Climates

   Every place around the world has its own kind of climate, which, at the same time, has its unique characteristics. Climates are classified in Equatorial, tropical continental, monsoon and cold.                             

   Places with Equatorial climates are located 5º N/S of the Equator's line. The annual temperature range is very low -about 2ºC- due to the fact that most of the time the sun is directly overhead. On the other hand, annual rainfall is over 2000 mm. Convectional thunderstorms occur frequently, qhich happen when warm air rises creating an area of low pressure and consecuently producing heavy rains. Besides, winds are light and humidity is very high. There is not seasonal change and there is not much temperature difference between night and daytime. As regards daily pattern, Equatorial areas have 12 hours of daylight and 12 hours of darkness. Also, the high temperatures cause hot air to rise, which then cools down on reaching higher altitudes. When it cools to its dew point, large cummulus clouds develop. These clouds produce torrential storms, which stop rapidly, leaving the air calm.       

   Tropical continetal climates are found in the central part of continents, about 5º/15º N/S of the Equator; these include some areas in Venezuela and Africa. There are alternate wet and dry seasons, which are caused by the movements of the sun. Anyhow, wet seasons are pretty unreliable which is why many countries have gone through severe droughts.             

   Monsoon climates are located at Africa's west and Asia-Australian regions. There are two main seasons: the south-west and north-east monsoon.                     

   Concerning the south-west monsoon, the sun is overhead at the tropic of Cancer in June. Places near the Himalayas become extremely hot. When hot air rises, humidity is drawn to the north and when forced to rise mountains, air gives large amounts of rainfall.

   As regards the norht-east monsoon, during the winter the sun moves to the south, There are areas in the north of Himalayas which are very cold and there is a high pressure. As winds are created in dry areas, they give  a small amount of rainfall.                          

   Hot deserts are places with high temperatures, low rainfall and high evapotranspiration. Most deserts are located in the west coasts between 5º and 30º N/S of the Equator. Temperatures are higher when the sun is overhead and coastal areas are cooler at night; temperatures are freezing.                                         
   On the contrary, cold climates are characterized for their cool temperatures. These are found to the poleward side of 60ºN. Here, winters are very long and extremely cold; however, summers are quite short. Precipitations are light along the year, which fall mostly as snow and blown about in blizzards. Strong winds can lower temperatures and bring the risk of frost-bite.