Download Science 10 Miss Weir What Affects Earth`s Climate? WEATHER VS

Science 10
Miss Weir
What Affects Earth’s Climate?
WEATHER VS. CLIMATE:
Weather  ____________________________________________________________________
Climate  _____________________________________________________________________
1) THE TILT OF THE EARTH:
□ The Earth is a spherical, rotating, orbiting planet.
□ These motions determine the amount of ____________________________ absorbed by
different parts of the planet.
□ The earth is tilted an angle of __________. At the summer solstice which is on June 21 st,
the Northern hemisphere is tilted __________________ the sun. At the winter solstice
on December 21st the Northern hemisphere is tilted ________________ from the sun.
Solstice – When the sun reaches the ______________ or ____________ point in the sky at noon.
Equinox – when days and nights are _______________ in length.
The Four Seasons:
□ Starting at the left, the tilt is towards the Sun
causing _____________ in the Northern hemisphere
□ As the earth moves counter-clockwise, summer in
the Northern hemisphere changes to fall/autumn.
□ At far right of its orbit, the tilt is away from the Sun
and it is _______________ in the Northern hemisphere.
□ As the earth continues its path winter in the
Northern hemisphere turns into spring.
□ At the two midpoints of the orbit, the Sun’s rays are perpendicular to the equator and
equal amounts of energy are received by the hemispheres. These are the ____________
equinox on Mar. 21st and the __________ equinox on Sept. 21st.
Science 10
Miss Weir
□ A beam of sunlight that strikes the earth at the equator is _______________________to
the surface of the planet. An identical beam striking at 45º N latitude or 45º S latitude
would be more spread out than at the equator so the solar energy would be distributed
over a larger area. Closer to the poles, the energy would be spread out over an even
greater area.
The 2 different ways in which the Earth moves affect our_____________. The orbit around the
sun gives us our seasons. The west to east rotation determines the direction in which winds
blow and ocean currents flow. This, in turn, causes weather systems to move in specific
patterns.
________________________ a blanket of air and moisture that surrounds earth
**Life as we know it would not be possible without the atmosphere. Oxygen and nitrogen in
the atmosphere are needed to support life and CO2 is needed for green plants to thrive. The
atmosphere plays a role in the water cycle and also keeps the average temperature on Earth
within life-supporting range.**
The Atmosphere is made up of several layers:
_______________________________
_______________________________
_______________________________
_______________________________
 ___________________contains most of the atmosphere’s mass, all weather
phenomena occur in this layer.
Science 10
Miss Weir
2) PREVAILING WINDS:
 Of the many features we call weather, winds are one of the most important.
 Wind is: _________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
 Winds that affect large areas are called prevailing winds.
The earth is a sphere so the solar energy falls ____________________, most of it is near the equator.
-
In response to this uneven heating global wind systems develop at the equator – the wind
systems move the solar energy around to earth’s northern and southern hemispheres.
The equator is an area of ________ pressure and the poles are areas of _________ pressure.
-
As a result the flow of __________ air from the poles moves towards the equator and
____________ air from the equator moves towards the poles
This air flow is also affected by the earth’s ______________________________ rotation.
 Earth’s rotation causes anything that moves long distances, such as prevailing winds, to
appear to _____________________________.
 The apparent change of direction of a moving object in a rotating system is called The
___________________________.
 Named after Gustave Gaspard Coriolis, the French Mathematician who first analyzed it.
 The winds in the northern hemisphere curve to the __________ (clockwise), and the
winds in the southern hemisphere curve to the ___________ (counter clockwise).
 The variation in the magnitude of the Coriolis Effect as one moves away from the
equator is due to the fact that each point on the earth rotates at ________________
speeds depending on its latitude.
 At the equator the speed of rotation at earth’s surface is ≈1664 km/h/. This
___________________as you move away from the equator and by the time you reach
the poles it is _____________.
What is a Jet Stream?
 ________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________.
 A rapidly moving current of air blowing through the atmosphere at speeds greater than
60m/sec.
 Spans the North American continent guiding storms from ________________________.
Science 10
Miss Weir
 Movement of the jet stream often determines the temperature range and weather in a
given area for 2 weeks or longer.
3) OCEAN CURRENTS:
Ocean currents have a tremendous influence on Earth’s climate.
□ Surface ocean currents are primarily due to the influence of ______________________.
□ Some carry ____________________ from the tropics to the poles where life may
otherwise not be able to flourish.
□ While the colder currents (along with winds) prevent waters near the equator becoming
too ______________.
□ This 2-way movement _______________________ heat and keeps the temperatures of
various regions of the world within reasonable ranges.
□ Water temperature also strongly influences the temperature of the _______ above it.
□ The _________________________ influences ocean currents as well as winds. Notice
that ocean currents turn to the right in the Northern hemisphere and to the left in the
Southern hemisphere.
□ Places that are immediately downwind of large bodies of water have milder winters and
cooler summers than inland places at the same altitude.
□ Cooler currents cool the air above them. Cool air holds __________ water vapour so the
land close to these currents tend to be ___________.
□ Warmer currents hold __________ water vapour so the land close to them tends to
have warmer air and more precipitation