chap1: weather and climate gw1 Flashcards
factors affecting temperature
latitude
altitude
cloud cover
distance from sea
latitude
Latitude is the distance of any point on earth measured north or south from the equator
When a place is nearer to the equator such as Singapore and Indonesia, the sun’s rays hitting it is at a higher solar angle. This causes the sun’s rays to be concentrated over a small area causing higher temperature
futher away from equator such as Russia -> sun’s ray hitting at lower solar angle -> sun’s rays to be widely spread out -? lower temperature
altitude
altitude is the height of a place in relation to sea level
Temperature decreases with increasing altitude. There is a general decrease in temperature of 6.5dc for every 1000m increase in altitude. The earth’s surface is warmed up by incoming shortwave radiation from the sun. When it is heating up, it emits incoming longwave radiation which warms up the atmosphere.
Air is less dense higher up the earth’s surface as there is lesser air pressure. The less dense air on the mountain top absorbs lesser heat from longwave radiation than dense air on sea level
cloud cover
During the day, the presence of clouds reflect a large portion of sun’s energy back to space keeping the earth’s surface cool. During the night, the presence of clouds absorbs heat radiated by the earth’s surface and escape into space keeping the air warm. Hence experience cooler day time and warmer night time which causes smaller diurnal temperature range
During the day, the absence of clouds allows a large amount of sun’s energy to reach the earth’s surface. During the night, the absence of clouds allows heat radiated from earth’s surface to escape into space. Hence experiencing warmer day time and cooler night time, causing a larger diurnal temperature range
distance from sea
maritime effect is the effect that large water bodies have on the climate of coastal areas. Water bodies such as oceans are slower in gaining and losing heat. During summer, the cool air over the sea decreases the temperature of coastal areas. During winter, the warm air over the sea increases temperature of coastal areas. Hence coastal areas are warmer in winter and cooler in summer which causes smaller annual temperatue range.
Continental effect is the effect that continental surfaces have on the climate of inland areas. Land is faster in gaining heat during summer and losing heat during winter. Hence, land experiences warmer summer and cooler winter which causes larger annual temperature range.
types of rain
relief rain
convectional rain
convectional rain
short but intense rain period in that area
Sun’s energy heats up the earth’s surface causing air around it to heat up too. Air is unstable , so the warm, moist air expands and rises. Temperature drops till dew point temperature where condensation occurs at condensation nuclei. Water droplets bump into each other and becomes larger, forming clouds. When the water droplets in the clouds are too large and heavy, it will fall as convectional rain
relief rain
occurs when warm, moist air is forced to rise over the obstacles such as mountain range. Air rises up the windward side which is facing the prevailing wind on the mountain and is forced to cool. Temperature reaches dew point temperature and condensation happens to form clouds. Clouds get too heavy and water droplets fall on the windward side as relief rain. At the leeward side, there is much less rain due to descending air
difference between weather and climate
weather is the atmosphere at a particular place and time.
climate is the average condition of the atmosphere of a specific place over a long period of time
temperature
The hotness or coldness of a place. This is determined by the amount of energy from sun that is absorbed by the earth’s surface, causing the earth’s surface to warm up
measured in degree celcius using a thermometer
explain how ‘solar angle’ affects the temperature of a place further away from the equator
When a place is further away from the equator, it has sun’s rays hitting it at a lower solar angle. This causes the sun’s rays to be widely spread out, causing lower temperature
explain how ‘solar angle’ affects the temperature of a place near the equator
When a place is near the equator, it has sun’s rays hitting it at a high solar angle. This causes the sun’s rays to be concentrated over a small area, causing higher temperature
why is it important to have 2 sets of temperature data?
to reduce human errors in collecting temperature data
To be more representative of the data collected
account for the relationship between temperature and altitude
Temperature decreases with altitude. There is a general decrease of 6.5dc for every 1000m increase in altitude. The earth’s surface is heated up by incoming shortwave solar radiation from sun. When the earth’s surface is heating up, it emits incoming longwave solar radiation which warms up the atmosphere
Air is less dense the higher up the earth’s surface. The less dense air on mountain absorbs less heat from longwave radiation than denser air on sea level
explain how a low percentage of clouds cover can affect diurnal temperatures in a city
During the day, the low percentage of clouds allows a large amount of sun’s energy to enter and reach earth’s surface. During the night, the low percentage of clouds allows heat radiated by earth’s surface to escape into space. This causes a cooler night and warmer day, causing a larger diurnal temperature range
