Climate
155 questions tagged Climate — spanning every one of the seven Ws.
Where is the driest place on Earth?
The Atacama Desert in Chile is the driest non-polar place — some areas have received no measurable rainfall in recorded history. NASA uses it as a Mars analogue due to the extreme aridity.
Where is the largest desert?
Antarctica is Earth's largest desert at 14.2 million sq km — it's a "cold desert" receiving only 51 mm of precipitation annually. The Sahara is the largest hot desert at 9.2 million sq km.
When did the last ice age end?
The last glacial period ended about 11,700 years ago, as Earth warmed into the current Holocene epoch, allowing agriculture and civilization to flourish.
Where is the hottest place on Earth?
Death Valley, California, holds the record for the highest reliably measured air temperature: 56.7°C (134°F) in 1913.
Where is the coldest inhabited place on Earth?
Oymyakon in Siberia, Russia, is the coldest permanently inhabited place, where temperatures have dropped to around −71.2°C.
Where Is the Atacama Desert?
The Atacama Desert stretches along the Pacific coast of northern Chile and parts of southern Peru.
How Do Glaciers Form?
Glaciers form when accumulated snow compresses over decades into dense ice that begins to flow under its own weight.
What Is the Greenhouse Effect?
The greenhouse effect is the natural warming of Earth surface caused by atmospheric gases trapping heat that would otherwise escape to space.
Which Is the Driest Continent?
Antarctica is the driest continent, receiving an average of only about 166 mm of precipitation per year, mostly as snow.
What is a carbon footprint?
A carbon footprint is the total amount of greenhouse gases caused by a person, product or organisation, usually measured in tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent.
Why is sea level rising?
Seas are rising because warming water expands and melting glaciers and ice sheets add water to the ocean.
Why is Antarctica colder than the Arctic?
Antarctica is a high, ice-covered continent, while the Arctic is mostly ocean that holds and releases heat.
Why is the Sahara a desert?
The Sahara sits under a belt of sinking dry air, and wobbles in Earth’s orbit have switched it between green and dry.
Why is Venice sinking?
Venice is built on soft lagoon sediments that are compacting, while sea levels around it are rising.
What is the Paris Agreement?
It is a 2015 international treaty in which countries agreed to limit global warming to well below 2°C.
What does net zero mean?
Net zero means cutting greenhouse gas emissions as far as possible and balancing the rest by removing an equal amount.
What is the polar vortex?
The polar vortex is a large area of cold, swirling air high above each pole that can spill south and bring freezing weather.
What Is Thermohaline Circulation?
Thermohaline circulation is a global ocean current system driven by differences in water temperature and salinity that moves heat around the planet.
Where Is the Driest Inhabited Place on Earth?
Arica, Chile, receives an average of less than 1 mm of rain per year.
Where Is the World's Largest Ice Shelf?
The Ross Ice Shelf in Antarctica is about 487,000 square kilometres — roughly the size of France.
Why do deserts get so cold at night?
Dry desert air and clear skies let the day's heat escape quickly into space after sunset.
Why is it colder at the top of a mountain?
Air at higher altitudes has lower pressure, so it expands and cools, and there is less air to hold heat.
When was the Kyoto Protocol signed?
The Kyoto Protocol was adopted on 11 December 1997 in Kyoto, Japan, and came into force on 16 February 2005.
Why is Antarctica considered a desert?
A desert is defined by very low precipitation, not heat. Antarctica receives so little snow each year that it is the world's largest desert.
What is the Gulf Stream?
The Gulf Stream is a powerful warm ocean current that flows from the Gulf of Mexico up the US East Coast and across the Atlantic towards Europe.
Why does the Sahara become so cold at night?
The Sahara has very little moisture or cloud cover, so heat escapes quickly after sunset. Dry sand and air do not store heat as well as water.
Why do droughts make some disasters worse instead of just causing dry weather?
Drought weakens crops, dries soils, and raises wildfire risk, so it can trigger multiple kinds of damage at once.
