FACTORS THAT AFFECT
CLIMATE (LACEMOPS)
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/97/The_Earth_seen_from_Apollo_17.jpg/3
00px-The_Earth_seen_from_Apollo_17.jpg
Weather - The daily
condition of the atmosphere
which includes temperature
and precipitation.
Precipitation - Moisture
that falls from the sky.
Precipitation has 4 forms:
rain, snow, sleet, and hail.
http://www.mnh.si.edu/archives/garden/images/4seasons.gif
Climate - Average
weather. Measured over
an extended period of time
(usually 30 years).
L - LATITUDE
The most important factor!
The farther from the Equator - the colder and drier it becomes.
Direct rays of the sun are always between the Tropics. Areas not
in the tropics receive indirect sun rays.
Polar Night
• When the polar region is tilted away from the
sun – the polar area receives 24 hours of
darkness.
A - AIR MASSES
In the Northern
Hemisphere, cold
air from the Polar
Regions comes
from the north. Hot
air from the tropics
comes from the
south, (opposite in
the Southern
Hemisphere).
Mountains to the
north of a city (in
the Northern
Hemisphere) could
block the cold air
from reaching the
city.
C - CONTINENTALITY
Water moderates climate. Water takes longer to heat and cool
than land. Areas inland from the coast will be hotter in the
summer and colder in the winter than areas with the same latitude
on the coast.
http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://edc.usgs.gov/imagegallery/imageSrc/United%2520StatesNED500.jpg&imgrefurl=http://edc.usgs.gov/imagegallery/imageDetail.php%3Fpage%3D18%26img%3DUnited%2BStates-NED%26id%3D2071%26col%3DStates%2B%2BNED%2BShaded%2BRelief&h=353&w=500&sz=121&hl=en&start=17&um=1&tbnid=tsJBVC5mQRiZ6M:&tbnh=92&tbnw=130&prev=/images%3Fq%3Duni ted%2Bstates%2B%26svnum%3D10%26
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E - ELEVATION It gets colder as you go up a mountain. The
formula for vertical climate is: Temperature decreases 3.5º F for
every 1,000 feet increase in elevation (the opposite is also true).
You can work out the temperature at the top of a tall mountain.
http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.savetibet.org/images/images/MountEverest.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.savetibet .org/news/new
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It is 75º at the base of a 15,000 ft. tall mountain. What is the temperature
on top of the mountain?
First, count the
thousands…
(15,000)
Second,
multiply that
number by
3.5…
Third,
Subtract that
number from the
temperature at
the base to get
the answer…
3.5° (from formula)
X 15 (how many thousands of feet the mountain is tall)
52.5° (how much colder at the top than the bottom)
75° (temperature at bottom)
- 52.5° (how much colder at the top)
22.5 ° (temperature at the top)  Answer
M - MOUNTAIN BARRIERS
Orographic effect:
Wind containing moisture
hits the windward side of a
mountain (the side facing the
wind). The moisture full
clouds are too heavy to
make it over the mountain so
precipitation occurs, after the
precipitation, the clouds have
no moisture and are able to
rise over the mountain. The
side facing away from the
wind is called the leeward
side. The leeward side of a
mountain is arid. The
windward side has lush
vegetation. The leeward side
of a mountain is in the rain
shadow and is usually a
desert.
O - OCEAN CURRENTS
Cold currents bring dry, cool air to the coastal areas.
Warm currents bring warm, wet air to coastal areas.
http://go.owu.edu/~jbkrygie/krygier_html/geog_111/geog_111_lo/geog_111_lo05_gr/3-16.jpg
• A periodic reversal of the pattern of ocean currents and water
temperatures in the mid-pacific regions.
• Think about it - your farm is used to moist, warm air, and now it
is getting cold, dry air…..
General: El Niño episodes (left hand column) reflect periods of exceptionally warm sea surface temperatures across the eastern tropical
Pacific. La Niña episodes (right hand column) represent periods of below-average sea-surface temperatures across the eastern tropical
Pacific. These episodes typically last approximately 9-12 months. Sea-surface temperature (top) and departure (bottom) maps for
December - February during strong El Niño and La Niña episodes are shown above.
P - PRESSURE AND PREVAILING WINDS:
Pressure- High pressure is heavy, cold air. Low pressure is
warm, light air. Heat rises. There are some fairly constant air
pressure systems.
Notice that
these lines are
located at 0,
30, 60, 90 (not
0, 23 ½, 66 ½,
and 90)
Prevailing Winds-
The Equator is surrounded by an area of calm called the Doldrums (ITCZ).
The Trade Winds (Tropical Easterlies) blow from east to west (generally warm and
moist). They run from about 30º N/S toward the Equator.
Between 30º N/S and 60º N/S are the Westerlies (Prevailing Westerlies). They blow
from west to east.
Because the Westerlies and Trade Winds are traveling away from each other there is
an area of calm between them called the Horse Latitudes.
The Polar Easterlies blow from 90º in an eastward direction toward the Westerlies.
There are serious thunderstorms around the 60º latitude line where the two wind
patterns collide
Notice that these lines
are located at 0, 30, 60,
90 (not 0, 23 ½, 66 ½,
and 90)
http://www.worldstats.org/general_world/maps/prevailing_winds_big.gif
http://www.hurricane.com/hurricanes/hurricane-katrina/hurricane-katrina_files/image020.gif
S - STORMS
Where the Polar Easterlies meet the Westerlies there are thunderstorms.
When hot air masses and cold air masses collide - there are storms. Cyclonic
storms (hurricanes, typhoons, etc.) in the Northern Hemisphere spin counterclockwise. In the Southern Hemisphere cyclones spin clockwise.
ClimographIndicates average temperature and precipitation for an area.
Line graph = Temperature
Bar Graph = Precipitation
http://www.uwsp.edu/geo/faculty/ritter/glossary/A_D/climograph.html