Download Major Factors that Influence Climate

Major Factors that Influence Climate
1. LOCATION: This is the most important factor. Latitude on
the earth (north or south of the equator) is critical to climate.
Generally, the closer a place is to the equator, the warmer it will
be. The farther it is from the equator (like Antarctica) the colder it
will be. Location overpowers all of the other climate influences.
2. Water/Currents: If an area is located near a large body of
water, such as an ocean or large lake, the temperature there will
stay relatively mild. This is because water does not heat or cool as
fast as land does. For example, when sand on a beach is hot, the
water is still cool. Therefore, wind that blows in from the water
will be cooler than the air over land. This results in a more mild
climate. Likewise, in the winter, the water is warmer than the land
and winds blowing in will warm the air over land.
Ocean currents are like rivers that are constantly flowing
through our oceans. These ocean currents surround our continents.
There are warm and cold currents. Warm currents start near the
equator where they are warmed by the sun. Cold currents start
near the poles. The movement of the currents spreads the earth’s
heat evenly throughout the planet.
A warm current is more likely to produce rain than a cold
current because warm water evaporates more quickly than cold
water. This puts moisture in the atmosphere that wind carries over
the land. This then will fall as rain. Cold currents create dry air
and therefore little rain. The Amazon rain forest is located near a
warm water current while the Sahara desert is just east of a cold
water current.
3. Mountains: Mountains affect climate in 2 ways. First, for
about each 1000 feet of elevation above sea level, an area loses
about 3 degrees of temperature. Therefore, a city located in a high
elevation zone will be cooler than a surrounding lower area and
snow will be found on mountaintops even in tropical zones.
Second, mountains block rain from certain areas. This is called the
rain shadow effect. It occurs when a cloud runs into the side of a
mountain and drops its rainfall on the coastal (windward) side of
the mountain. The inland (leeward) side of the mountain will be
dry because little moisture is left in the cloud. The panhandle of
Oklahoma is in the rain shadow of the Rocky Mountains.
4. Rotation and Tilt of the Earth: Seasons are caused by the tilt
of the earth. During the U.S. summer we are tilted toward the sun
and during winter, we are tilted away from the sun. This tilt keeps
direct sunlight from ever reaching the poles. The poles have
almost half of the year in total darkness or total light because of the
tilt. Similarly, the tropics (area between the Tropic of Cancer and
Tropic of Capricorn) receive near constant heat and sunlight
throughout the year, keeping their temperatures stable. The
movement of direct sunlight north and south on the globe keeps
heat spread throughout the earth and prevents overheating of the
earth at the equator.