geog wa1

• Temperatures are high throughout the year, averaging around 23°C.
• About the tropics-7

  -located 23.5° north and south of the equator

  -23.5° north - tropics of cancer

  -23.5° south- tropics of Capricorn

  -high temperatures throughout the year

  -only one season- summer

  -receives the greatest amount of sunshine in the world

  -high precipitation rates (>2000mm)
• Longitude


  -Distance east or west of the prime meridian, measured in degrees

  -all lines of longitude pass through the north and South Pole
• Equator


  -Longest of all limes of latitude

  -devides the earth in half and if measured as 0degrees
• Latitude


  -Distance north or south of the equator

  -latitude lines are parallel

  -90 degrees of latitude from the equator to each of the north and south poles
• Groundwater flow


  very slow movement of water below Earth's surface
• surface runoff


  water that travels over the surface of the ground to reach streams & rivers
• Percolation


  downward flow of water through soil into the groundwater due to gravity
• Infiltration


  process by which water enters the ground or soil
• Precipitation


  liquid, solid or a combination of both types of atmospheric water vapour that are large enough to fall due to Earth's gravity
• Condensation


  process of changing from a gaseous state to a liquid state
• Transpiration


  process by which water is lost through the surface of a plant
• Evaporation


  process of water changing from liquid to gaseous state
• Why is the top of a mountain colder than the bottom?
• Why is the temperature highest at midday?

  (similar to the latitude & temp question)

  At midday,

  1. the sun is directly overhead.

  2. Hence, solar radiation is spread over a smaller area,

  3. resulting in a higher concentration of solar radiation.

  4. Hence, temperature is highest at midday.
• Why is the temperature lower before midday?

  (similar to the latitude & temp question)

  Before midday,

  1. the sun is not directly overhead.

  2. Hence, solar radiation is spread over a larger area,

  3. resulting in a lower concentration of radiation.

  4. Hence, temperature is lower than at midday.
• Why is it hotter near the equator as compared to further away from the equator?

  At/near the equator,

  1. angle at which the sun's rays strike the earth is higher, around 90º, striking most directly.

  2. Solar radiation is concentrated over a smaller area, resulting in intense heating.

  3. Hence, the temperature is higher.

  
  

  Further away from the equator,

  1. the angle at which the sun's rays strike the earth is lower (low angle of incoming sunlight),

  2. so the solar radiation is spread out over a larger area, resulting in less heating.

  3. therefore the temperature is lower.
• Factors that affect temperature

  Latitude and Altitude
• What is temperature?

  Temperature is the degree of hotness or coldness of a place.
• How do you describe wind?

  Calm/Windy
• How do you describe rainfall?

  Wet/Dry
• How do you describe clouds?

  Cloudless/Cloudy
• How do you describe Relative Humidity?

  Humid/Not humid
• How do you describe temperature?

  Hot/Cold
• What is climate?

  The average weather conditions of a specific place over a considerable period of time, usually MORE that 30 years.
• What is weather?

  The conditions of the atmosphere at a specific place over a relatively short period of time.
• Cloudy day=cooler day

  clouds reflect back some of the solar radiation into space, less solar radiation reaching the ground, relatively lower temperature

  cloudy night=cooler night

  clouds will retain the heat that rises up from the ground, so it slows the down rate of the heat escaping into space. the atmosphere retains more heat.
• There is only one season in the tropics: summer.
• Tropics receives the most amount of sunlight in the world.
• elements of weather: temperature(hot/cold/warm), wind(not/windy), rainfall(wet/dry), cloud cover(not/cloudy), relative humidity(not/humid).
• The nature of the surface affects the amount of solar radiation that is absorbed or reflected.
• Albedo, or reflection coeffecient, is an index to show the reflectivity of a surface.