Climate is an important aspect in our daily living. The way we dress, and the energy that we possess in carrying out our tasks are in a way affected by the type of climate in that particular place. Climate also affects the world’s biodiversity. Plant species, animals, and even the population of insects are clues to the types of climate of an area. As we all know each flora and fauna has its own requirements in terms of water, nutrients, and even its habitat. For instance, Cambodia has a very rich biodiversity as a result of its tropical climates. Places where there are least precipitation sustain cacti and other drought defying plants as only such plant could survive the driest places in the world. Climate is affected by different factors namely latitude, ocean current, wind, elevation, relief, and proximity to water. The combination of these factors determines the distinct characteristics of a region’s climatic condition.

Latitude

Latitude is the geographic coordinate that specifies the north-south position on the surface of the earth. It is an angle which ranges from 0° at the Equator to 90° (North or South)at the poles. Latitude is considered the single most important factor that determines climate.Generally, the farther away from the equator the region can be found, the lesser the energy that reaches the ground in any point in time. As a proof, places at low latitude (close to the equator) receive greater sunlight than places located at high altitudes (far from the equator as in the case of Somalia and North Pole),respectively.

The average distance between the earth and the sun is 150 million kilometers. At itsnearest point on the ellipse that orbit around the sun, the earth is 91,445,000 miles (147,166,462) from the sun. This point in the earth’s orbit is known as perihelion it occurs on January 3.

The earth is farthest away from the sun on July 4 when it is 94,555,000 miles (152,171,522) from the sun. This point in the earth’s orbit is called aphelion.

When an are is closer to the focus, the days are longer (summer solstice) and the sun rays are stronger. As a result, the climate heats up that allows the place to experience variation in temperature. Those locations close to the equator however exist in a nearly constant state of summer because they always get relatively strong sunlight and have long days.

As the earth’s axis is tilted 23.5° to the perpendicular, the amount of heat for each latitude varies with the seasons. From April to September, the northern Hemisphere is tilted toward the sun and receives more energy while the Southern Hemisphere receives an additional energy between October and March when it tilted the sun.

There are 3 general climatic zones with respect to latitude: arctic, tropic, and temperate.

Arctic

Regions found at 66.5 N to the North Pole comprise the Arctic Region; from 66.5 S to South Pole is the Antarctic. Places within the arctic climate zones are covered with permafrost. Antarctica, all of Greenland, the north of Alaska, Canada, and Russia are some of the places under this zone. Winters are severe, the sea freezes, and the place is exceptionally dry as continuous periods of daylight but the monthly temperature struggles to rise above freezing point. In these regions, the Sun hovers above the horizon at midnight in the summer and never rises at all, at times, during the winter.

Tropic (hot) climates

Tropic or tropical climate refers to the zones within latitudes between 5/10° to 35° . The equatorial belt experiences a non-arid climate with an average temperature above 18°C. Weather condition is humid. Due to high temperature, active vertical uplift and precipitation accompanied with thunderstorm are normal events in tropical climates. Sunshine and rainfall are present that allows the zones to have luxuriant vegetation. The nights of tropic weather condition are usually covered with clouds and thereby with a fall in temperature to about 22°C. High precipitation is usually subjected when sun reaches overhead during the midday time. Rainforest, savanna, and semi-arid are some of the examples of tropical climate. There are 3 distinctive tropical climates: equatorial, tropical continental, and hot deserts.

Temperate Temperate climate refers to zones in a rage of latitude in a range of latitude between 40° and 60/70°. The north temperate zone extends from the Tropic of Cancer (at about 23.5 degrees north latitude) to the Arctic Circle (at approximately 66.5 degrees north latitude). The south temperate zone on the other hand extends from the Tropic of Capricorn (at approximately 23.5 degrees south latitude) to the Antarctic Circle (at approximately 66.5 degrees south latitude.

Unlike arctic and tropical climates, this zone does not experience extremes of temperature and precipitation. There are two types of temperate climate namely, maritime and continental. Maritime climate is strongly affected by the oceans and has fairly steady temperatures across the seasons. Continental climate increases inland characterized by warmer summers and colder winter due to the thermal inertia possessed by the land.

Flora/fauna-living things of a particular region, habitat, or geological period.

Ellipse-a regular oval shape, traced by a point moving in a plane so that the sum of its distances from two other points (the foci) is constant, or resulting when a cone is cut by an oblique plane that does not intersect the base.

Permafrost-a thick subsurface layer of soil that remains frozen throughout the year, occurring chiefly in polar regions.

Humid-containing a high amount of water or water vapor; noticeably moist

Precipitation-water that falls to the ground as rain, snow, etc

semi-arid areas usually dominated by either grasses or shrubs