Climate

The Earth’s Climate

What causes the seasons and different climates of the Earth? our four **seasons** exist because of the tilt of **the earth** on its axis and because of **the earth**'s orbit around the sun. What is the difference between climate and weather? **The difference between weather** and **climate** is a measure of time. **Weather** is what conditions of the atmosphere are over a short period of time, and **climate** is how the atmosphere "behaves" over relatively long periods of time. Describe each of the following climate types: Summer the weather is hot and sometimes rainy or stormy all depending on the day Fall the weather begins to get cold and trees, grass, and flowers begin to fall Winter the temp drops rapidly and snow begins to fall spring the snow begins to melt and the flowers bloom it gets rainy to

Low-latitude climates: These climates are controlled by equatorial a tropical air masses. • Tropical moist: Rainfall is heavy in all months. The total annual rainfall is often more than 250 cm. (100 in.). There are seasonal differences in monthly rainfall but temperatures of 27°C (80°F) mostly stay the same. Humidity is between 77 and 88%. • Wet-dry tropical: A seasonal change occurs between wet tropical air masses and dry tropical air masses. As a result, there is a very wet season and a very dry season. Trade winds dominate during the dry season. It gets a little cooler during this dry season but will become very hot just before the wet season. • Dry tropical: These desert climates are found in low-latitude deserts approximately between 18° to 28° in both hemispheres. these latitude belts are centered on the tropics of Cancer and Capricorn, which lie just north and south of the equator. They coincide with the edge of the equatorial subtropical high pressure belt and trade winds. Winds are light, which allows for the evaporation of moisture in the intense heat. Mid-latitude climates: Climates in this zone are affected by two different air-masses. The tropical air-masses are moving towards the poles and the polar air-masses are moving towards the equator. These two air masses are in constant conflict. Either air mass may dominate the area, but neither has exclusive control. • Dry mid-latitude: Characterized by grasslands, this is a semiarid climate. It can be found between the desert climate (BW) and more humid climates of the A, C, and D groups. If it received less rain, the steppe would be classified as an arid desert. With more rain, it would be classified as a tallgrass prairie. • Mediterranean: This is a wet-winter, dry-summer climate. Extremely dry summers are caused by the sinking air of the subtropical highs and may last for up to five months. • Moist continental: This climate is in the polar front zone - the battleground of polar and tropical air masses. Seasonal changes between summer and winter are very large. Daily temperatures also change often. Abundant precipitation falls throughout the year. It is increased in the summer season by invading tropical air masses. High-latitude climates: Polar and arctic air masses dominate these regions. Canada and Siberia are two air-mass sources which fall into this group. A southern hemisphere counterpart to these continental centers does not exist. Air masses of arctic origin meet polar continental air masses along the 60th and 70th parallels. • Boreal forest: This is a continental climate with long, very cold winters, and short, cool summers. This climate is found in the polar air mass region. Very cold air masses from the arctic often move in. The temperature range is larger than any other climate. Precipitation increases during summer months, although annual precipitation is still small. • Tundra: The tundra climate is found along arctic coastal areas. Polar and arctic air masses dominate the tundra climate. The winter season is long and severe. A short, mild season exists, but not a true summer season. Moderating ocean winds keep the temperatures from being as severe as interior regions. • Highland: Highland climates are cool to cold, found in mountains and high plateaus. Climates change rapidly on mountains, becoming colder the higher the altitude gets. The climate of a highland area is closely related to the climate of the surrounding biome. The highlands have the same seasons and wet and dry periods as the biome they are in. According to the Köppen climate classification system, describe the following climates:

• Db: **D** - Continental Climates can be found in the interior regions of large land masses. Total precipitation is not very high and seasonal temperatures vary widely. **b** - Warm summer with the warmest month below 22°C (72°F). These can also be found in **C** and **D** climates. • Ca: **C** - In Humid Middle Latitude Climates land/water differences play a large part. These climates have warm,dry summers and cool, wet winters. **a** - Hot summers where the warmest month is over 22°C (72°F). These can be found in **C** and **D** climates. • Am: **A** - Moist Tropical Climates are known for their high temperatures year round and for their large amount of year round rain. **m** - Rainforest climate in spite of short, dry season in monsoon type cycle. This letter only applies to **A** climates. Using the Köppen climate classification system, what climate do you live in? Why? Temperate


 * Step 2**:

Use the following resources to answer the questions above in your course wiki:


 * =  || [[image:http://www.blueplanetbiomes.org/images/climate_map.gif width="459" height="293" align="center" caption="World Climates Website-click the picture" link="http://www.blueplanetbiomes.org/climate.htm"]] ||
 * World Climates Website-click the picture ||  ||=   ||
 * =  || [[image:http://bp3.blogger.com/_J7b1t6AYY9w/SE1dawlpBZI/AAAAAAAAAjc/e4VizEZMS_U/s400/seasons+Of+Life+Large.jpg width="334" height="312" align="center" caption="Earth's Seasons-click picture for video" link="http://videos.howstuffworks.com/hsw/12886-spin-around-the-solar-system-the-earths-seasons-video.htm"]] ||
 * Earth's Seasons-click picture for video ||  ||=   ||