Intro (Tropical Storms) Flashcards
- Within 5° of latitude north or south of the equator, no storms: Coriolis effect, weak
- South Atlantic Ocean or in the Eastern part of the SouthPacific Ocean: cold ocean temperatures and persistent large wind shear
Tropical storms … formation
- dissipate when traveling over cool water or over land
In these environments:
* source of hot humid air is lost
* over land, weaken fast, … no evaporation of warm ocean water
Tropical storms … death
the __________ known as the mid-latitudes and provide their approximate latitudinal range.
- Mid-latitudes (30-60°N, 30-60°S)
- Western coastal areas are wetter than their eastern
counterparts. - Those remote from the ocean are drier.
- Increasing latitude: lower mean surface temperature
geographical region
Greater temperature fluctuations within continental interiors compared with those near oceans.
Continentality
Mid-latitude Climates. West coast climates of lower latitude (nearer equator):
greater seasonality in their ________ than those nearer the poles
rainfall patterns
The ______ ______ sweeps
precipitating extratropical cyclones from the Atlantic and Pacific oceans (where they are formed throughout the year due to the polar front)
westerly airflow
Wet weather of the western coast: due to prevailing __________ ___________
westerly airflow
West coast areas at the equatorial end of the mid latitudes (about 30°N) tend to have dry warm to hot summer and wet, cool winters.
mediterranean climate
Poleward of the mediterranean climate:
Marine west coast climates
Mid-latitude Climates
Eastern part is Influenced by___ _____ ______________
air mass movement
allow the boundary between these air masses to pass over much of this part Climate: rapid and substantial fluctuations in
temperature
Fluctuations in Rossby waves
bathed in moist maritime and continental air
East coast of Asia
Frequent dry, essentially north-westerly winds to flow over the surface of the
eastern part of the mid-latitude
Asia
The wind flow is reversed in the summer months, bringing moist maritime winds and greater rain.
Eurasian interior
During winter, sustained large-scale high-pressure feature forms over Eurasian interior (centered over Mongolia).
Eurasian interior
Mid-latitude Climates
_________________
* Essentially same climatic influences as those in the north.
* But the land masses in the southern hemisphere are much less extensive than the northern counterparts.
* continental interior and east coast are less well developed
* South America: same as North American climates (except the lee of Andes mountains).
Southern hemisphere
Climate Zones of the World: Arctic ( two seasons)
polar day and polar night.
Climate Zones of the World: Mid-latitudes (four seasons)
summer, autumn, winter, and spring
Climate Zones of the World: Tropics (two seasons)
wet and dry
Polar Region (60-90°N, 60-90°S)
Cold
Warmest month: temperature ____
≤ 10 °C
Much of the ground is permanently frozen
permafrost
- Low levels of precipitation is due to the low moisture carrying capacity of cold air and the stable atmospheric conditions found in the areas covered by the polar cell.
- Despite the aridity, much of the land is covered with surface water (generally frozen).
- Losses by evaporation and infiltration through the permafrost are low.
Frequently arid
Polar Climate
Interior of the northern polar region:
Generally calm
Polar Climate
Interior of the south polar region:
Blustery, strong winds of topographic origin are common
over the mountainous continent of Antartica.
- mechanisms mediating climate change, not fully understood
- but, possible to build climate models (both predictive and interpretive value)
- product of various components of the climate system
- feedback mechanism
The Climate System
