Africas climate regions key concepts you must know, or be able to do the following. The regions of the atmosphere above the troposphere are the stratosphere from between 10 and 15 to 40 km between 6. Northern africa, which lies north of the sahara and runs along the mediterranean coast, includes algeria, egypt, libya, morocco, sudan. Climate of the sahel and west africa oxford research. Look at our map of africa on page 382 in your social studies book. The tropics include the equator and parts of north america, south america, africa, asia, and australia. Lines of longitude are often referred to as meridians. The tropics are the region of the earth surrounding the equator. A small area in the northwest has a desert climate.
Precipitation, mostly rainfall, is the significant feature of the african climate. The koppen system recognizes five major climatic types. Central africa, for the most part, is landlocked and is geographically threatened by climate change. Oct 06, 2016 food aid to the affected regions quickly. Within some 1,000 km, the environment transitions from the hyperarid sahara desert to forests with over 1,200 mm of rainfall per year. First, most of the continentwhich extends from 35 s to about 37 n latitudelies within the tropics. Name, understand the characteristics and position of africas major climate regions be able to link the african continent circulation to global tricellular circulation with particular reference to areas of uplift rain and subsidence dry. South africa s climatic conditions generally range from mediterranean in the southwestern corner of south africa to temperate in the interior plateau, and subtropical in the northeast. Central africa is one of the most important climatic regions in the world. Mean annual rainfall 19812014, with number of months of 50 mm or more of rainfall. Climatic regions of africaafrica has the following climatic regions. Most of the country has warm, sunny days and cool nights.
Portions of this site are based on the cia world fact book, a publicdomain work. The continent mainly lies within the intertropical zone between the tropic of. Desert climate deserts are regions where evaporation exceeds precipitation. When understanding the intricacies of landmasses as large as the african continent, sometimes it is easier to divide the area into separate smaller geographic sections. Physical geography of west africa the 8 million square kilometers and 17 countries covered by this atlas encompass a wide range of landscapes from alluvial valleys in senegal and ghana, sandy plains and low plateaus across the sahel, and rolling hills of togo to rugged mountains with summits reaching over 1,500 m in guinea and 1,800 m in niger.
Due to its high climate variability and rainfed agriculture, central africa is expected to experience longer and more frequent heatwaves as well as an increase in wet extremes. Mediterraneanclimate regions are found, roughly speaking, between 31 and 40 degrees latitude north and south of the equator, on the western side of continents. Northern africa, which lies north of the sahara and runs along the mediterranean coast, includes algeria, egypt, libya, morocco, sudan, tunisia and western sahara. Temperate climates are rare across the continent except at very high elevations and along the fringes. These climates have warm,dry summers and cool, wet winters. Hot desert climate the aridity of the hot deserts is mainly due to the effects of offshore trade winds, hence they are also called trade wind deserts. The climate of africa is a range of climates such as the equatorial climate, the tropical wet and. For the most part, west africa is relatively flat and low, which sets it apart from the other major regions of africa. The sahel region of west africa is a semiarid expanse of grassland, shrubs, and small, thorny trees lying just south of the sahara.
The central third of texas has a subtropical subhumid climate characterized by hot summers and dry winters. Evolutionary processes such as the adaptation of plants to cold climates and current and past land connections are likely responsible for the observed latitudinal patterns. A followup report that provides a specific focus on the climate of the semiarid regions of southern africa is currently under development. Climate within the tropical zone varies from the tropical wet regions of the rain forest, to the drier arid and semiarid climate of north africa or. Southern africa consists of the portion generally south of 10 latitude and the great rainforests of congo. Vine is grown under a variety of soil and climatic conditions, namely, hot tropical, subtropical and mild tropical climatic regions iland et al. In winter, precipitation amount sharply decreases at the eastern coasts as well, but air humidity remains high and moderates the dryness of the winter period. Western africa is the portion roughly west of 10 degrees east longitude, excluding northern africa and the maghreb. Two subgroups, s semiarid or steppe, and w arid or desert, are used with the b climates. Africa latitude and longitude and relative locations. Second, the near bisection of the continent by the equator results in a largely symmetrical arrangement of climatic zones on either side. The top of the troposphere is called the tropopause. The six main climate zones of africa are found to the north and south of the equator, namely, equatorial, humid tropical, tropical, semidesert sahalian, mediterranean and desert. Climatic regions free download as powerpoint presentation.
