Most popular articles

Tropical rainforest precipitation

Tropical rainforests are a world like none other; and their importance to the global ecosystem and human existence is paramount. Unparalleled in terms of their biological diversity, tropical rainforests are a natural reservoir of genetic diversity which offers a rich source of medicinal plants, high-yield foods, and a myriad of other useful forest products. Tropical rainforests play an elemental role in regulating global weather in addition to maintaining regular rainfall, while buffering against floods, droughts, and erosion.

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Boreal climate - Climate found in a region of boreal forests

Boreal climate is the form of climate found in a region of boreal forests. Regions having a subarctic climate, also called boreal climate, are characterized by very cold winters, and brief, warm summers. Winter is the dominant season of the subarctic boreal climate and the summers are short. This type of climate offers extreme seasonal temperature variations.

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The climate of the Shield's Canadian landforms

The Canadian Shield is Canada's largest physiographic area, stretching through the territory of at least six provinces (Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Ontario, Quebec, Newfoundland and Labrador) and two regions (Northwest and Nunavut). Thick forests cover the southern part of the shield, whereas in the north there is only tundra. Since the Canadian Shield is so large, weather conditions differ considerably from one region to another. In the southern parts of it the climate is seasonal, while in the northern shield the climate is arctic, and lakes are free of ice for only about three months annually.

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Average rainfall around the world

Precipitation plays a major role in determining the climate of an area. Rainfall is critical, in particular, for it replenishes ground water and supplies both natural watershed systems and irrigation channels. Worldwide rainfall averages vary greatly from region to region. Average rainfall is determined by the depth of water falling on a flat surface and is measured by a rain gauge.

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The importance of rain and rainfall predictions

Rain is associated with water. During the summer season from time to time we ask God for rain. We need rain not only because it is hot and rain usually refreshes us but also because we know that crops depends much on rain. The more crops we get the better for us and for economy of the country we live in and for other countries as well. Rainfall predictions associated with climate change may be variable across even one country, not speaking about larger areas on a global scale. For example across Australia some areas are getting more and other less rain. Since 1975 to 2005 Perth annual average rainfall is half what is was from 1911 to 1974.

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Siberia climate: long, cold winters that last for seven to eight months

Most of the land consists of vast plains, both in the European part and the Asian part that is largely known as Siberia. Siberia is a vast geographical region of Russia. Siberia climate is one of the most continental on Earth with a great seasonal changes. The frost-free period is only 75-82 days. During the winter Siberia climate is divided into 2 parts. Siberia climate experiences long, cold winters that last for seven to eight months in most parts of the region and even longer in the far northeast

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Characteristics of arid environment

Almost one-third of the total land area of the world is arid. The arid environment is distinguished by an excessive heat and inadequate, changeable precipitation, which occurs infrequently and irregularly. It is vegetated by drought resistant species, which have developed adaptation strategies to cope with the lack of rainfall. Although there is so much in common between different types of arid zones, arid environments are diverse in many aspects.

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Polar Climate Zone and Polar Biome - What is it and Why is it Important?

Many people, when they hear about the North and South Poles, knit their brows and shudder with horror saying "cold". But what do we know about the South and North Poles except being the extremely cold areas on the Earth? The South and North Poles are the territories of unique, unimaginable and peculiar nature and beauty. They captivate with their soothing and exciting serenity. Having rather limited biome they can amaze every traveler and visitor. So sit back and let's explore the unique diversity between the polar biome of the north and that of the south!

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What is ozone? Why is ozone layer so important for the Earth?

If not to go deep into chemical details and to make the phenomenon of ozone comprehensible for everyone, I would say that ozone is colorless gas formed of oxygen under certain circumstances. Ozone layer plays a very important protective role against radiation. Unfortunately,ozone layer is becoming thinner and thinner. So far it's a warning signal for the mankind. We should take preventive measures to stop ozone depletion. And every one of us can take some measures in our everyday life. In order to understand what measures to take, we should understand what chemicals are harmful for ozone.

