Climates

Around the world there are different type of climates such as Equatorial, tropical (interior) continental, monsoon, hot desert and cold climates. All of them will be explained in this summary.

Equatorial climates are located at the Equator, 5° north and south. This type of climates are hot and wet, they do not have a seasonal change, they are wet all year through and they also have a daily pattern. Its average rainfall is 2000mm/2500mm per year. The average temperature is 25°C. Night time temperatures may reach 35°C. Its annual range of temperature is small, as low as 2°C. It has a daily pattern in which every morning is -------

Tropical (interior) Continental climates are located in the centre of continents, away from coast, 5° and 15° north and south of the Equator. There is an alternation between wet and dry seasons. During the hot, wet season, temperatures rise as the sun takes a more vertical position, temperatures fall as cloud cover and rainfall increase. Areas closer to the Equator may experience over 1000mm of rainfall per year, and areas farther from it may experience as little as 300mm of rain per year. The warm, dry season, occurs when the sun is overhead. During this season there is little or no rainfall. The average temperature is 31°C and the annual range of temperature is 8°C.

The monsoon climate is located in south-east Africa. It has  two seasons: the south-west (wet season) and the north-east (dry season). The two seasons are the result of the reversal of the wind. In the wet season the wind comes from the south where the sea is and as the wind blows from the north where is land is the dry season.

Hot desert climates are located between 5°and 30° north and south of the Equator. Temperatures are higher when the sun is overhead and lower when it is in the opposite hemisphere. Coastal areas are much cooler due to the influence of the sea. In places away from the sea, temperatures rise to 50° due to the cloud-less skies, and night-time temperatures fall to around freezing. Deserts are very dry although they have some precipitation.

Cold climates are found in the poleward side of 60° N. Winters are very long, dark and extremely cold. Precipitation is light throughout the year and it falls as snow in winter. Summer rainstorms occur when temperatures are at their highest.