Th e impact of climate change in africa introduction climate change has been identifi ed as a leading human and environmental crisis of the 21st century. D continental climates can be found in the interior regions of large land masses. This means that our climate is dominated by the belt of subtropical highs. Th e problem of understanding climate change or global warming is one of the major challenges confronting african people, their governments and the african union au. Africas position is relatively unique in the sense that it almost has a mirror image of climate zones to the north and south of the equator with regard to latitude. The climatic descriptions of the regions delineated on the map are given below.
A typical feature of the equatorial monsoon climate is the clearly marked period of. The geography of east africa is scenic, with the east african rift cutting across the region. A climate region is an area with similar temperature and rainfall. The different parts experience different types of climate which include. This system divides world climates into six main categories, using the letters from ae and h, to differentiate climate based upon different temperature ranges, precipitation amounts, and precipitation timing. Therefore, understanding the global distribution of the earths climatic regions. The three high that affect south africa are the south atlantic high, kalahari high and the south. Learn vocabulary, terms, and more with flashcards, games, and other study tools.
Where are mid latitude climate regions in africa south of the shara located. At the poles, however, winter and summer temperatures. Strong wind climatic zones in south africa 3 types that cause the most damage and adverse wind conditions in south africa. Bbc weather the bbc weather centre provides uk and worldwide weather services and maps for temperature, wind, satellite, pressure and radar met office weather and climate change. Temperate climates are rare across the continent except at very high elevations and. There are mainly two types hot like the hot deserts of the saharan type and temperate as are the midlatitude deserts like the gobi. The tropic regions are bound by two parallels of latitudethe tropic of. Western africa includes benin, burkina, faso, cape verde, cote d. The highveld is the eastern plateau area of south africa. These climates cover broad regions between 15 and 30 degrees latitude in the northern and southern hemispheres, where subtropical highpressure cells predominate, with subsiding, stable air and low relative humidity. The tropics are regions of the earth that lie roughly in the middle of the globe.
Each individual region is categorized directionally, by cardinal compass direction. West africas climate is controlled by the interaction of two air masses, the influence of which varies throughout the year with the northsouth movement of the intertropical convergence zone itcz. Conclusions glossary bibliography biographical sketch summary major climate zones and types of the earth are considered using alisovs genetic classification as a framework. This subregion has little variation in temperature over the yearit is always hot, with an average temperature of 80f. The arid regions are in the northwest, with the driest areas being the northwest coast. Regions around the equator are the hottest in the world. Africa is a huge continent with a wide variety of landscapes and climates, from the dry, hot desert climate found in the northern countries in the sahara desert to the tropical rainforests toward the center of the continent and the subarctic climates found in mountainous regions in southern africa. Africa, southern africa, south am erica and the north coast of australia the dry tropical climate bw is dom inated by the desert biome. The nontemperate zones the tropical zone is located at the equator and extends approximately 25 degrees to the north and south of the imaginary line.
Kenya which is africa s second tallest peak are both in east africa. World climates are generally divided into five large regions. Climatic regions of africa africa has the following climatic regions. The weaker tropical lows are frequent sources of african tropical rainfall and they are. The regions are divided into smaller subregions that are described below. Owing to africas position across equatorial and subtropical latitudes in both the. The climate of south africa is determined by south africa s situation between 22s and 35s, in the southern hemispheres subtropical zone, and its location between two oceans, atlantic and the indian it has a wider variety of climates than most other countries in subsaharan africa, and it has lower average temperatures than other countries within this range of latitude, like australia. The major highland regions of the world the cascades, sierra nevadas, and rockies of north america, the andes of south america, the himalayas and adjacent ranges and the plateau of tibet of asia, the eastern highlands of africa, and the central portions of borneo and new guinea cannot be classified realistically at this scale of consideration, since the effects of altitude and. Africa asia europe middle east north america oceania south america. Africa, the second largest continent, covering about onefifth of the total land surface of earth.
Dry climates b the most obvious climatic feature of this climate is that potential evaporation and transpiration exceed precipitation. Vegetation tends to vary by climatic zone and these also correspond to the horticultural zones. The climate of africa is a range of climates such as the equatorial climate, the tropical wet and dry climate, the tropical monsoon climate, the semidesert climate semiarid, the desert climate hyperarid and arid, and the subtropical highland climate. These climates extend from 20 35 north and south of the equator and in large continental regions of the midlatitudes often surrounded by mountains. The only attempt to divide south africa into strong wind regions was undertaken by goliger and retief 2002, who identified geographic zones where various types of strong wind events are likely to be dominant.