Why do sea levels rise when the planet warms?
Sea level rises mainly because seawater expands as it warms and because melting land ice adds more water to the ocean. Both processes are driven by global warming.
Why do mountains often get colder with height?
Air pressure drops with altitude, so rising air expands and cools. On average, temperature in the troposphere falls by about 6.5°C per kilometre.
Why do mountains create rain shadows?
Moist air rises on the windward side, cools, and drops rain before crossing the range. The leeward side gets dry, sinking air and far less precipitation.
Why do mountains sometimes have snow even in warm countries?
High altitude makes the air colder, so temperatures can stay low enough for snow above certain elevations. Tropical mountains often have permanent snow or glaciers near their highest peaks.
Why do some deserts become very cold at night?
Dry air and clear skies let heat escape rapidly after sunset. With little water vapour or cloud cover to trap warmth, temperatures can drop fast.
Why is the Sahara Desert so large?
The Sahara lies under descending dry air from the subtropical high-pressure belt. Mountain barriers and distance from moist ocean air also help keep it arid.
Why do deserts have so little rainfall?
Most deserts sit where air sinks, or where mountains block moist air, or far from ocean moisture. The result is too little condensation to make regular rain.
Why do monsoon rains arrive in seasonal bursts rather than all year round?
Monsoons are driven by seasonal shifts in temperature between land and ocean, which reverse wind patterns and pull moist air inland. That creates a wet season and a dry season.
Why do coastal areas often have cooler summers than places farther inland at the same latitude?
Oceans heat up and cool down much more slowly than land, so nearby coastlines are moderated by sea breezes and cooler water. This keeps summer temperatures lower and winter temperatures milder.
Why do mountains create rain shadows on their leeward side?
As moist air rises over a mountain, it cools, condenses, and drops rain on the windward side. The descending air on the far side is drier and warmer, so much less rain falls there.
Why do some climates have dry summers and wet winters, like the Mediterranean region?
These climates are shaped by shifting wind belts and pressure systems that move north and south with the seasons. In summer, high pressure suppresses rain; in winter, storm tracks return.
Why do droughts often make wildfires worse instead of just reducing rainfall?
Drought dries out vegetation, turning plants into ready fuel for fire and making them easier to ignite. Dry soils and low humidity can also let fires spread faster and burn hotter.
Why do El Niño and La Niña change weather around the world?
They shift sea-surface temperatures and atmospheric circulation across the tropical Pacific, which alters rainfall, storms, and jet stream patterns globally. These changes are part of the El Niño–Southern Oscillation.
Why do some years bring many more hurricanes than others?
Hurricane activity changes with sea temperature, wind shear, and large climate patterns such as El Niño and La Niña. Favorable conditions can make a season much busier, while hostile conditions suppress storms.
Why do some winters stay unusually mild while others are bitterly cold in the same place?
Winter temperatures depend on shifting jet stream patterns, ocean conditions, and whether Arctic air spills south. Natural variability can make one winter very different from the next.
Why do some tropical regions have wet and dry seasons instead of four classic seasons?
Near the tropics, temperature changes are small, so rainfall patterns matter more than seasonal heat and cold. The movement of the ITCZ and monsoons creates wet and dry periods.
Why do some glaciers and snowfields survive through summer while nearby slopes melt away?
They survive where snowfall, shading, altitude, and slope shape allow more winter accumulation and less summer melting. In some places, avalanches also feed extra snow into protected basins.
What is a volcanic winter?
A volcanic winter is a period of cooler global or regional temperatures caused by volcanic ash and sulfur aerosols blocking sunlight.
What is a blue carbon ecosystem?
A blue carbon ecosystem is a coastal habitat that stores large amounts of carbon, such as seagrass meadows, mangroves, and salt marshes. These habitats help absorb and lock away carbon from the atmosphere.
What is ocean deoxygenation?
Ocean deoxygenation is the long-term decline of dissolved oxygen in seawater. It can create low-oxygen zones that stress or kill marine life.
