The Role of Climate 4-1

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The Role of Climate4-1

• Flora
• Biology

2
Weather/Climate

• Atmosphere, temperature, precipitation, and other
  environmental factors combine to produce weather
  and climate
• Weather day to day conditions of earths
  atmosphere of a particular time and place
• Climate refers to average year to year
  conditions of temperature and precipitation in a
  given area

3
Factors Effecting Climate

• Trapping of heat in the atmosphere
• Latitude
• Transport heat by ocean and wind currents
• Amount of precipitation
• Shape and elevation of land

4
Greenhouse Effect

• Insulating blanket of air is called atmosphere
• Greenhouse gases include water vapor, carbon
  dioxide, methane, etc.
• Gases allow radiation in atmosphere, but trap it
  from getting out.

5
Effect of Latitude on Climate

• Angle of heating angle to which the suns
  radiation strikes the earths surface
• Responsible for different (3) climate zones
• Due to earths tilt

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3 Climate Zones

• Polar
• Cold areas where the sun strikes earth at a very
  low angle
• Between 66.5 and 90 degrees N and S
• Temperate
• Between polar and tropical zones
• Have hot and cold seasons
• Tropical
• Near equator
• Between 23.5 degrees N and 23.5 degrees S
• Receives the most direct sunlight

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Heat Transfer in the Biosphere

• Unequal heating of Earths surface drives wind
  and ocean currents
• Ocean and wind currents transport heat in the
  atmosphere
• ex prevailing winds/ocean currents
• Upwelling cold water from poles sinks to the
  bottom and flows parallel eventually uprising
• Ocean currents transport heat energy (like wind)
• Currents cool and warm land masses.