1. Describing Climates- many different ways exist!

2. Climate Zones
The planet can be divided into several regions of similar weather conditions called climate zones.
Polar regions are colder than equatorial regions as they receive less direct sunlight. More sun rays bounce/reflect off.- above at below the 60th parallel
Temperate regions- between the 30th and 60th parallel on both sides of earth
Tropical regions- between the two 30th parallel lines and including the equator- get the most direct sunlight- rays enter and do not bounce or reflect

4. Climatographs
Climatographs are graphs of average climate data for a specific region, usually obtained over 30 years from observations made at local weather stations.
Useful because they allow scientists to view how temperate and precipitation change throughout the year.

5. Climatographs have 2 Y axes- a line graph for temperature and a bar graph for precipitation, one bar for every month

6. Classifying Climates Köppen Climate Classification System:
Method of identifying and describing climates based on observable features such as temperature ranges and rates of precipitation
Divides the world into 5 regions based on
Average monthly temperature
Average monthly precipitation
Average annual precipitation

7. Köppen Climate Classification System
A - Tropical Moist Climates:
all months have average temperatures above 18°C, with annual precipitation greater than 1500 mm.
B - Dry Climates:
with deficient precipitation during most of the year and temperatures ranging from -40°C in winter to 40°C in summer.
C - Moist Mid-latitude Climates with Mild Winters:
warm to hot summers, low of -3°C.
D - Moist Mid-Latitude Climates with Cold Winters:
warm to cool summers, low of -3°C.
E - Polar Climates:
extremely cold winters and summers, warmest month is below 10°C.

9. Biomes
A biome is the largest division of the biosphere, and includes regions with similar biotic components (plants, animals) and abiotic components (temperature, rain).
Biomes in Canada: 6 kinds in Canada
Permanent Ice
Tundra
Boreal Forest
Temperate Deciduous Forest
Temperate Rainforest
Grassland
Rainforest

11. Temperate rainforest of BC
Grasslands of the prairies
Tundra
Desert of BC

12. Deciduous forest
Boreal Forest

13. Bioclimate Profiles Graphs of climatic conditions include:
Minimum, maximum, and mean temperature
Probability of frost
Monthly total precipitation
Number of days with rain and days with snow
Water surplus and deficit

14. Bioclimatic charts have a lot of detailed information- Milwaukee vs Washington DC

15. Ecozones and Ecoregions
Ecozone – division of Earth’s surface that has developed over a long period of time and is separated from other ecozones by geological features (ocean, desert, mountains)
Ecoregion – subdivision of an ecozone characterized by local landforms such as plains, lakes, mountains, rivers

17. Work:
Page 283 #1-4
Review pages (7 biomes)
Page 289 #1-8