What is a marine heatwave?
A marine heatwave is a period of unusually warm ocean temperatures lasting days to months. It can cause mass die-offs, coral bleaching, and shifts in marine species.
What is a climate normal?
A climate normal is a long-term average of weather measurements for a place, usually calculated over 30 years. It helps compare today’s weather with what is typical for that location.
What is paleoclimatology?
Paleoclimatology is the study of Earth’s past climates using evidence from ice cores, tree rings, sediments, corals, and other natural archives. It helps scientists understand climate change long before modern thermometers existed.
What is a climate proxy?
A climate proxy is an indirect natural record used to infer past weather or climate conditions. Examples include tree rings, ice cores, lake sediments, and pollen.
What is a drought monitor?
A drought monitor is a map or assessment system that shows how dry conditions are in a region. It helps governments, farmers, and emergency planners track drought severity.
What is climate change attribution?
Climate change attribution is the science of estimating how much human activity or natural factors contributed to a specific weather event or long-term climate trend. It helps answer whether warming made an event more likely or more intense.
When did the first deep Antarctic ice core reveal past climate history?
In the 1960s, when early deep ice cores from Antarctica began preserving trapped ancient air and temperature clues.
When was the oldest known ice core climate record extended beyond 400,000 years?
In 2004, when the EPICA Dome C ice core extended the Antarctic record to about 800,000 years.
When did the 1815 eruption of Mount Tambora happen?
Mount Tambora’s climactic eruption took place in April 1815, with the worst phase beginning on 10 April.
When did the 1991 eruption of Mount Pinatubo occur?
Mount Pinatubo’s climactic eruption occurred on 15 June 1991.
When was the first successful prediction of an El Niño event made?
Scientific prediction of El Niño became practical in the late 20th century, with major forecasting improvements in the 1980s and 1990s. Earlier recognition of the phenomenon dates back much further.
When did the first marine heatwave record get identified in scientific literature?
The term and concept of marine heatwaves emerged in the early 21st century, with influential scientific papers published in the 2010s. They are now a major climate and ocean topic.
When was the Sahara Desert formed in its modern arid state?
The Sahara became a desert roughly around 3,000 to 4,000 years ago after a much wetter period ended.
When did the Atacama Desert begin to develop its extreme dryness?
The Atacama’s hyper-arid conditions developed over millions of years, with extreme dryness established by at least the late Miocene.
When was the first recorded heat wave in Europe?
Europe has had many historic heat waves, but one of the earliest well-documented severe ones occurred in 1540, often called the 'megadrought' summer.
When was the first El Niño event named?
The name 'El Niño' was used by Peruvian fishermen for seasonal warm water in the Pacific by the late 19th century.
When was the first La Niña event identified by scientists?
La Niña was recognized as the cool phase of the same Pacific climate pattern in the 20th century, after scientists linked it to El Niño behavior.
When was the first climate change report published by the IPCC?
The IPCC’s first assessment report was published in 1990.
Which is the hottest naturally occurring place on Earth?
The Lut Desert in Iran has recorded some of the highest surface temperatures ever measured on Earth. Satellite readings have shown land-surface temperatures above 70°C.
Which volcanic eruption was the most powerful in Icelandic history?
The Laki eruption of 1783–1784 is one of the most devastating and climatically significant eruptions in Icelandic history.
Which ocean is the warmest on average?
The Indian Ocean is generally the warmest ocean on average. Its tropical and subtropical waters keep surface temperatures higher than those of the Atlantic and Pacific.
Whose work first showed that volcanic eruptions can cool the climate?
Scientists studying the 1815 eruption of Mount Tambora showed that large eruptions inject aerosols into the atmosphere. The eruption led to the 'Year Without a Summer' in 1816.
Whose research first explained coral bleaching as a stress response?
Biologist Peter Glynn was among the scientists who established coral bleaching as a response to environmental stress, especially heat. His work helped show that bleaching is not the coral dying instantly, but expelling its symbiotic algae.
