1. Climates

2. What is a Climate?
A generalization of the typical weather experienced in a specific area, region, or location
Classified by temperature and precipitation

3. Tropical Wet Climate Average temperatures in the low 80s
Mostly sunny with afternoon rain storms
More than 80 inches of rainfall each year
Includes rainforests
Hawaii, Pacific Islands, Central and South America, Africa, and Southeast Asia

4. Tropical Wet/Dry Climate
Rainy summers, dry winters
Monsoons
Less rainfall than Tropical Wet
Central and South America, Africa, South Asia, Southeast Asia, Australia

5. Semi Arid Climate Around 16 inches of rainfall annually
Hot summers; mild to cold winters
Grasslands/Scrub forests
Sahel/ Serengeti

6. Desert Climate Less than 10 inches of rainfall per year Hot Deserts
Low humidity/high temperatures
night (dry air cannot hold heat)
Cool Deserts
Victims of Rain shadows
Mostly Northern hemisphere
Summers are warm/hot; winters are cool to below freezing temps

7. Ice Caps (Polar Deserts)
Ice / Permanently freezing temperatures
Rare precipitation
Antarctica
Coldest temp on record: Vostock (Russian science station) 1983

8. Mediterranean Climate
Surrounds Mediterranean Sea, parts of the USA and Australia
Hot, dry summers; cool, rainy winters
Rich Agriculture
Dense populations

9. Marine West Coast Western USA/Canada, most of Europe
Close to the Ocean
Foggy / damp
Evenly distributed precipitation year round
Smog near industrial areas
Acid rain

10. Humid Subtropical Climate
Long Summers
High heat / humidity
Often found on the eastern coast of continents
Suffer from hurricanes in late summer / fall
Winters are mild to cool
Can have temperatures below freezing
Climate great for crops
Rice, grains

11. Humid Continental Mid-latitude zones of northern hemisphere
Arctic air masses collides with tropical air masses
Creates changing weather patterns
Truly experience all four seasons

12. Subarctic Climate Evergreen taiga
Canada, Russia, Scandinavia
Huge temperature variations between summer / winter
Summers are short, cool
Winters are long and very cold
Freezing temperatures 5-8 months of the year

13. Tundra Flat, treeless ring around the Arctic ocean
Less than 15 inches of rain annually
Permafrost
Permanently frozen subsoil
Summer temperatures MIGHT reach 40°F

14. Highland Climate
Temperature / weather varies with elevation, latitude, and location
Rugged mountain areas
Andes / Rocky Mountains, Tibetan Plateau
Precipitation depends on slope-direction
Differences between North/South facing slopes
Winds carrying moisture or not -- rain shadow