Test Dates: February 2nd (open-ended)
February 3rd (scantron)
Climate Regions Test – STUDY GUIDE
1) Define the following:
a) Evaporation – when liquid water turns to water vapor when heated
b) Precipitation – any form of water that falls to the earth form the clouds – rain & snow
c) Condensation – when water vapor molecules come together to form liquid water
d) Transpiration – loss of water vapor from trees and plants
e) Steppe – grasslands found in the dry climate regions - in the semi-arid zones
f) Windward – the side of the mountain located near the ocean which receives a lot of
precipitation
g) Leeward – the side of the mountain that is farther inland – gets very little precipitation
h) Estivation – process by which animals slow down their body processes and sleep
through the hottest and/or driest season when food and water are scarce
2) Explain why the 23.5° tilt of the Earth is important.
Earth has seasons because its axis is tilted as it revolves around the sun.
3) Explain how greenhouse gasses affect temperature. (pages 93, 94)
The increase of greenhouse gases is causing Earth’s temperatures to rise more
quickly than ever before by keeping (trapping) the heat close to the earth.
Provide characteristics “specific” to the following Region:
4) Tropical Rainy:
a) Location: both zones are near the Equator, in the tropical latitudes - between the
Tropics of Cancer and Capricorn
b) Zones:
“Tropical Wet” and “Tropical Wet and Dry”
c) Precipitation: “Tropical Wet” – between 100 and 300 inches per year (highest
precipitation levels of any climate region
“Tropical Wet and Dry”- 25 inches (wet season) / up to 4 inches (dry season)
d) Temperature: “Tropical Wet” – average 80 degrees
“Tropical Wet and Dry”- 77 degrees (wet season) / 68 degrees (dry season)
e) Compare and Contrast Zones:
“Tropical Wet & Dry” – grasslands (savannas) located on outer edges of Tropical Wet
“Tropical Wet & Dry” - rainforests
f) Seasons: “Tropical Wet”- 1 season
“Tropical Wet and Dry”- 2 seasons - wet (summer) dry (winter)
g) Vegetation: “Tropical Wet”- rich in biodiversity of plant life / dense forests
“Tropical Wet and Dry”- grasslands (grasses, shrubs, scattered trees)
5) Temperate Marine:
a) Locations:
along the coasts of continents in the temperate zones (23.5 - 66.5)
b) Zones: Mediterranean – warm, dry summers / rainy winters
Humid subtropical – hot summers / cool winters
Marine West Coast – cool summers / mild winters
Temperate Marine (Continued):
c) Describe which is the warmest zone and why:
Humid subtropical are warmest because they are along the edges of the tropics
Mediterranean are second warmest
d) Describe the climate and what causes these conditions:
All three zones are humid and have mild winters because of the moderating
influence of the oceans (humid air masses)
e) Seasons: they all have 2 seasons
6) Dry:
a) Zones and common names: arid (desert) / semi-arid (steppe)
b) Locations: Arid – lie inland / far from oceans / in Rain Shadows
Semi-arid – usually on edges of deserts
c) Connection to Rain Shadows 1. Air masses, containing moisture, climb up one side of
mountain. 2. At high altitudes, cool air condenses, forms clouds and drops
precipitation on windward side of mountain. 3. As air masses cross over top of
mountain to leeward side, they contain dry air, which forms a desert.
d) Temperature: Arid – some deserts are hot and sandy, while others are cold and rocky
Big difference between daytime and nighttime temperatures
Semi-arid – have seasons with hot summers and cold summers
e) Describe the effects of cloud cover: lack of cloud cover (deserts) allows daytime
heat to escape creating the extreme differences in daytime and night time
temperatures
f) Animal survival traits: estivation, nocturnal, burrowing underground, large ears
7) Temperate Continental:
a) Zones and Location: both zones are only found in the Northern Hemisphere
Humid continental – in U.S. > northeast and Midwest
Subarctic – Alaska, Canada, Russia
b) Vegetation: Humid continental – forests in Northeast / grasslands in midwest
Subarctic – coniferous forests
c) What factors influences climate: shifting tropical and polar air masses moved around
by prevailing winds bring constantly changing weather
d) Describe how prevailing winds move across the United States. From west to east
e) Identify the humidity and temperature for each of the 4 air masses below:
Air Mass
Humidity (moist or dry)
Temperature (cold or warm)
Maritime tropical
moist
warm
Continental tropical
dry
warm
Maritime polar
moist
cold
Continental polar
dry
cold
Temperate Continental (continued):
f) Describe where maritime tropical air masses come from in the United States.
Gulf of Mexico (to eastern parts of U.S.) / Pacific Ocean (to California & southwest)
g) Describe what has happened to most of the United States prairies.
They have been converted into farms
8) Polar Climate:
a) Characteristics: ice cap – below freezing all year
Tundra – 2 seasons > short summers (50 ° F) / long winters (below freezing)
b) Zones: ice cap and tundra
c) Locations: far north and south / near north and south poles
Ice cap – mainly on Greenland and Antarctica
Tundra – Northern Alaska, Canada, Russia
d) Soil characteristics: tundra – permafrost is permanently frozen soil (only a few inches
thaw out during summer)
e) Vegetation: ice cap – few low plants
tundra – lichens, mosses, grasses, wildflowers *** NO TREES
- Because of low precipitation, permafrost, short growing season
f) Explain why there is little precipitation: because cold air holds little moisture
g) Describe how the Polar Climate affects climates across the globe:
Cold polar water flows along the ocean floor toward the equator bringing cooler
temperatures to some coastlines as warmer water from the equator moves towards
the polar regions. The ocean acts as a sort of “Thermostat” that modulates
(influences) temperatures around the globe.
9) Highlands:
a) Location:
high mountain areas and high areas of high elevation
b) Vegetation: above tree line: low plants, mosses, lichens
below tree line: mostly coniferous trees
c) Temperature: colder than regions around them
above tree line – too cold for trees to grow
d) Explain how air masses effect precipitation:
Precipitation increases as air masses carrying moisture pass over highland areas.
e) Explain how glaciers affect sea level:
as glaciers on land melt and the water enters the ocean, the ocean’s level rises
f) Explain how altitude affects the temperature:
temperature decreases (gets colder) as altitude (elevation) increases