Whose observations first linked El Niño to unusual Pacific Ocean warming?
The phenomenon was named by fishermen, but modern scientific explanation grew from work by Gilbert Walker and later oceanographers such as Jacob Bjerknes. They connected Pacific warming with shifts in winds and weather patterns.
Whose work first identified the role of pH in ocean acidification?
Chemist and oceanographer researchers in the 20th century established that extra carbon dioxide lowers seawater pH. Today this process is known as ocean acidification.
Whose research first linked seafloor sediments to Earth’s climate history?
Maurice Ewing and later ocean drillers showed that deep-sea sediments preserve ancient climate records. Ocean cores can contain layers that stretch back millions of years.
Whose work first identified the rarity of rain in the Atacama Desert?
Alexander von Humboldt helped popularize early scientific understanding of the Atacama’s extreme aridity, later confirmed by modern climatology as one of Earth’s driest regions.
Whose work first explained the greenhouse effect?
Joseph Fourier first proposed in 1824 that Earth’s atmosphere traps heat, laying the groundwork for the greenhouse effect.
Whose work first explained the urban heat island effect?
Luke Howard is often credited with early observations of city climate differences, while the term and concept were later developed by scientists such as Gordon Manley.
Whose observations first explained the rain shadow effect?
Mountain meteorology was developed by scientists such as Julius Hann, who helped explain why one side of a mountain is wet and the other dry.
Whose research first identified the Mediterranean climate pattern?
Geographers and climatologists later defined the Mediterranean climate, but Rudolf Geiger helped systematize climate classification in the 20th century.
Whose research first explained the role of aerosols in climate?
M. M. Ramanathan and other atmospheric scientists in the late 20th century helped establish how aerosols affect sunlight and clouds, but John A. Schueller and earlier researchers laid groundwork; the field matured through many contributors.
How do rainforests make their own rain?
Rainforests recycle moisture by releasing water vapour from leaves through transpiration. That moisture helps form clouds and can trigger more rain.
How do ice cores reveal Earth’s past climate?
Ice cores trap ancient snow, air bubbles, dust, and chemicals that act like time capsules. Scientists can read them to reconstruct temperatures and atmospheric conditions going back hundreds of thousands of years.
How do forests make rainfall more likely?
Forests help create rain by releasing water vapour through transpiration and by adding tiny particles that help form clouds. In large forest regions, this can increase local humidity and sometimes trigger rainfall.
How do seagrass meadows help store carbon in the ocean?
Seagrasses trap carbon in their roots and in seabed sediments, where it can stay stored for long periods. These habitats are often called blue carbon ecosystems.
How do ocean currents move heat around the planet?
Currents transport warm and cold water across the oceans, helping regulate climate. Wind, Earth’s rotation, temperature, and salinity all drive the system.
How do rain shadows make one side of a mountain much drier?
Moist air rises over a mountain, cools, and drops rain on the windward side, then descends warmer and drier on the leeward side. This creates a rain shadow.
How do monsoons switch between wet and dry seasons?
Monsoons are seasonal wind patterns driven by land and ocean heating differences. In summer, land heats faster, air rises, and moist winds blow inland, bringing heavy rain.
How do El Niño and La Niña change weather around the world?
They are opposite phases of the El Niño–Southern Oscillation in the tropical Pacific. Changes in ocean temperature and trade winds can shift rainfall, storms, and drought patterns globally.
How do climate zones shift as you move away from the equator?
Sunlight hits the Earth more directly at the equator and more slantwise toward the poles, so temperatures generally decrease with latitude. This helps create tropical, temperate, and polar climate zones.
How does altitude make mountain climates colder?
Air pressure drops with height, so rising air expands and cools. On average, temperature decreases by about 6.5 °C per kilometer in the lower atmosphere.
How does sea ice help cool the Arctic and Antarctic?
Sea ice reflects much of the Sun’s energy back to space, keeping polar regions colder. It also insulates the ocean from the air above.
How do droughts develop and last for months or years?
