subducts under the other
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Answer: Move apart and new crust forms
Magma rises into the gap to form new oceanic crust — most famous example is the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. Compare with destructive (one plate subducts, destroyed in the mantle, e.g. Andes) and conservative (slide past each other, e.g. San Andreas Fault, USA).
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Question 2
The Richter scale measures the ___ of an earthquake.
- A) Depth
- B) Magnitude
- C) Death toll
- D) Duration
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Answer: Magnitude
The Richter scale is logarithmic — each whole number is 10× the amplitude and ~32× the energy. Compare with Mercalli scale (measures impact / what people felt, 1-12). Magnitude is what the rock did; intensity is what humans experienced.
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Question 3
At a DESTRUCTIVE plate margin, the typical hazard is...
- A) Mid-ocean ridges and gentle volcanoes
- B) Powerful earthquakes and explosive volcanoes
- C) Hurricanes and tsunamis only
- D) Glaciers and ice sheets
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Answer: Powerful earthquakes and explosive volcanoes
Oceanic plate subducts under continental (denser oceanic sinks). Friction builds → released as massive earthquakes (Japan, Chile). Subducted plate melts → magma rises through cracks → explosive andesitic eruptions (Mt St Helens). Distinguishes from constructive (effusive basalt eruptions, e.g. Iceland).
Want to test yourself on the remaining cards for this topic?
7 more questions on Natural hazards — plus mistakes tracking and spaced repetition across the whole Geography spec.