A) CLIMATE VS. WEATHER
• Climate is the weather
pattern in one place
over a long period of
time
• Weather is the current
atmospheric conditions,
including temperature,
rainfall, wind, and
humidity at a given
place
B) Earth’s Tilt
& Rotation
• Tilt affects the temperature
of places.
- Earth makes one rotation on
its to cause day & night.
- Earth takes 365 1/4
days to revolve
around the sun.
C) THE SEASONS
• Earth’s revolution & the
tilt create seasons
• March 21st
• Sun’s rays fall directly on
equator
• Equinox (equal night)
• Tropic of Capricorn
• 23 ½ degrees South
• December 22nd
• Shortest day of sunlight in
northern hemisphere
• Winter solstice
• Tropic of Cancer
• 23 ½ degrees North
• June 21st
• Earth moves so sun falls on
this latitude.
• Longest day of sunlight in
northern hemisphere
• Summer solstice
D) THE GREENHOUSE EFFECT
• Earth’s atmosphere acts as a
like in a greenhouse- it traps
sun’s energy.
• Greenhouse Effect• Atmosphere provides just the
right amount of insulation to
promote life.
• Sun’s radiation turns into heat.
• Global warming
• Some scientists believe there is
a rise in CO 2 levels (carbon
dioxide). More heat is trapped.
WHY GLOBAL WARMING?
• Human activityburning of coal, oil,
and natural gas
(releases CO2)
• Or natural?
E) FACTORS AFFECTING CLIMATE
• 1) Latitude - rays of sun & how it strikes the earth (low latitudesun year-round).
• 2)Elevation- atmosphere gets thinner (thinner air retains less
heat…not as dense) as altitude increases.
• 3) Wind & Ocean current - ex. Prevailing winds - blow in constant
patterns.
• 4) Landforms- water slower to heat than land, so land near water
has consistent temp.
WIND PATTERNS
• Wind blows because of temperature differences on the surface.
• Earth rotates to the east, the global winds are displaced clockwise
in the north)
OCEAN CURRENTS
• Cold and warm streams of water move through oceans (based
on earth’s rotation, differences in water temperature, and
change in air pressure.
WEATHER AND THE WATER CYCLE
• Wind & water work together to
affect weather= precipitation
• El Nino- recurring climatic event
• Low atmospheric pressure rises
over the western pacific, while
the high pressure over the
eastern pacific lowers
LANDFORMS AND CLIMATE
• The presence (or absence)
of landforms affect
climate.
• Large bodies of water are
slower to heat than land
(so land temps aren’t
consistent).
• Mountains also influence
precipitation and climate.
• Winds are pushed upward
when meet a mountain
range.
• This releases moisture and
causes rain on windward
side.
TYPES OF CLIMATES:
F) LOW LATITUDE-TROPICAL
• Hot and muggy the year
around.
• Rain forests
• Average annual rainfall
varies from about 70 to
100 inches
• Average 80 degrees F for
high temp.
• Low temp range of all
climates
G) LOW TO MIDLATITUDE
• Little precipitation.
• Steppe climate
usually borders desert
climates.
• Desert rainfall is 10
inches (Steppe b/t 10
and 20 inches)
• Covers 24% of land
H) MID-LATITUDE- MEDITERRANEAN
• Warm to hot, dry summers and
mild, rainy winters.
• On the west side of continents
• Between 30 degrees and 45
degrees latitude.
• Southern California
• SF
I) HIGH-LATITUDE
SUBARTIC
• Short, cool
summers and long,
bitterly cold
winters.
• Needle-leaved
evergreen trees
• Most precipitation
falls in the
summer.
J) HIGH-LATITUDE
ICECAP
• Coldest on earth.
• Summer temperatures
rarely rise above the
freezing point.
• Supports no
vegetation.
• Precipitation is
meager and is almost
always in the form of
snow.
K) HIGHLAND
• In mountainous
regions.
• Varies with
elevation.
• Evergreen &
Deciduous trees
grow at base of
mountains.
COUNTRY
CLIMATE BROCHURE
• You will create a brochure for one particular
climate in groups of 4.
• You will attempt to sell a visit to one location/
country that has the climate assigned to you.
• Must be colored/in pen with appropriate titles
for each section.
• Due _______________
• For the brochure you must do the following:
• The Country (Pick on country to focus on- Use pg. 53 in
text & Internet to identify country)
- Slogan (on cover, with name of country & climate & small pic)
INSIDE
• What to Do (five activities w/ one sentence description. For
each).
• What to Wear (five appropriate clothing attire identified)
• What to Expect (Five descriptive sentences about climate
features… “Amazingly, the desert covers 24
% of the world’s landmass”)
• 7 Pictures (no title needed, but must be colored and have a
caption for each picture).
-- Why Visit? (4-6 sentence paragraph to sell your
country/climate!)
• Where to Visit (Select five other countries to visit that have
same climate region and list).
As a note - you must describe what each person did on project on brochure.