How does climate vary throughout the world?

Targets

At the end of this Unit you should be able to answer the following questions 

1. What are the elements of weather?

1.1 Why do temperature differences cause air movement?

1.2 What causes rain, hail, sleet, and snow?

1.3 How can weather be measured?

1.4 What weather clues do the clouds and the Sun give us?

1.5 How can we predict and prepare ourselves for bad weather?

2. How do human actions affect climate?

2.1 How does climate vary throughout the world?

2.2 How are human actions linked to climate change?

targets

Many people use the words climate and weather to mean the same thing, but they are very different words. Climate describes the conditions of the atmosphere in an area over a long period of time. This is different from weather, which describes the condition of the atmosphere at the moment.

Alberta has an interesting climate. We have nice warm summers, but we spend a good part of the year in a cold winter. Because our cold weather lasts long each year, the Alberta climate is called continental. Some parts of the world are colder than Alberta is, and some are warmer. Some are wetter, and some are drier. The important thing to remember is that the world has many types of climates.

Terms to describe climates refer to five major zones:

Climate Zone
 Description Examples
Tropical
Very warm, very wet
Tropical rainforest
Dry
Very warm, very dry
Sahara desert
Moderate
Moderately warm and wet
Mid-Europe
Continental
Moderately cool and dry
Alberta
Polar
Very cold, very dry
Antarctica

  Video

Watch this BrainPop video: Earth has many interesting climates

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