climate controls Flashcards
what is climate
characteristics or patterns in weather in a certain area over a long period of time, usually 30 years
often takes long time to change climate
what are climate controls
factors that affect climate
include latitude, elevation, nearby water, ocean currents, topography, prevailing winds, and vegetation
how does latitude affect climate
as latitude increases (more poleward) temperature decreases due to dispersion of sun’s energy
latitude can change pressure (high at 30 and 90, low at 0 and 60), and therefore increase (low) or decrease (high) rain
how does elevation affect climate
colder at high altitudes because air experiences less pressure higher up and expands, therefore dispersing heat (-5.4 f/1000ft, -9.8 c/1000m)
less precipitation because air expands at high elevations, dispersing moisture and preventing clouds
how does nearby water affect climate
more mild temperatures in coastal areas compared to inland areas due to water’s specific heat capacity
bodies of water add moisture to the air leading to more precipitation (conjunction with prevailing winds)
how do ocean currents affect climate
warm currents make areas warmer, cold currents make areas colder (increased in conjunction with prevailing winds)
some currents can cause fog. cold currents result in reduced air temperature and therefore reduced temperature
how does topography affect climate
windward side is the rising side of the mountain that faces the wind, leeward side is the descending side afterwards
air masses are forced to rise on the windward side in something called orographic lifting
this leads the windward side to be colder than the leeward side since air masses cool as they rise since air expands under reduced pressure dispersing heat
since the air mass rises on the windward side and gets colder, this causes rain since water vapor capacity decreases, on the other hand this leads the leeward side to be dry creating rainshadow deserts
how do prevailing winds affect climate
prevailing winds can bring maritime and continental air masses to different locations
can bring air masses from a wet/dry region
can act in conjunction with nearby water, topography, and ocean currents
how does vegetation affect climate
increased vegetation decreases temperature due to shade, the amount of light reflected back is called albedo
vegetation leads to evapotranspiration which turns into clouds
how does rain form
in the air there is water vapor and air can hold different amounts of water based on temperature (water vapor capacity)
as temperature increases, air particles get farther apart due to their movement allowing it to hold more water
as air on the surface rises due to heating, it goes up and expands and therefore cools due to decreased pressure, leading the air to become fully saturated (reach full water vapor capacity) leading to clouds
once it cools even more water begins to condense and fall as rain
what are maritime and continental air masses
maritime air masses are air masses above oceans, leading to milder temperatures and increased moisture due to water’s higher specific heat capacity, meaning it takes more heat to change the temperature of water
continental air masses have more extreme temperatures and are drier
what is a climatogram or climate graph
a climatogram is a graph that shows mean monthly temperature and precipitation, the two main factors of climate (precipitation left, temp right)
