Download Climate refers to longterm, predictable atmospheric

Climate refers to long­term, predictable atmospheric conditions, while
weather refers to atmospheric conditions during a short period of time.
LEARNING OBJECTIVE [ edit ]
Distinguish between climate and weather
KEY POINTS [ edit ]
Climate refers to the long­term, predictable atmospheric conditions of a specific area; it does not
address the amount of rain that fell on one particular day or the colder­than­average
temperatures on a given day in a biome.
Weather refers to the conditions of the atmosphere during a short period of time; weather
forecasts are usually made for 48­hour cycles.
Specific, one­off weather occurrences are not necessarily indicators of climate change.
TERMS [ edit ]
weather
the short term state of the atmosphere at a specific time and place, including the temperature,
humidity, cloud cover, precipitation, wind, etc.
biome
any major regional biological community such as that of forest or desert
climate
long­term manifestations of weather and other atmospheric conditions in a given area or country
in a period long enough to ensure that representative values are obtained (generally 30 years)
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Climate and Weather
A common misconception about global
climate change is that a specific weather
event occurring in a particular region (for
example, a very cool week in June in
central Indiana) is evidence of global
climate change. However, a cold week in
June is a weather­related event and not a
climate­related one. These
misconceptions often arise because of
confusion over the terms climate and
weather.
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Climate refers to the long­term, predictable atmospheric conditions of a specific area . The
climate of a biome is characterized by having consistent temperature and annualrainfall
ranges. Climate does not address the amount of rain that fell on one particular day in a
biome or the colder­than­average temperatures that occurred on one day. In contrast,
weather refers to the conditions of the atmosphere during a short period of time. Weather
forecasts are usually made for 48­hour cycles; while long­range weather forecasts are
available, they can be unreliable.
Climate
Climate refers to long­term, predictable atmospheric conditions of a specific area. Weather, in contrast,
refers to the conditions of the atmosphere during a short period of time. This map illustrates the various
climate conditions around the world.
To better understand the difference between climate and weather, imagine that you are
planning an outdoor event in northern Wisconsin. You would be thinking about climate
when you plan the event in the summer rather than the winter because you have long­term
knowledge that any given Saturday in the months of May to August would be a better choice
for an outdoor event in Wisconsin than any given Saturday in January. However, you cannot
determine the specific day that the event should be held because it is difficult to accurately
predict the weather on a specific day. Climate can be considered "average" weather.