Physical environment Flashcards
Lecture 1
What makes a physical environment habitable?
– Climate
– Aquatic environment
– Terrestrial environments
Different places impose different pressures which leads to…
overview for the sub-module
evolution of organisms:
– Plant adaptations to the environment
– Animal adaptations to the environment
organisms living together and occupying different niches.
(different for diff organisms)
2 different time scales that organisms interact with their physical environment
Shorter periods = survival of individual
evolutionary time = survival of species
What is weather?
conditions at a specific time.
What is climate?
long-term average pattern of weather
Local, Regional, Global
What is western capes climate?
hot, dry summers
cold, wet winters
Which factors influence the climate?
Solar radiation - source of all climatic conditions
* Air temperature
* Wind
* Precipitation/ rain
What is air temp influenced by?
Latitude & Earth’s rotation
Earth axis is tilted, North pole away from the sun.
Altitude.
How does latitude affect air temp?
the further the heat has to travel from the sun the less heat there is that hits the earth.
Therefore it is cooler at the poles than at the equator.
What way is the earth titlted during the winter soltice?
AKA Austral (Southern) Winter Soltice
North is tilted towards the sun, south pole is in the shadow - 24 hours of night i SP and day in NP on 20 June.
What way is the earth tilted during the summer soltice?
AKA Austral (Southern) Summer Soltice
South is tiltes towards the sun, north pole is in the shodow - 24 hours of night in NP and day in SP on 21 December
Vernal and autumnal equnioxes
21 March
22 September
Why are the latitude lines more erratic in the northern hemisphere?
Higher land mass in the north
Land mass gains heat quickly but also loses heat faster.
water temp remains relatively constant.
What is continentality?
further you are from water the more variable the temp can be
How does altitude affect air temp?
As altitude increase the air density and pressure decreases and therefore the air temp decreases.
Air particles are more kinetic at lower altitude which accounts for higher temperatures
What is wind influenced by?
Earth’s rotation & currents
wind moves from poles to equator and back again in pockets called hadly cells.
Corriolus effect
AKA corriolus apparent force
belts of prevailing winds that interrupt the simple flow of surface of air from the equator to the poles
Clockwise in NH
Anti-clockwise in SH
What are some global precipitation trends?
Warmer water at the equator with high amounts of rainfall
As you move away the water cools down
More rain in southern hemisphere because of less land mass.
Mountains affect the overall climate and precipitation.
What is the rainshadow effect?
Summer =. hot land mass
clouds rise in convection currents and release rain inland
Moist air from Agulhas current flows inland and over mountains releasing relief rain.
Fog is a feature of west coast.
What is a microclimate and how does it affect organisms?
– conditions in the immediate surroundings in
which an organism lives
» may differ significantly from the general
conditions within the region
– Areas shaded by plants vs open areas
– North- vs south-facing sides of
» Mountains
» Anthills
» Trees