Drought develops when precipitation stays below normal for a long period, often combined with high temperatures and strong evaporation. Soil, rivers, and reservoirs then slowly run out of water.
How does the greenhouse effect warm Earth?
Greenhouse gases like water vapor, carbon dioxide, and methane absorb and re-emit infrared radiation, trapping some heat in the lower atmosphere. Without this effect, Earth would be much colder.
How do climate scientists estimate past temperatures from ice cores?
They analyze trapped air bubbles, oxygen isotopes, and dust layers in ancient ice. These records can extend back hundreds of thousands of years.
How do urban heat islands make cities hotter than nearby countryside?
Cities absorb and trap more heat because of dark surfaces, buildings, and less vegetation. Human activities and waste heat also raise temperatures.
How do weather and climate differ from each other?
Weather is the short-term state of the atmosphere, while climate is the long-term average of weather patterns over decades. Weather changes day to day; climate describes what is typical.
What is a megadrought?
A megadrought is an unusually severe drought that lasts for many years, often a decade or longer. It is not a volcanic event, but it can worsen wildfire and disaster risk.
When did the first volcanic eruption affect global climate measurements?
The 1815 eruption of Mount Tambora was a major event that changed global climate and led to the 'Year Without a Summer' in 1816.
Which volcanic eruption is linked to one of the biggest climate impacts in history?
The 1815 Tambora eruption caused one of the greatest short-term climate impacts ever recorded. It cooled the atmosphere enough to disrupt weather and agriculture worldwide.
Why do volcanic eruptions change the weather and climate?
Big eruptions can inject sulfur gases high into the stratosphere, where they form reflective sulfate aerosols. These particles can cool the planet for one to a few years.
Why do some lakes freeze while others stay liquid all winter?
Lakes freeze differently because of depth, movement, salinity, and heat stored in the water, which can delay or prevent complete freezing.
Why do some waterfalls have very little water in dry seasons?
A waterfall depends on river flow, so it shrinks when rainfall and snowmelt drop or when water is diverted upstream.
Why do some mountains have snow year-round near the equator?
High mountains near the equator stay cold because temperature drops with altitude, not just latitude. If the summit rises above the local snow line, snow and ice can persist all year.
Why do some mountain ranges create rain shadows and nearby deserts?
Mountains force moist air to rise, cool, and drop rain on the windward side. The air then descends drier on the leeward side, creating a rain shadow that can produce desert conditions.
Why do some deserts get cold at night even after scorching days?
Deserts often cool quickly because they have very dry air, few clouds, and little vegetation or water to store heat. Without moisture and cloud cover, heat escapes fast after sunset.
Why are desert nights sometimes surprisingly windy?
Deserts can develop strong winds at night because the land cools rapidly and creates pressure differences near the surface. Those pressure changes can drive local breezes and dust movement.
Why do some mountain ranges act as climate barriers?
Big ranges block air masses, redirect winds, and force moisture to fall on one side. That can create sharply different climates on opposite slopes or beyond the mountains.
What is monsoon onset?
Monsoon onset is the beginning of the seasonal shift to a wet-weather pattern. It usually brings a major change in winds, clouds, and rainfall.
What is climate normal?
A climate normal is a long-term average of weather measurements for a place, usually calculated over 30 years. It provides a baseline for comparing current conditions.
What is a climate feedback?
A climate feedback is a process that either amplifies or reduces an initial change in climate. Water vapor, ice, and clouds are major examples.
What is climate resilience?
Climate resilience is the ability of people, ecosystems, and infrastructure to cope with climate impacts and recover from them. It includes preparing for heat, floods, drought, and storms.
When was the first atmospheric carbon dioxide measurement made?
Systematic CO2 measurements began in the mid-20th century, with Charles David Keeling starting his famous record in 1958.
When did the 1991 eruption of Mount Pinatubo happen?
Mount Pinatubo’s climactic eruption began on June 15, 1991. It was one of the largest eruptions of the 20th century.
