This comparison covers Natural vs Human Causes — Key Comparisons within Climate Change and Hazard Response for GCSE Geography. Revise Climate Change and Hazard Response in The Challenge of Natural Hazards for GCSE Geography with 16 exam-style questions and 20 flashcards. This is a high-frequency topic, so it is worth revising until the explanation feels precise and repeatable. It is section 4 of 14 in this topic. Use this comparison to connect the idea to the wider topic before moving on to questions and flashcards.
Natural vs Human Causes — Key Comparisons
| Factor | Natural Causes | Human Causes |
|---|---|---|
| Speed of change | Over thousands to millions of years | Over decades — 100× faster than natural post-ice-age change |
| Direction | Both warming and cooling (volcanoes cool; orbital cycles drive both) | Consistently warming since ~1950 |
| IPCC attribution | Accounts for less than 10% of post-1950 warming | Dominant driver of all post-1950 warming ("unequivocal") |
| CO₂ signature | Natural CO₂ range: 180–280 ppm over 800,000 years | CO₂ now 421 ppm — 50% above natural maximum in 3 million years |
| Example | Milankovitch cycles: 20,000–100,000-year orbital shifts; Pinatubo 1991: 0.5°C cooling for 1–2 years | Fossil fuel burning: 38 billion tonnes CO₂/year; deforestation: 15% of emissions |
Practice questions for Climate Change and Hazard Response
What do greenhouse gases do in the atmosphere?
Explain how burning fossil fuels contributes to climate change. [2 marks]
Quick recall flashcards
What is adaptation?
Action taken to adjust to the effects of climate change.
What is mitigation?
Action taken to reduce the causes of climate change.