Download KOPPEN CLIMATE SYSTEM

World Rainfall Patterns
Wet Regions
• 0-10o Lat.
– Doldrums…
Wet Regions
• East Coasts,
10-25o Lat.
– Trade Winds…
Wet Regions
East Coasts,
25-40o Lat.
– Warm Ocean Current…
Wet Regions
• West Coasts,
40-60o Lat.
– Westerly Winds…
Dry Regions
• 20-30o Lat.
West Side of Land Mass
– Subtropical High…
Dry Regions
• Rainshadow Areas
Dry Regions
• Polar Areas…
Environments
Learn the:
• Climate Characteristics
• Climate Causes
• General Locations
– Latitudes…
• Specific Places
• Vegetation
Tropical Rainforest
• Humid & Rainy all year
• Day = 85F
• Night = 75F
Tropical Rainforest (Af)
• 0-10o Lat.
– Eq. Low…
– Amazon Basin
Tropical Rainforest
Congo Basin
(Central Africa)
Indonesia
Tropical Rainforest
• 10-25o Lat.
East Coasts
– Trade Winds from
Warm Ocean
– Central America
– Brazil
Tropical Rainforest
E Coast of
Madagascar
Tropical Rainforest
• 6% of World’s Land
– 50% of world’s species
• Trees are Evergreen
(Not Deciduous)
• Broadleaf Trees
(Not Needleleaf Conifers)
Tropical Rainforest
• Ground Vegetation?
• Lianas
Tropical Rainforest
• Epiphytes
– “Air Plants”
Rainforest
• Primates
Rainforest
• Reptiles
Tropical Savanna Climate (Aw)
• “Tropical Wet-Dry”
– Rainy Summer
– Dry Winter
• 10-25o Lat.
– Cuba, S. Mexico
– S. Brazil
Tropical Savanna (Aw)
• So. Mexico, Cuba
• So. Brazil
• Rainy Summer
JULY
– Eq. Low/ITCZ nearby
JANUARY
Tropical Savanna
• Dry Winter
– Eq. Low/ITCZ Shifts Away
JULY
JANUARY
Tropical Savanna
• In Africa
Surrounds the
Rainforest
Vegetation in Trop. Savanna
• Two Types
1) Savanna Grassland
2) Tropical Deciduous Forest
Savanna Grassland
• Scattered Trees & Grasses
Savanna Grassland •
Big Game Animals
Tropical Deciduous Forest
• Deciduous Trees
– Due to Dry Winter
Tropical Deciduous Forest
• “Rain-green”
– In Summer
Tropical Deciduous Forest • Ground Veg?
Hot Desert Climate (BWh)
• Hot & Dry
• 20-30o latitude
On West Side of Land Masses
– Sinking Air of Subtrop. High
• Clear Skies, Little Rain
– Low Latitude leads to…
– Record Heat
• 134F
Death Valley
• 36o latitude
– Subtropical High in Summer
• Rainshadow in Winter
Hot Deserts
• Sahara
• Saudi Arabia
• Kalahari
Hot Deserts
• Australia
Cool, Foggy Desert (BWn)
• 20-30o lat, West Coast
• Subtropical High  Dry
• Cold Ocean Current Cool, Heavy Air
– Does not rise to form clouds
• 2 Places
Cool, Foggy Deserts (pg. 296)
• Namib Desert
Namib Desert
• “Skeleton Coast”…
Cool, Foggy Deserts (pg. 290)
• Atacama Desert
– Rain?
Cold Desert Climate (BWk)
• Dry, with Cold Winters
• 35-55o latitude
– Leeward Side of Mtns.
