Temperature Controls

Temperature Control•Any factor that causes temperature to vary from place to place or from time to time

Why Temperatures Vary•Factors (other than latitude) that cause changes in the temperature are:•Heating of land and water•Geographic position•Altitude•Cloud cover•Ocean currents

Land and Water•Land heats more rapidly and also cools more rapidly than water•Land heats to higher temperatures as well as cools to lower temperatures than water•Temperature variations greater over land than over water

Geographic Position•A coastal location where winds blow from the ocean onto shore would have cool summers and mild winters•A coastal location where winds blow from the land toward the ocean would have a continental temperature pattern

Altitude•As elevation increases (further

from sea level), temperatures will decrease•As elevation lowers (closer to sea level), temperature will increase

Albedo•The fraction of total radiation that is reflected by any surface•Clouds have a high albedo•Reflect a significant portion of the sunlight that strikes it back into space

Cloud Cover•Cloud cover during the day will lower the temperature by lowering the amount of incoming solar radiation•Cloud cover at night will raise the temperature by absorbing outgoing radiation and reradiating a portion back to the surface

Isotherms•Lines that connect points that have the same temperature•Hot colors near equator•Cool colors towards the poles

Ocean Currents•East and west currents show a decrease in temperatures from the tropics toward the poles• Video