What is CLIMATE?Lavender

Warm-Up

What are the characteristics of different climates?

What factors affect the climate of a region?

CLIMATE

The long-term average weather conditions that occur in a particular region.

◦Dependant on average temperature and precipitation

WITH YOUR NEIGHBOR…

Discuss how weather and climate differ.

◦Write down a few reasons.

What affects CLIMATE?

LATITUDE of a location ◦Ex: areas close to equator have the warmest

climates

What affects CLIMATE?

Large bodies of water (lakes and oceans)◦Along coastlines, weather is more constant.◦Hot summers & cold winters = center of

continents

What affects CLIMATE?

Altitude of an area◦Often more rainy/snowy

What affects CLIMATE?

Buildings and Concrete retain solar energy◦Causes temperatures to be higher in urban

areas

CLIMATES ON EARTH

Open to Page 496

With your table partners…Observe the map that shows World

Climates.◦Create a table that includes the following

Climate Colors Description1 location where this

climate exists

Demonstration of Learning

Why is one climate different from another?

What climate do we live in (Colorado Springs)? What characteristics define this?

Warm-Up

1. How are climates classified?

2. Page 494 – Study figure 2◦Write a statement explaining the difference in

climate and temperature between Leadville, CO and Burlington, CO.

MICROCLIMATES

A microclimate is a localized climate that is different from the climate of the larger area surrounding it.

BRAINSTORM

Come up with as many examples of microclimates that you can think of.

Compare with your neighbor.

The south face of a mountain is warmer than the north as it gets

more sunlight

Tall buildings create shadows

Large bodies of water cool the air and make it damp

Concrete absorbs solar energy

Valleys are cooler than hillsides on winter nights (as lighter warm air rises and heavier cool air falls)

Wind dries up land

In this microclimate, one side of the slope is oriented to get more sun with limited ability to absorb moisture. The other side receives less sun throughout the day, retains more moisture and creates the conditions to grow more vegetation.

Turn to page 506

Read the section titled El Nino and the Southern Oscillation

Write a 1 paragraph summary explaining what you read.

El Niño & La Niña

a temporary change in the climate of the Pacific ocean, in the region around the equator

◦La Niña = cooler temperatures◦El Niño = warmer temperatures

La Niña (cold) Conditions(December 1998)

Normal ConditionsDecember 1993

El Niño (warm) ConditionsDecember 1997

http://www.pmel.noaa.gov/tao/elnino/la-nina-story.html

Links

El Nino – MapDiscovery Education

Demonstration of learning

How might the construction of a concrete road change an area’s climate?

Define a microclimate (in your own words) and give 3 examples of microclimates with might find IN COLORADO SPRINGS.

CLIMATE CYCLES – WARM UP

Record the definitions of the following vocabulary terms in your notebooks

◦Ice ages◦Interglacial◦Monsoons◦Drought

LONG TERM CYCLES

Climate changes in cycles that take much longer than a lifetime.

How do scientists gain knowledge about past climates before our time?

Past Climates

Scientists study ◦ice cores drilled from ice layers in glaciers and

ice sheets.◦Fossilized pollen◦Ocean sediments◦Growth rings in trees

Ice Ages and Interglacial's

Ice Age – cold periods lasting from hundreds to millions of years when glaciers cover much of earth

Interglacial – warm periods that occur during ice ages or between ice ages

Major Ice Ages and Warm Periods

Most recent – about 2 million years ago◦Ice sheets reached max size about 20,000

years ago◦About half the northern hemisphere was

covered by ice

◦About 10,000 years ago Earth entered its current interglacial period Called HOLOCENE EPOCH Temperatures have continued to fluctuate

Video

Causes of Long-Term Climate Cycles

Shape of orbit – varies between elliptical and circular over the course of about 100,000 years

◦Circular orbit = greater distance from sun = below average temperatures

Page 503

Causes of Long-Term Climate Cycles

Changes in the tilt of Earths axis ◦Changes in 41,000- year cycles◦Affect the range of temperatures throughout

the year

◦Climate Change - Warming

Short-Term Cycles

Seasons

El Nino the Southern Oscillation – the combined ocean and atmospheric cycle that results in weakened trade winds across the Pacific Ocean

Short-Term Cycles

Monsoons – a wind circulation pattern that changes direction with the seasons.◦Temperature differences between the ocean

and the land cause winds◦Summer – wind blows from water to land◦Winter – wind blows from land to water

Monsoon

Short-Term Cycles

Drought – a period with below-average precipitation ◦often accompanied by heat waves◦Large hot-air masses remain in one place for

weeks or months

◦Drought