Download Climate and Climate Change

Climate and Climate Change
Factors Affecting Precipitation
• Two main factors that
determine the climate
of a region
– Prevailing Winds
• Air masses are moved
from place to place
– Mountain Ranges
• When humid winds
blow from the ocean
toward coastal
mountains, the rising
warm air cools and its
water vapor condenses,
forming clouds.
Factors Affecting Temperature
• Latitude
– Tropical zones
• Between 23.5º north latitude and 23.5º south
latitude
• Receives direct or nearly direct sunlight all year
round
Factors Affecting Temperature
– Polar zones
• Between 66.5º to 90º north and south latitudes
• Cold climates because the sun’s rays always strike
at a lower angle near the North and South poles
Factors Affecting Temperature
– Temperate zones
• Between tropical and polar zones
• Warm or hot in summer, cool or cold in winter
Latitudes
Factors Affecting Temperature
• Altitude
– The temperature of the troposphere
decreases about 6.5 Celsius degrees for
every kilometer increase in altitude.
– Highland areas everywhere have cool
climates, regardless of latitude
Factors Affecting Temperature
• Distance from large bodies of water
– Marine climates
• Winds from the ocean keep coastal regions from
reaching extremes of hot and cold
– Continental climates
• Extreme temperatures because they are too far
inland to be warmed or cooled by the oceans
Factors Affecting Temperature
• Ocean Currents
– Currents warm or cool the air above the
ocean, then the air moves over nearby land
– A warm current brings warm air to the land it
touches
– A cold current brings cool air
El Nino
• Warm water off the
coast of Peru disrupts
the cold ocean
current and changes
weather patterns
there.
• Causes shifts in
weather patterns
around the world