Weather Systems / Changing Climate / Reading Notes Flashcards
Name of environment + people sphere
Anthrosphere
How many meters makes a difference when studying a microclimate?
2 meters altitude
How many meters makes a difference when studying Mesoclimate?
few square KM’s
6 main “spheres”
bios, anthros, lihtos, hydros, cryos, atmos
Isotherms are heat patterns that …
bend towards the poles
Wettest place in the world
windward side of mountains
Hottest places
deserts of subtropics in Northern Hemisphere
more variation of temperature inland or coastal?
inland / large bodies of water / land
Southern Hemisphere is cooler than the Northern because
less land in Southern Sphere
ITCZ
intertropical convergence zone
What stops east-west precipitation
semipermanent subtropical anticyclones
High pressure usually moves where
polewards
The Bermuda high moves over top of …
Gulf of Mexico (tropical breeze)
Orographic Uplift
wind go up mountain
Leeward side
dry / downwards / rain shadow
Which ancient culture started classifying climate?
Ancient Greeks
New system of weather classification as of 1918
Koppen
Koppen system is concerned with distribution and …
kind of vegetation in an area
Problems with Koppen system
borders too defined and not all climates produce same vegetation
Most geo- and climatically diverse part of Canada =
BC
British Columbia is complicated and thus requires BEC, which means
Biogeoclimate Ecological Classification system
Two types of tropical climate
1) wet 2) wet & dry
According to Koppen, dry regions are how much of the world …
26%
Koppen recognizes 2 types of dry climate
arid and semiarid
Xerophytes =
desert plants
Temperate climates have at least one month with mean temps below zero …
No. None.
Marine areas w. unique climate systems bookend continents beacuse …
Eastern / Western Guards = mountains on either coast
Mediterranean type climates are in North America
Yah in some places, based on similar veggies
Prairie Droughts sometimes due to
cold air advection / summer high-pressure conditions
Drought dust exasperates droughts?
We don’t know.
What year was worse than the 1930’s dust bowl years?
2001
Sub-polar means …
Only 3 months with mean temp above 10.
Taiga climate =
Boreal w conifers & birch
Tundra has much precipitation
no
Polar Ice Cap when?
If temp average below zero every months forever
Dry Climates
where evap and transpiration exceeds precip
West coasts tend to be drier because
sinking air of subtropical highs inhibits cloud formation
What’s a “STEPPE”?
between semiarid & subtropic