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Climatic features of the Alpine biome

Alpine biomes are found in mountain regions worldwide, including the Andes, Alps and Rocky Mountains. They usually lie between altitudes of about 10,000 feet at the place, where the snow line of a mountain begins. Although Alpine biomes are typically harsh environments, characterized by extreme weather conditions, they have the plant and animal life.

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Semiarid climates characterise regions with little precipitation

Climate in a narrow sense is usually defined as the ?average weather?. Arid and semiarid climates are characterized by low precipitation amounts. Desert and semiarid climates occur in regions with little precipitation. Desert climates are drier than semiarid climates. Semiarid climates usually border desert climates. Semiarid climates are also called steppe climates.

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Vegetation regions - Tundra vegetation

Geographical areas, characterized by distinct plant communities are called vegetation regions. Community composition, determined by climate, may be affected by factors such as geology, soil composition and erosion, water drainage patterns and human interference. The specific traits of tundra vegetation are: one-layer closed vegetation cover; predominance of perennial plants; high importance of dwarf shrubs, mosses and lichens; the lack of shrubs and trees.

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Features of semitropical climate

A semitropical climate implies that the air temperature usually does not go below freezing. This is a threshold temperature for a gamut of plants, and applies to coastal California, southern Florida, coastal Australia, and coastal South Africa The term semitropical can be used to mean a range of latitudes between 23.5 and approximately 35 degrees. The climate of Hawaii is atypical for a tropical area.

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Ocean Influenced Territories - Maritime Climate

Maritime climate, as its name implies, is greatly influenced by the nearby ocean. For example: the ocean has the ability to retain warmth much longer than land. The ocean currents constantly move warm or cold water, not to mention precipitation that creates heavy cloud cover and results in high level of precipitation - all these are the factors of maritime climate formation. And that in turn impacts your vacation.

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Indian Climate - Monsoons!

Being one of the most amazing and startling countries of Asia, India can provide you with extremely unforgettable impressions and experiences. One thing must be taken into consideration when traveling - Indian climate. Due to the enormous territories, Indian climate considerably differs in different regions of the country.

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Oxygen and oxygen depletion

Oxygen is the second most common component of the earth's atmosphere (20.947% by volume). It is a major component of air. Oxygen is very important for breathing. We start yawing when there is a lack of oxygen in the room. We try to go at the weekend to the country or to the forest to breathe fresh air rich with oxygen, produced by plants during photosynthesis. One of oxygen derivatives is ozone. Ozone layer protects the earth from harmful UV rays. Oxygen depletion is an urgent question as well as ozone layer depletion. Oxygen depletion is also called hypoxia.

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Characteristics of the Mediterranean Temperatures

Over the last twenty years the Mediterranean has become the main destination for Europeans, especially the British, seeking sunny summer holidays. Being the mixture of desert-like summers and cool rainy winters Mediterranean has attracted not just tourists but people retiring there permanently, away from the cool and occasionally cold winters. Your vacation in the Med will be influenced by your knowledge and familiarity of Mediterranean temperatures. Whether you like or not, the Mediterranean climate will impact your free time.

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UK rainfall period - you should know about it before traveling

British weather is known for its variety and for changing often. So, be careful, because the bright sun on the blue sky can be changed by clouds and rain. Therefore, if you won't your vacation to be spoilt by bad weather check the forecast on the website of UK Meteorological Office. It produces monthly, seasonal and annual commentaries on the weather, comparing recent conditions with averages and past extremes.

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Subtropical areas - What is a climate there?

Subtropical climate implies that the air temperature usually does not go below freezing (0°C). Humid subtropical climate usually occurs in the interiors of continents or on their east coasts, between the latitudes of 25° and 37°. Summers are very wet there due to monsoonal influence. A monsoon is a periodic wind, similar to sea breezes, but much larger in scale, stronger and more constant and fast.

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Canadian temperatures in major climatic regions

Although Canada's climate is usually associated with snow and very cold temperatures, Canada's weather actually varies greatly from one region to another and from one season to another one. Canada actually has five major climatic regions: East Coast, Great Lakes, Prairie, West Coast and Arctic/Sub-Arctic. Each province is affected by different weather patterns, which determine temperature normals.

