A) CLIMATE VS. WEATHER Climate is the weather pattern in one place over a long period of time Weather is the current atmospheric conditions, including temperature, rainfall, wind, and humidity at a given place

B) Earth’s Tilt & Rotation Tilt affects the temperature of places. - Earth makes one rotation on its to cause day & night. - Earth takes 365 1/4 days to revolve around the sun.

C) THE SEASONS Earth’s revolution & the tilt create seasons March 21 st Sun’s rays fall directly on equator Equinox (equal night) Tropic of Capricorn 23 ½ degrees South December 22 nd Shortest day of sunlight in northern hemisphere Winter solstice Tropic of Cancer 23 ½ degrees North June 21 st Earth moves so sun falls on this latitude. Longest day of sunlight in northern hemisphere Summer solstice

D) THE GREENHOUSE EFFECT Earth’s atmosphere acts as a like in a greenhouse- it traps sun’s energy. Greenhouse Effect- Atmosphere provides just the right amount of insulation to promote life. Sun’s radiation turns into heat. Global warming Some scientists believe there is a rise in CO 2 levels (carbon dioxide). More heat is trapped.

WHY GLOBAL WARMING? Human activity- burning of coal, oil, and natural gas (releases CO2) Or natural?

E) FACTORS AFFECTING CLIMATE 1) Latitude - rays of sun & how it strikes the earth (low latitude- sun year-round). 2)Elevation- atmosphere gets thinner (thinner air retains less heat…not as dense) as altitude increases. 3) Wind & Ocean current - ex. Prevailing winds - blow in constant patterns. 4) Landforms- water slower to heat than land, so land near water has consistent temp.

WIND PATTERNS Wind blows because of temperature differences on the surface. Earth rotates to the east, the global winds are displaced clockwise in the north)

OCEAN CURRENTS Cold and warm streams of water move through oceans (based on earth’s rotation, differences in water temperature, and change in air pressure.

WEATHER AND THE WATER CYCLE Wind & water work together to affect weather= precipitation El Nino- recurring climatic event Low atmospheric pressure rises over the western pacific, while the high pressure over the eastern pacific lowers

LANDFORMS AND CLIMATE The presence (or absence) of landforms affect climate. Large bodies of water are slower to heat than land (so land temps aren’t consistent). Mountains also influence precipitation and climate. Winds are pushed upward when meet a mountain range. This releases moisture and causes rain on windward side.

TYPES OF CLIMATES: F) LOW LATITUDE-TROPICAL Hot and muggy the year around. Rain forests Average annual rainfall varies from about 70 to 100 inches Average 80 degrees F for high temp. Low temp range of all climates

G) LOW TO MIDLATITUDE Little precipitation. Steppe climate usually borders desert climates. Desert rainfall is 10 inches (Steppe b/t 10 and 20 inches) Covers 24% of land

H) MID-LATITUDE- MEDITERRANEAN Warm to hot, dry summers and mild, rainy winters. On the west side of continents Between 30 degrees and 45 degrees latitude. Southern California SF

I) HIGH-LATITUDE SUBARTIC Short, cool summers and long, bitterly cold winters. Needle-leaved evergreen trees Most precipitation falls in the summer.

J) HIGH-LATITUDE ICECAP Coldest on earth. Summer temperatures rarely rise above the freezing point. Supports no vegetation. Precipitation is meager and is almost always in the form of snow.

K) HIGHLAND In mountainous regions. Varies with elevation. Evergreen & Deciduous trees grow at base of mountains.

COUNTRY CLIMATE BROCHURE You will create a brochure for one particular climate in groups of 4. You will attempt to sell a visit to one location/ country that has the climate assigned to you. Must be colored/in pen with appropriate titles for each section. Due _______________

For the brochure you must do the following: The Country (Pick on country to focus on- Use pg. 53 in text & Internet to identify country) -Slogan (on cover, with name of country & climate & small pic) INSIDE What to Do (five activities w/ one sentence description. For each). What to Wear (five appropriate clothing attire identified) What to Expect (Five descriptive sentences about climate features… “Amazingly, the desert covers 24 % of the world’s landmass”) 7 Pictures (no title needed, but must be colored and have a caption for each picture). -- Why Visit? (4-6 sentence paragraph to sell your country/climate!) Where to Visit (Select five other countries to visit that have same climate region and list). As a note - you must describe what each person did on project on brochure.