How did El Nino change weather patterns and affect crops around the world? What are humans doing to help or hinder the health of the world's oceans? And what hurricane event happended for the first time since 1893? Whether you're a student writing a report, or a professional in need of some quick answers, you'll find what you're looking for in the Covering the state of the four major geophysical topics associated with the Earth: the atmosphere, oceans, fresh water, and land, this new edition presents an incredible amount of usable information about the changes in our planet during 1999. Details of whole earth events and human-made and natural disasters are chronicled along with the necessary background information and statistics for understanding the science involved. Hot topics such as global warming, ozone depletion, and El Nino. Goldstein explores specific major geophysical events and then continues with information on the latest scientific developments in fields such as geology, oceanography, and meteorology. Readers will also discover hot topics entries that are unique to this almanac—namely information on human-made events (pollution, carbon dioxide, oil spills urbanization, and water conflicts). Current and complete with more than 300 photos, charts, and statistical graphs, no other reference book compares to this one-stop resource. Topics covered include Air Pollution Cryosphere: The Ice El Nino Fresh Water Geological Processes Global Warming Land Use Ocean Fundamentals Structure of the Atmosphere Whole-Earth Events