Weather and climate Flashcards
What is weather?
The temperature, precipitation and wind, which change hour by hour and day by day
What is climate?
The average weather we expect over a long period of time
What are the factors affecting our climate?
Sun, Atmosphere and the oceans
Sea breeze and coastal temperature buffering
- descending cool air,
- air rushes in to replace the rising are lost at the surface,
- during the day, the land heats up faster than the sea causing low pressure to form over the land
rising air cools and condenses producing showers
Urban Heat Island
An urban area or metropolitan area that is significantly warmer than its surrounding rural areas due to human activities
UK climate driven by
- amount of incoming radiation
- position at the edge of the continent
- atmospheric and oceanic circulation
- distance from the sea
Weather determined and driven by
- sunshine
- maximum and minimum temperatures
- wind
- humidity, fog and mist
- precipitation
- topography and local features
Environmental lapse rate
temperature decrease with altitude
this results in longer winters, shorter growing season, windier and harsher environment
13,000 BC
10,000’s of years of snow and ice sheets across half of Britain
11,000 BC
Rising temperatures, ice melts, exposing ground
barren, infertile, no soils, then slowly colonised
8,000 BC
rapid warming and immigration (key influence on vegetation cover)
5,000 BC
sea level rise continues and floods land bridge
4,000 BC
neolithic: 20,000 people
1,800 BC
bronze age, well developed farming
1,200-500 BC
climate became wetter and cooler
extra rainfall created more marsh and peat bogs
