Latitude
Distance north/south of the eqautor
Prevailing winds
Average direction of the wind in an area
Aspect
Direction a slope faces in relation to the sun
Altitude
Height above sea level
Natural vegetation
Cover of plants and trees that grow in an area
Naturally, unaffected by humans
Hot climates
Hot dessert cl.
Equatorial cl.
Found between 30° N and 30° S
Temperate climates
Warm temperate oceanic Cl.
Cool Temperate Oceanic Cl.
Cold climates
Tundra Cl
Boreal Cl
Winter of the desert
Absence of clouds means rapid heat loss at night
Oasis
Fertile are in a desert where water is found close to the surface
Desertification
Spread of desert due to vegetatation loss, overgrazing etc.
Drought
Increased evaporation without increasing condensation
Mediterranean Cl
An a.k.a. For the Warm Temperate Oceanic Climate
Tundra
W/O trees
Boreal
‘Northern’ cold climate
Coniferous
Trees that are cone bearing
Hibernation
Animals passing all or part of the winter in a deep sleep
Equatorial climate
- one season, all year AV. 32°
- rains every afternoon. Per annum = 2,000mm (very humid)
- jungle+hardwood eg. Mahogany
- exotic birds, snakes, monkeys, butterflies, wild cats
Savanna climate
- hot all year. AV. 25°-35°
- 2 seasons - summer(wet)
- winter (dry) - P/a rainfall 800mm
- scattered trees+grassland
- cattle, African mammals
Hot dessert climate (Temperature/weather)
- Large range of temp.- Day 30-50°
- night 5° - Cloudless -long hours of sunshine
- ‘winter of the dessert’ - Rainfal rare >100mm a year
- long drought-> sudden downpour
- warm winds keep moisture-> no rain
- cold water lets clouds rain, so by the time they get to the dessert the winds are dry! AY!
Hot dessert climate (animals/vegetation)
Cactus- thick waxy skin, needles, holds moisture
Date palm- taproots-> grow deep for water
Joshua tree- juicy flesh hold water
Rattlesnakes- water from prey
Jackrabbit- long ears looses body heat
DesertFox- goes out at night
Camel-> stores fat
- > closable nostrils - > thick lips for prickly plants - > long eyelashes - > wide hooves
Cool Temperate Oceanic Climate
- Ireland-ish-> summer =15-20°
- > winter= 2-6° - rain all year. P/a 800-2,000mm
- weather changes a lot
- deciduous forest eg. Oak, ash, elm. most cut down for industry
Warm Temperate Oceanic Cl
Seasons-> hot summer,30° (sun high, close to equator)
-> mild winters 4-6° (lots of sun hours, prevailing
Wind from Africa)
Rainfall. -> dry summer, trade winds from Africa bring no moisture
->winter, wind from Atlantic Ocean, rains heavily
Plantlife -> evergreen trees eg. Olive
L> absorbs moisture in the winter
L> thick bark +waxy leaves to stop moisture loss
-> heathers, herbs eg thyme, lavender,
->oranges, lemons, grapefruit, tomatoes
-> wheat, sunflowers, maize
Climate
Average condition of the weather over a long periods of time (35 years ) across a large area
Tundra
Temperature-summers, short and cool 5° average
-winter, long and cold, as far as -35°
-Large range
Precipitation- low,
Boreal weather
Summer- long hours of daylight
-coast 10°
-inland 15°
-northern hemisphere pointed to sun. Land holds heat
Winters - cold, -25°
-hemisphere pointed away, short hours of light
Precipita-Less than 400mm
-snow
-boreal regions far from sea-> little moisture
Boreal Climate Natural vegetation adaptions
Vegetation-Taiga (evergreen forest) with coniferous trees
L> keep needles(sloped down so snow falls off)
L> needles prevent moisture loss
L> shallow roots,spread horizontally,avoids permafrost
permafrost- when underground water freezes
L> bark retains moisture+ wind protection
Boreal climate animals
- mink, bear, wolf, eagle
- spread out hooves as snowshoes
- hibernation
- migration
- thick fur