When did the eruption of Mount Tambora occur?
Mount Tambora erupted in April 1815. It caused the global climate anomaly known as the Year Without a Summer.
When did the eruption of Laki begin?
The Laki fissure eruption began on June 8, 1783. It lasted for months and caused major environmental and social disruption in Iceland and beyond.
When was the first known ocean acidification study published?
Concerns about ocean acidification were discussed scientifically in the late 20th century, with research intensifying in the 1990s and 2000s. It became a major climate-ocean issue as carbon dioxide studies advanced.
When was the first drought monitored with modern climate records?
Systematic drought monitoring began in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, when regular rainfall and temperature records became widespread. That made it possible to compare dry periods across years and regions.
When did the first El Niño event get scientifically described?
El Niño was recognized by scientists in the 19th century, with the term becoming established among Peruvian and international observers by the late 1800s. It was first identified through unusual warm waters and weather changes in the eastern Pacific.
When was the term La Niña first used in climate science?
La Niña was identified later than El Niño, with the term becoming established in the 20th century. It describes the cooler phase of the same ocean-atmosphere pattern.
When was the first climate change warning given by scientists?
Scientists warned about greenhouse warming as early as the late 19th century. Svante Arrhenius published a major calculation in 1896 linking carbon dioxide increases to higher temperatures.
When was the first ice core drilled for climate history?
Ice core drilling for climate research began in the mid-20th century, with major Antarctic and Greenland cores taken in the 1950s and later decades. These cores preserved ancient air bubbles and climate clues.
When did the first global climate summit take place?
The first major global climate summit was the 1979 World Climate Conference in Geneva. It helped place climate change on the international agenda.
When was the first climate zone map created?
Climate classification maps began in the 19th century, with major systems refined in the early 20th century. These maps grouped regions by temperature and rainfall patterns.
When was the first heat wave named and studied as a weather event?
Heat waves were recognized as a distinct weather hazard in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. As temperature records improved, scientists and newspapers began treating them as a specific event.
When did scientists first measure the greenhouse effect in the atmosphere?
The greenhouse effect was studied experimentally in the 19th century. John Tyndall’s work in the 1850s and 1860s showed that gases like water vapor and carbon dioxide absorb heat.
When was the first carbon dioxide monitoring station established?
Continuous atmospheric carbon dioxide monitoring began in 1958. The famous Mauna Loa measurements started that year under Charles David Keeling.
When was the first monsoon pattern scientifically explained?
Monsoons were scientifically explained in the 19th century as large seasonal wind systems driven by land-sea temperature contrasts. The concept became central to tropical climate science.
When did the first climate refugee discussion begin?
Discussion of displacement linked to climate and environmental stress began in the late 20th century. The term became more common in the 1980s and 1990s.
When was the first climate conference held by the United Nations?
The UN’s first major climate conference was the 1979 World Climate Conference in Geneva. It helped launch international cooperation on climate science and policy.
When did scientists first identify polar warming as a global climate signal?
Polar warming was recognized as a key climate indicator in the 20th century, especially as Arctic and Antarctic records improved. Scientists later identified the Arctic as warming faster than the global average.
Which place has the hottest recorded ground surface temperature on Earth?
The Lut Desert in Iran has recorded some of the highest ground surface temperatures on Earth, above 70°C in satellite measurements.
Which volcano caused the most infamous volcanic winter in history?
Mount Tambora caused the most infamous volcanic winter in history. Its 1815 eruption led to the global climate effects of 1816, the Year Without a Summer.
Which country has the highest average elevation?
Bhutan is often cited as the country with the highest average elevation, at roughly 3,280 meters above sea level.
Whose work first classified the open ocean into layers based on temperature and depth?
Fridtjof Nansen is strongly associated with early oceanographic measurements, and the broader modern study of ocean layers was advanced by scientists such as Townsend Cromwell and others. The key idea is that the ocean is structured into layers like the mixed layer, thermocline, and deep ocean.
Whose photographs first gave the public a clear view of coral bleaching from above?