The tropics between the latitude lines of the tropic of cancer and the tropic of capricorn. The enormous expanse of asia and its abundance of mountain barriers and inland depressions have resulted in great differences between regions in solar radiation, atmospheric circulation, precipitation, and climate as a whole. The country lies between latitude 15 and 23 degrees south and longitude 25 and 34 degrees east. Equatorial climate equatorial climate is described as hot and wet it occurs between 5 0 n 5 0 s of the equator. He examines data from satellite images and monitoring stations in those regions in. Yet they can extend eastwards for thousands of kilometers into arid regions if not arrested by mountains or confronted with moist climates, such as the summer rainfall that occurs in. As latitude increases, the sun shines more obliquely and provides less warming energy. Describe the sequence of climate regions as one moves north and south of the equator in africa. The eastern third of texas has a subtropical humid climate that is most noted for warm summers. Central africa is the large mass at the center of africa which either does not fall squarely into any other region or only partially does so. The equator always faces the sun directly, so the climate is warm yearround, with the average day and night temperature hovering between 12.
The global mean temperature in this region is to increase by 1. Lines of latitude are often referred to as parallels. The tropical climate zone stretches from the tropic of cancer at 23. Extreme rain events over most of the midlatitude land masses and over wet tropical. The climate of east africa east africa lies within the tropical latitudes but due to a combination of factors the region experiences a variety of climatic types. The five regions of africa are northern africa, western africa, middle central africa, eastern africa and southern africa. Factors that influence climate climate and weather. The major climatic regions of the world are discussed below.
Mount kilimanjaro, the tallest peak in africa as well as mt. A continental climate, associated with large landmasses and characterized by an extreme annual range of temperature, prevails. Normally, climatic conditions become colder as altitude increases. Zimbabwe is mostly elevated with the highest elevation. This report provides a general overview of the regional climate in southern africa. There are lots of factors that influence our climate.
These types are mainly determined by climate but sheltering, soil type, occurrence of veld fires, browsers wild life, elevation and inclination and other minor factors also play a role. First, most of the continentwhich extends from 35 s to about 37 n latitude lies within the tropics. Africa s total land area is approximately 11,724,000 square miles 30,365,000 square km, and the continent measures about 5,000 miles 8,000 km from north to south and about 4,600 miles 7,400 km from east to west. Mediterranean climate regions are found, roughly speaking, between 31 and 40 degrees latitude north and south of the equator, on the western side of continents. The tropics are also referred to as the tropical zone and. West africa 1 has one of the most extreme climatic gradients in the world. Most deserts are found along the 30 degree latitude line north and south of the equator. Equatorial climate this type of climate is experienced in the region between 5n and 5s of the equator. These desert climates are found in low latitude des erts. Different latitudes on earth receive different amounts of sunlight, and are a key factor in determining a regions climate. C in humid middle latitude climates landwater differences play a large part. Climate change climate change is a longterm change in the statistical distribution of weather patterns over.
Dry tropical climate bw desert biome these desert climates are found in lowlatitude deserts approximately between 18 to 28 in both hemispheres. The summer and winter rainfall region is the eastern cape. Con veniently, this latitude range includes almost all of the climatic zones that can be regarded as tropical. The climate of the region is largely varied unlike that of other equatorial regions. Pdf climatic patterns in equatorial and southern africa from. A sunset over table mountain, a mountain near cape town, south africa, in the region of southern africa. Latitude, elevation and the presence of nearby mountains or large bodies of water help determine climate zone because of their effects on weather patterns. South africa climate and weather by regions climatic conditions generally range from mediterranean in the southwestern corner of the country to temperate in the interior plateau, and subtropical in the northeast. Zimbabwe is a landlocked country in the southern part of africa bordering south africa to the south, botswana to the west, and to the northwest and northeast by zambia and mozambique, respectively. You will find below a selection of useful information sites and resources. Its categories are based on the annual and monthly averages of temperature and precipitation. A number of factors influence the climate of the african continent.
This approach is taken, for example, in the united nations geoscheme for africa and the regions of the african union. Life zones on a high mountain reflect the changes, plants at the base are the same as those in surrounding countryside, but no trees at all can grow above the timberline. The tropics account for 36 percent of the earths landmass and are home to about a third of the worlds. The plants often have long roots and are spaced out. A continental climate, associated with large landmasses and characterized by an extreme annual range of temperature, prevails over a large part of. Climate classification the main climate type in use is the koeppen climate classification system, developed by german vladimir koeppen. At the extreme latitudinal boundaries of the continent, in the littoral region of the mediterranean sea, and in the area around and east of cape. This includes data on rainfall patterns in east africa and water temperatures in the pacific and indian oceans.
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