CLIMATE

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CLIMATE

• Climate is a large region of the Earths general
  weather or atmospheric pattern over a long period
  of time.
• Weather is the short term atmospheric conditions
  of a particular region.

Climate is what we expect. Weather is what we
get. -Mark Twain
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MAJOR FACTORS

• LATITUDE AND ELEVATION Latitude is the distance
  from the equator and elevation is the height
  above sea level.
• RAIN AND TEMPERATURE

Ecology.botany.ufl.edu/ecologyf03/biodiv.html
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EARTHS MAJOR TERRESTRIAL CLIMATE ZONES

• Polar
• Sub Arctic
• Cool Temperate
• Warm Temperate
• Dry
• Tropical

www.maps.com/ref_aspx?pid12881
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BIOMES

• Biomes are large regions that are categorized by
  their similar climate, soil, plant and animal
  life, no matter where they are found on Earth.
• Biome types are mainly determined by climate.
• Each climactic region of the planet is home to a
  variety of biome types.

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BIOME CATEGORIES

• DESERTS
• GRASSLANDS
• SHRUBLANDS
• FORESTS
• MOUNTAINS

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DESERT BIOMES

• Desert evaporation exceeds precipitation.
• Little vegetation. What does grow and thrive in
  desert conditions, needs very little water
• The closer to the equator, the hotter the desert.

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CLIMATE AND DESERTS

• TROPICAL DESERTS Very hot and dry all year
  long. Located 30 degrees north or south of the
  equator.
• TEMPERATE DESERTS Warm daytime hours in the
  summer, and cold winters. More precipitation
  than tropical deserts.
• POLAR DESERTS Cold winters- goes below
  freezing. Warm summers. Same precipitation as
  temperate deserts.

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GRASSLANDS AND SHRUBLANDS

• Grasslands are too wet to be deserts and to dry
  to be forests.
• They occur mostly in the middle of continents.

www.worldbiomes.com
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CLIMATE AND GRASSLANDS

• SAVANNAHS Tropical grasslands that have
  alternating dry and wet seasons. They are
  scattered with shrubs, and are warm year round.
• TEMPERATE GRASSLANDS Very cold winters and hot
  summers. Sporadic rain, extremely fertile soil.
  Overused for cattle grazing.
• CHAPARRALS Temperate shrub lands. Mainly
  located near the coasts that border deserts.
• ARCTIC TUNDRA Polar grasslands are treeless
  plains that are bitterly cold most of the year.
  Underneath its layer of snow are many different
  low laying plant species and mosses.

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FOREST BIOMES

• There is enough precipitation to sustain large
  stands of trees.
• Precipitation and temperature determine the type
  of forest in a region.

www.physicalgeography.net/fundamentals/9k.html
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CLIMATE AND FORESTS

• TROPICAL RAIN FOREST Hot with very heavy
  rainfall year round.
• DECIDUOUS FORESTS Found in areas of high
  seasonal change throughout the year.
• CONIFEROUS (BORREAL) FORESTS Cold winters and
  wet summers. Most of these forests are found in
  sub arctic regions. However, some are found in
  moderate areas because of a very wet climate.
• TEMPERATE RAINFORESTS Found near temperate
  coasts where rain and fog are plentiful most of
  the year. The winters are cold and the summers
  are cool.

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MOUNTAIN BIOMES

• Islands in the sky.
• Mountains happen in any region of the planet.
• Affect climates by creating a rain shadow on a
  region of land.
• A rain shadow can change a landscape from a
  forest (on one side of the mountain) to a desert
  (on the other side).

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THE ROCKY MOUNTAINS
library.thinkquest.org/05aug/00182/mountains.htm
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DOES THE EARTH HAVE A PATTERN?

• The farther away a region is from the equator,
  the colder the region.
• Latitude at the equator 0.
• The Earth is broken up into 180 on each side,
  north and south of the equator.
• Between what latitudes would you most likely find
  a rainforest?

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WORK CITATIONS

• G. Tyler Miller. 2007. Chapter 5. Living In
  The Environment, 15th Edition. Jack Carey.
  Pages 100-124
• All other citations are throughout the power
  point on specific slides.