• Embed Doc
  • Copy Link
  • Readcast
  • Collections
  • 1
    CommentGo Back
Download
 
 
ROBERT SCOTT 8.A1 GEOGRAPHY.
 WHAT FACTORS AFFECT TEMPERATURES ACROSS THE WORLD?
Many factors affect temperatures on different scales. The main factors affectingthe Earth's temperature on a global scale are the Sun, the seasons, air and sea currents, andlatitude. These factors are still important on a smaller scale, even in micro-climates.There can also be other important factors, such as altitude, land masses, surfacecharacteristics, aspect, cloud cover and artificially generated heat. These factors affecttemperatures on a more local scale. For example in a house, if the central heating is on,the house will be warmer. In addition, the Earth's temperature is being affected by globalwarming, and the increase of greenhouse gases.The Sun is obviously the most important factor affecting temperature globally, andat other levels. It provides the vital heat source, without which we could not survive. TheSun's rays heat the Earth by a form of heat transfer known as radiation: during the day heatfrom the Sun's rays is absorbed by the Earth. When it is cloudy or at night, it is colder
 
than when the Sun is shining. The heat from the Sun's rays is absorbed by the clouds,instead of by the land, so it is cooler on the ground.Night occurs on the far side of the planet from the Sun,as the Earth spins on itsaxis. At night, the heat absorbed by the land sometimes the Northern Hemisphere is tiltedtowards the Sun; and sometimes the SouthernHemisphere is tilted towards the Sun. Thisresults in the seasons, which are periods of different weather patterns throughout the year.However, at the Equator, at 0 ° latitude, forexample, in Equador, the seasons tend to merge.This is because there is little change in positionrelative to the Sun: the Equator is equidistant from the Sun throughout the year. Differentparts of the world get different amounts of sunlight: further away from the Equator,temperatures are lower.In areas at higher latitudes, suchas the North and South Poles, the Sun'srays have a lot further, and a lot moreatmosphere, to travel through. In theatmosphere, there are tiny dust particleswhich reflect the light. When there aremore of these (1/b), more light isreflected away from the Earth's surface.At the Equator (1/a), there is less atmosphere for the Sun's rays to travel through, so moreheat is absorbed by the Earth. Also, light rays at the Equator (2/a), have a smaller area tospread their warmth, and are therefore more concentrated. At the Poles (2/b), there is a lot
 
more area to cover.The Earth's temperatures are also greatly affected by world-wide systems of winds, which carry warm and cold air across the planet. At the Equator, air is warmed bythe high levels of radiation. This warm air rises and flows away from the Equator at highaltitudes. Colder, denser air flows across the surface from the Poles towards the Equator.This is a form of heat transfer known as convection. These air masses warm up or cooldown the land they pass over. Warm air from the sea can hold a lot of moisture, forminglarge clouds which block out the sun.The sea also greatly affects global temperatures. Whereas the land heats up andcools down relatively quickly, the sea changes temperature slowly. Because the sea makesup about 70% of the Earth's surface, it has a great influence on global temperatures. Thesea's currents ferry cool and warm water around the Earth. This is another example of theprocess of convection. The major surface currents in the world's oceans are caused byprevailing winds.Some of the main warm currents are the Gulf Stream, going north east from theCaribbean, the Agulhas flowing down the east coast of Africa and the Kuroshio, travelling
of 00

Leave a Comment

You must be to leave a comment.
Submit
Characters: ...
Wawny

An excellent overview of Global Warming outlining the factual physics of the maintenance of warming our Planet. There are many other factors affecting 'Global Warming' and, I believe, our input is a small part of the actual Global Warming trend. History has shown many severe Global Warming episodes. The magazine "New Scientist" 21 June 2008 has an article about the Antarctic when 'When crocodiles roamed the Arctic'. Milankovich (1879) and Croll (1864) were scientists who, before any computers were about, worked out many factors affecting climate science. Check out http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Milankov... and many other websites. Also if you equate average global temperature rise as a percentage, remember you need to normalise it from a Centigrade temperature to a Kelvin temperature (based on absolute Zero temperature) and the global temp variation is a relatively 'normal' rise. Keep up the good work. Clive

reply06 / 28 / 2008
You must be to leave a comment.
Submit
Characters: ...