The climate
The varying amounts of solar radiation during the day or the seasons, the
varying height of the sun in the sky and the length of radiation are the reasons
for the hot and cold zones.
Tropical zone
the sun is overhead nearly the whole year
at any place in the tropics, the sun is at its
zenith- the point directly overhead
(twice a year)
It is at its zenith only once a year at the Tropic
of Cancer and the Tropic of Capricorn
solar radiation is very intense all year long
night and day are about equally long
temperature variations are small- no seasons
Subtropical zone:
lies between about 25° and 40° north and south of the equator
climate in the belt is warmer than in the temperate climate zone;
characterized by wet and dry seasons
Temperate zone:
lies between the tropics and the Arctic and
Antarctic Circle
sun never reaches its zenith here
Less solar radiation
over the season the length of day and night
as well as temperatures change a lot
“our climate”
Polar zones:
sun is rather low in the sky in the polar or
cold zones
for months, the sun doesn´t rise above the
horizon at all
total amount of solar radiation is quite
small
Division of zones is quite semantic
nature is not clear divided
the nearer a place is situated to the ocean, the less variation in
temperature occurs maritime climate e.g. Mediterranean Sea
a place far away from the coast has greater variations in temperature
land masses become hotter in summer than places near the oceans
continental climate e.g. Hungary (35°c in summer, -20°c in winter)
the higher a place is situated above sea level, the cooler its temperatures
are, e.g. Mt Kilimanjaro (5895 m) in Tanzania is near the equator, but
because of its height, there is always snow at the top
Task:
1. Why it the classification into hot and cold zones too schemantic?
2. In your opinion, in which zone do people have the most comfortable
living condition? Why?
3. What kind of climate zones are the following countries? Indonesia,
Greenland, Great Britain, Jamaica, Morocco, New York, Melbourne
4. Find out the elevation of Quito in Ecuador and La Paz in Bolivia. What
kinds of temperatures would you expect there based on their latitudes?
How is it in real? Why?
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