(Rainshadow areas)
Cold Deserts
• Great Basin, USA
(pg. 288)
• Patagonia, Argentina
(p. 289)
Cold Deserts
Aral Sea Area
Mongolia & W. China
Desert Vegetation (pg. 287)
• Sometimes Entirely Absent
Desert Vegetation
• Usually Shrubs
• Adapted to Drought
Some Plants Store Water
• Saguaro Cactus
Small Leaves
Spreading Roots
Small, Spaced Plants
Steppe Climate (BS)
•
•
•
•
Semi-Desert
Borders Desert
Very short rainy season
Short Grasses
S. Dakota Steppe
Marine West Coast Climate (Cfb,Cfc)
•
•
•
•
Cool, Rainy all year
40-60o latitude, West Coasts
Oregon, Wash…
Westerly Winds Blow Storms
from Ocean to Land
Marine West Coast
• W. Europe
Ireland – “Emerald Isle”
Marine West Coast
So. Chile
So. Chile
Marine West Coast
New Zealand
Marine West Coast Vegetation
• Pacific Northwest Rainforest (pg. 309)
Marine West Coast Vegetation
• Pacific Northwest Forest, USA
• Needleleaf Conifers
• Redwoods…
• Douglas Firs
Douglas Firs, Washington
European & New Zealand
Mixed Forest (pp. 315 & 320)
Summer
Winter 
New Zealand Forest
Mediterranean Climate
(Csa, Csb)
• So. Calif.
• Cool, Rainy Winter
– Like Marine West Coast
• Warm, Dry Summer
– Like Desert
• 30-40o latitude
• West side of continents
Subtropical High Shifts
• Summer
– ST High Nearby
• Blocks Storms
• Winter
– ST High Shrinks
• Moves Towards Equator
– Westerly Winds blow
storms onshore
Med. Climate
Cen.
Chile
Mediterranean Climate
• Med. Sea Coastline
Mediterranean Climate
• SW Australia
Med.
Vegetation
• Evergreen Shrubs
• “Chaparral”
Chaparral
Poison Oak
• Deciduous
• Leaves of 3…
Mediterranean Woodland
• Grasses & Scattered Trees
• Oak Woodland in CA
Mediterranean Vegetation
• Plants w/ Leathery, Evergreen Leaves
• Oils in leaves
– Conserve water
– Flammable
• Plants are Adapted to Fire
– Clears brush, trees
Oak Woodland
• Seasonal Changes
Oak Woodland
• Spring Wildflowers
Louisiana
Humid
Subtropical
(Cfa)
Humid
Continental
(Dfa, Dfb, Dwa, Dwb)
• SE USA (FL, LA)
• New England
• 25-40o latitude
• Great Lakes Region
East side of continents • 40-55o latitude
– Warm Ocean Current
East side of continents
Humid
Subtropical
• Hot, rainy summer
Warm Ocean 
EZ Evaporation 
High Humidity
Convectional Precip.
• Cool, rainy winter
– Storms from Polar Front
Humid
Continental
• Warm, rainy summer
• Cold, snowy winter
Humid
Subtropical
Humid
Continental
• SE USA
• New England, Great Lakes
Humid Subtropical
• Uruguay &
Environs
Humid Continental
• E. Europe
Humid
Subtropical
Humid
Continental
• So. China & So. Japan • No. China & No. Japan
Humid Sub. & Humid Cont. Veg.
1. Mixed Forest (pg. 310)
2. Grasslands (pp. 336-37) (in drier parts of region)
Tall-Grass Prairie (Midwest USA)
Pampas (South America)
Japan Evergreen
Forest
New England Deciduous Forest
Subarctic Climate
(Dfc, Dfd, Dwd)
• Alaska, Canada, Siberia
• 55-75 Lat
– Weak Sunlight
• Interior Location
– No Oceanic Influence
• X Large Annual Temp Range
60F in Summer
-50F in Winter!
Subarctic Climate
• Alaska
Canada
Canada in April
Subarctic Veg.
(pp. 308 & 316)
• Boreal Forest
– Conifers
Boreal Forest - Alaska
Tundra Climate
(ET)
• Arctic Coast of
N. Amer, Russia, Green.
• Cold Winters
-20F
Weak/No Sun
Oceanic Influence
• Between 32F & 50F for
2-3 months
Tundra Veg. (pp. 342 & 343)
• Veg. is Limited by:
– Climate
– Permafrost in Soil
• Subsoil always frozen
Tundra Veg.
• Short-Rooted Plants
– Grasses
– Mosses
– Lichens
Subarctic/Tundra Transition
Ice Cap Climate (EF)
• Antarctica
• Interior of Greenland
• All months < 32F
Ice Cap Climate
• Record Cold Temp
– Little Sunlight
– High Albedo of Ice
– High Altitude on Ice Cap (Thin Air)
• -129F!
• No Vegetation
ANTARCTICA