Climate of Costa Rica
Eugene S. Takle
Professor
Department of Agronomy
gstakle@iastate.edu
Overview
• Big Picture
– Global circulation
– Global climate perspective
– Regional and local influences
• Local Influences
– How can we explain local conditions in the
context of global and regional influences?
Latitude of San Jose: ~9.5o North
http://jrscience.wcp.muohio.edu/html/costaricaclimate.html
Non-rotating Earth
heated uniformly at
its Equator
Circulation
system not to
scale!
Mean radius of the earth:
6371 km
Height of the troposphere:
0-7 km at poles
20 km at Equator
90% of atmosphere is in the
lowest 15 miles (24 km)
99% in lowest 30 miles (48
km)
http://jrscience.wcp.muohio.edu/html/costaricaclimate.html
wet
dry
http://jrscience.wcp.muohio.edu/html/costaricaclimate.html
112 Volcanic formations
Chirippo Grande
(12,530 ft)
http://jrscience.wcp.muohio.edu/html/costaricaclimate.html
Volcan Irazu, Costa Rica (11,260 feet)
Cloud Forest
Cloud base
Fog drip can be the dominant form of precipitation
Mountain Precipitation:
Moist on windward side,
Dry on leeward side
Cloud base
Forest
Tropical
Cash crop
Cereal grains
* San Jose
Rice, corn, coffee
Climate: The climate in Costa Rica varies depending upon elevation and location.
The coastal plains are warm and tropical. Mountainous regions are much cooler and the Central Plateau has a spring-like climate
year-round, with little variation in temperature from month to month (the average daily temperature is 75 F or 25 C).
December through April is the dry season, when rain is quite uncommon. May through November is considered the rainy, or "green",
season, although mornings are usually quite sunny, with most of the rain falling in afternoon showers.
http://www.crtinfo.com/costa_rica_biodiversity.htm
Atlantic Ocean
Pacific Ocean
The Central Valley or plateau around
San José has an altitude of 1,165 meters or 3,880 ft.
http://jrscience.wcp.muohio.edu/html/costaricaclimate.html
Climate of Cost Rica
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Costa Rica is a tropical country which contains several distinct
climatic zones.
There is no winter or summer as we know it
Most regions of the country have a rainy season from May to
November and a dry season from December to April
Annual rainfall averages 100 inches nationwide with some
mountainous regions getting as much as 25 feet on exposed
eastern slopes.
Temperature is more a matter of elevation than location with a
mean of around 72 degrees in the Central Valley, 82
degrees on the Atlantic coast and 89 degrees on the Pacific
coast.
For Current Weather Conditions and 10-Day Forecasts:
http://www.1costaricalink.com/eng/web/weather.htm
Climate of Cost Rica: Summary
* Because of its location an almost constant
temperature of 20ºC or 68ºF all year round,
Costa Rica's climate is considered the healthiest
climate of the world according to a NASA research
* Costa Rica has a wide variety of microclimates,
depending on your altitude and location relative to
the oceans
Cool, wet and very green mountain
ranges (dairy farming)
rain forests and dry tropical forests
wet Caribbean coast
dry Pacific coast
cloud forests.