Geographical Influences on Climate Lesson

Global Precipitation Measurement Mission

Developed by the GPM Education and Public

Outreach Team

NASA Goddard Space Flight Center

Guiding QuestionsGuiding Questions

• Geographic Features: What are geographic features and how do they affect temperature and precipitation?

• Weather versus Climate: What are the similarities and differences between weather and climate?

• Climatograms: How can you easily see climate data about a location? What analysis tools can you use to compare the climate data for different locations?

• Geographical Influences on Climate: How do nearness to large bodies of water, elevation and the location of mountains affect temperature and precipitation?

Engage – Name Geographic FeaturesEngage – Name Geographic Features

• Name some geographic features you know. Can you think of any ways they might affect temperature or precipitation?

Image source: Microsoft ClipArt

Engage – Brainstorm EffectsEngage – Brainstorm Effects

Geographic Feature Effect on Weather/Climate

Engage – Volcano!Engage – Volcano!

Ash and Steam Plume, Soufriere Hills Volcano, Montserrat

• THINK: Look at the NASA picture at right. Think about what geographic factors are present that might affect the weather or climate at locations A, B and C.

• PAIR: Share at least one idea with your partner.

• SHARE: Raise your hand if you'd like to share something you and your partner discussed.

Weather versus ClimateWeather versus Climate

• What is the difference between weather and climate?

weather climate

ClimatogramsClimatograms

• What do you notice about the climatogram below?

VocabularyVocabulary

Term to be familiar with:• prevailing winds - which direction the wind

usually blows at a particular location (referred to by the direction the wind is COMING FROM)

Maps of Geographic FeaturesMaps of Geographic Features

• What do you notice about the maps below?

Climatograms for U.S. CitiesClimatograms for U.S. Cities

• Look at the map and climatogram you have been given. Observe the patterns in the data, and make notes and calculations on your capture sheet about precipitation, temperature, elevation, and any land features such as oceans, lakes and mountains.

• After you have examined your climatogram, you will compare yours with those of other classmates.

Effect on inland locationsEffect on inland locations

Effect on coastal locationsEffect on coastal locations

Image source: http://www.prh.noaa.gov/hnl/kids/activities.php

Effect of elevationEffect of elevation

Effect of Being Near MountainsEffect of Being Near Mountains

Create your own climatogramCreate your own climatogram

• Use the instructions to get data from NASA TRMM, weather.com, intellicast.com, wunderground.com, or other websites about a location around the world.

• Follow the directions to make a climatogram using Excel.• Find your location on a map, and draw or label the

features around it.• Using what you have learned about the effect of

geographic features, write paragraphs describing the temperature and precipitation patterns at your location, as well as the effect of elevation, bodies of water, and mountains.

• Be sure to refer to the checklists and rubric to make sure you include all the required information.

Extension Activities

Rain Shadow Satellite ImagesRain Shadow Satellite Images

Satellite Images and the Rain Shadow Effect in the Pacific Northwest

Landsat 5 Image of OregonLandsat 5 Image of Oregon

From NASA Earth Observatory, accessed 8/6/2013, http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/IOTD/view.php?id=79247

Compared to a PhotographCompared to a Photograph

Compared to photographs/ natural-color images from Google. (Some areas are images from satellites, but the most high-resolution images are from aerial photography.)

Andes MountainsAndes Mountains

Natural-color image of the rain shadow of the Andes Mountains, 250 km southeast of La Paz, Bolivia.

http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/IOTD/view.php?id=8830

Mahale Mountains National Park, TanzaniaMahale Mountains National Park, Tanzania

http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/IOTD/view.php?id=6014