More recent aerial and satellite imaging of coral bleaching has no single inventor, but researchers such as James Cook University coral scientists and NOAA teams helped document it clearly. Bleaching became widely recognized as a climate-linked crisis in the late 20th century.
Whose work first showed that ocean currents help shape global climate?
Henry Stommel was a leading oceanographer who helped explain the structure and behavior of large-scale ocean circulation. His work in the mid-20th century influenced how scientists understand climate and currents.
Whose observations first linked ocean temperature patterns to El Niño?
Gilbert Walker and later oceanographers helped identify large-scale climate patterns, while Peruvian observers had noted El Niño long before modern science. The modern El Niño concept became scientifically clear in the 20th century.
Whose work first showed that coral reefs can record past ocean temperatures?
Geochemists and reef scientists, including Elisabeth Walliser and others, helped show that coral skeleton chemistry can preserve climate records. This made reefs valuable archives of past sea-surface temperatures.
Whose geology first explained the formation of the Sahara as part of shifting climate zones?
The modern understanding comes from many scientists, but the Sahara’s changing climate was strongly shaped by work in paleoclimatology and Earth-system science. It is now known that the region was much greener during past “African Humid Periods.”
Whose scientific work first explained why some deserts are cold deserts?
Köppen climate classification helped explain why deserts can be cold as well as hot, because temperature depends on latitude, altitude and circulation. This is why places like the Gobi and Patagonian deserts are cold deserts.
How do oceanographers measure sea level rise?
They combine satellite altimetry, tide gauges, and long-term records to track changes in average sea level.
How do snow lines change with altitude in mountains?
As altitude increases, temperature drops, so snow lasts longer and can accumulate year after year. The permanent snow line is lower in cold or humid climates and higher in warm, dry ones.
How do mountains influence where deserts are found?
Mountains block moist air and create dry rain-shadow basins on their leeward side. They can also trap cold, dry air and shape local desert climates.
How do deserts form at the edges of cold ocean currents?
Cold currents cool the air above them, reducing evaporation and cloud growth inland. The result can be very dry coastal deserts such as the Atacama or Namib.
How do high-altitude deserts stay so cold at night?
Thin, dry air loses heat quickly after sunset, and there is little water vapor to trap warmth. High-altitude deserts can have very large day-night temperature swings.
How do monsoons change seasonal rainfall?
Monsoons are seasonal wind shifts that bring moist air and heavy rain in one part of the year, then drier air in another.
How do El Niño and La Niña change global weather?
They are opposite phases of the El Niño–Southern Oscillation that shift Pacific Ocean temperatures and alter rainfall and storm patterns around the world.
How do ocean currents influence climate on land?
Ocean currents move heat around the planet, warming some coasts and cooling others, which affects local climate.
How do tree rings record changes in weather and climate?
Trees usually add one ring per year, and the ring width and density can reflect wet, dry, warm or cold growing seasons.
How do climate models predict future warming?
Climate models use physics-based calculations of the atmosphere, oceans, ice and land to simulate how Earth may respond to greenhouse gases.
How does the greenhouse effect keep Earth warm?
Greenhouse gases absorb and re-radiate heat, trapping some of the infrared energy Earth sends back into space.
How do climate zones change with latitude?
As you move from the equator toward the poles, the angle of sunlight changes, creating belts of tropical, temperate and polar climates.
How do deserts form in the rain shadow of mountains?
Mountains force moist air upward, causing rain on the windward side and dry conditions on the leeward side.
How do monsoon clouds help fill reservoirs and rivers?
Monsoon rains fall in a concentrated season, rapidly increasing runoff, river flow and reservoir levels.
How do volcanoes affect climate after a major eruption?
Big explosive eruptions can inject sulfur compounds into the stratosphere, where they form reflective particles that cool Earth for a few years.
How do droughts develop and persist?
Droughts begin when rainfall is too low for too long, and they can persist when hot, dry conditions and depleted soil moisture reinforce each other.