Chapter 4 - Notes.md

Climates and Biomes

• Climate
  • The average weather that occurs in a given region over a long period of time.
• Weather
  • The short-term conditions of the atmosphere in a local area, which include temperature, humidity, clouds, precipitation, and wind speed.
• Troposphere
  • A layer of the atmosphere closest to the surface of Earth
• Stratosphere
  • The layer of the atmosphere above the troposphere
• The layers of Earth's atmosphere
  • The troposphere is the atmospheric layer closest to Earth. Because the density of air decreases with attitude, the troposphere's temperature also decreases with altitude. Temperature increases with altitude in the atmosphere because the Sun's UV-B and UV-C rays warm the upper part of the layer, temperatures in the thermosphere can reach 1000+ C

The amount of solar energy reaching Earth varies with location

Warming doesn't occur equally because:

• The angle at which the Sun's rays varies.
• Differential heating of earth:
  • Tropical regions near the equator receive more solar energy than mid-latitude regions
• The Earth's axis of rotation is tilted 23.5"
  • This causes the seasons

Air has several important properties that deterimine how it circulates in the atmosphere

• Saturation point
  • The maximum amount of water vapor in the air at a given temperature
• Adiabatic cooling
  • The cooling effect of reduced pressure on air as it rises higher in the atmosphere and expands.
• Adiabatic heating
  • The heating effect of increased pressure on air as it sinks toward the surface of Earth and decreases in volume
• Latent heat release
  • The release of energy when water vapor in the atmosphere condenses into liquid water
• Atmospheric convection current
  • Global patterns of air movement that are initiated by the unequal heating of Earth
• Hadley cell
  • A convection current in the atmosphere that cycles between the equator and 30N/S
• Polar Cell
  • A convection current in the atmosphere formed by air that rises at 60N/60S and sinks at 90N/S
• Earth's rotation causes the Coriolis effect
  • As the Earth rotates, its surface moves much faster at the equator than in mid-latitude and polar regions
  • Prevailing wind patterns around the world are produced by a combination of atmospheric convection currents and the Coriolis effect.
• Rain shadow
  • Rain shadows occur where humid winds blowing inland from the ocean meet a mountain range. On the windward side of the mountains, air rises and cools and large amounts of water vapor condense to form clouds and precipitation. On the leeward side of the mountains, cold, dry air descends , warms via adiabatic heating, and causes much drier conditions
• Surface ocean currents move warm/cold water around the globe
  • Ocean currents are driven by a combination of temperature, gravity, prevailing winds, the Coriolis effect, and the location of the continents.
  • Warm water, like warm air expands and rises.
  • Gyre:
    • A large-scale pattern of water circulation that moves clockwise in the Northern Hemisphere and counter clockwise in the Southern Hemisphere