Weather and Climate
the usual pattern of weather in a region that occurs over long periods of time
What is climate?
The general climate zone found at the equator.
What is tropical wet?
air, land liquid water ice and living things
What is the Earth's climate system?
The winds that move from the West between the 30o and 60o latitudes.
What are the Westerlies?
Sea ice freezes leaving the remaining water __.
What is saltier/more salty?
by using weather balloons, aircraft, satellites and weather stations to collect weather data
How do we predict the weather?
the climate zone that describes the city of Toronto.
What is Continental cool summer?
ultraviolet radiation, visible light and infrared radiation
What are the types of radiation emitted by the Sun?
Prevailing winds that steadily blow in the direction of the Equator.
What are the trade winds?
This describes the water in Labrador and Newfoundland.
What is colder?
the plants and animals that can survive in that region.
What does the climate of a region affect?
this continent is composed of Tropical wet, Tropical dry and humid subtropical climate zones.
What is South America?
radiation is absorbed, transmitted or reflected
What three things happen when radiation contacts a particle of matter?
When the Sun's rays reach the Equator and rapidly heats the air, it becomes ___.
What is "less dense?"
These currents travel on the surface of the ocean.
Where do warm ocean currents travel?
wind speed, relative humidity, atmospheric pressure, fog, mist, cloud cover, type and amount of precipitation, temperature
What are some variables that are used to quantify weather?
temperature, precipitation and plant communities
What features are used to identify climate zones?
The energy present as particles increase their movement as the temperature rises.
What is thermal energy?
The various types of windstorms that are named according to the area of the world that they occur in.
What are hurricanes, typhoons and tropical storms?
The circular pattern of wind and ocean current movement due to the rotation of the Earth.
What is the Coriolis Effect?
all living and non-living things are interconnected and the Earth has to maintain a balance of each to stay habitable.
Why is studying changes in climate important?
latitude
presence of large bodies of water
presence of ocean or air currents
land formations
height above sea level
What factors affect climate?
The Sun's energy is spread over a larger area and so it feels weaker.
Why is the climate colder at higher latitudes?
Prevailing winds move warm air from the equator to the poles and also push warm ocean water toward the poles.
What two actions do prevailing winds have?
Ocean currents caused by increases or decreases in water temperature and salinity
Thermohaline circulation