Coastal and Continental Temperature Ranges
Introduction: On the hottest days of summer why are the beaches at the seashore or lake
so crowded? Is there a difference in temperature on a lake or sea coast as compared to
inland, even if both location are the same latitude and elevation? If there is a difference,
why?
Objective: When you have completed this investigation, you will be able to:
1) Describe the difference in monthly temperatures of coastal and continental
regions.
2) Describe the temperature ranges of coastal and continental regions.
3) Explain the cause of the differences.
Materials:
4 colored pencils
graph paper
Procedure:
1) Graph the average monthly temperatures for the four cities given on the data chart
below. Plot all four cities on the same set of axes. Use a different color for each
city and make sure you include a color code.
Average Monthly Temperatures (0F)
City
New York,
NY
Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec
32
33
41
53
62
71
77
75
68
56
47
36
Bismark,
ND
7
15
26
43
55
64
70
69
57
46
29
15
Los
Angeles, CA
57
58
60
62
65
69
74
75
73
69
63
58
Phoenix,
AZ
52
56
61
68
77
87
92
90
85
73
61
55
Latitudes
City
New York, NY
Bismarck, ND
Los Angeles, CA
Phoenix, AZ
Degrees
400
460
340
330
Minutes
45’
48’
03’
27’
Seconds
06”
23”
15”
12”