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.