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The study of climatology

In simple words, climatology is a scientific study of climate. If to go deep into details about the study of climatology it will logical to ask the next question regarding the climate. What is climate as a subject of climatological study? Climate is the statistical collection of weather conditions at a place over a period of years. 30 years are the shortest period of time taken for consideration.

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Natural vegetation - functions and features

Vegetation is a general term for the plant life of a region. It refers to the ground cover provided by plants, and is the most abundant biotic element of the biosphere. The term Natural Vegetation characterizes those soils where vegetation grows without active and frequent intervention by people. Vegetation serves several critical functions in the biosphere. It regulates the flow of numerous biogeochemical cycles; affects soil characteristics and is a primary source of oxygen in the atmosphere.

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Climatic contrasts of arid zones

The term "arid zone" is ascribed to three types of arid environment: hyper-arid, arid and semi-arid. Climates of these arid zones strongly depend on temperature fluctuations; time of the year, in which the rain falls (that determine dry and wet seasons), and a degree of aridity. There are Mediterranean, tropical and continental climatic patterns in arid areas.

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Tokyo Climate - It's not Just About the Weather

We keep saying that Japan is a foreign country. There is no way to emphasize just how true this statement really is and what the deeper implications of this fact may mean to Western travelers. Every year millions of tourists flock to this wonderful city of business and culture. Tokyo can amaze you with an exceptional architecture as well as with its climate. The Tokyo climate - in the grandest sense of the word - has more to do than just the weather.

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Air pollution control in the modern world

We know pretty much well that no other element of the natural world is more essential to life than air, and no environmental task more critical than keeping it clean. Because electric power plants and motor vehicles are by far the biggest sources of air pollution and effects of air pollution are from lung damage to acid rain to global warming, air pollution control is task number one for environmentalists. The world leaders in air pollution emissions are the USA, Russia, China, and Japan, however Canada is the number two country on a per capita basis.

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Strange but Fun Facts About the Oceanic Climate

There's more to the earth's oceanic climate than cool breezes and gentle waves washing up on the beach. Occupying two-thirds of the dry land oceans and seas play an important role in our life. This huge territory represents an enormous amount of scientific information. They determine climates and biomes as well as our life in general. One of the climates that most of all influenced by the ocean is oceanic climate.

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Portugal temperatures in different parts of the country

The climate of Portugal, as everywhere is influenced by its geographical location. There are two fundamental aspects to the pleasant Portuguese climate: the Atlantic felt more in the North, the continental and the Mediterranean, which dominates the south. The climate varies according to the altitude and the highest temperatures in Portugal are more likely in the lower regions of the South.

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Madeira and Algarve temperatures

Summers are hot and dry throughout Portugal, particularly in the Algarve, which experiences very little rain. Throughout the year the Algarve offers some of the best climatic conditions in Europe, thanks to the proximity of the Gulf Stream and North Africa. Year round, flowers and vegetation grow in abundance, thanks to the region's sub tropical climate Madeira climate is mild, more or less constant year-round with high temperatures in the summer.

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Average precipitation - feature of climate conditions

Climate is the long-term effect of the sun's radiation on the rotating earth's varied surface and atmosphere. It can be understood most easily in terms of annual or seasonal average precipitation and average temperature. Precipitation is any kind of water that falls from the sky as part of the weather. This includes snow, rain, sleet, freezing rain, hail, and virga. Precipitation is a major part of the hydrologic cycle, and is responsible for depositing most of the fresh water on the planet.

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Temperatures in moscow and St.Petersburg

In general, Russia?s climate is similar to that of Canada, although winters are even colder and there are greater temperature extremes in many places. Most of the country has a harsh continental climate with only two seasons: long, cold winters and short, relatively cool summers. The Moscow climate is moderately continental, although it is more then in other European cities. St.Petersburg climate is characterized by an intermediate climate.

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Desert climate - extreme conditions

The desert is the hottest biome on earth. It can be also a land of extreme as it can be over 100 degrees Fahrenheit during the day but below 32 degrees at night. The temperatures for the desert fluctuate from day to night. The desert climate is very dry and hot mostly because the biomes are located by the equator. Not many plants and animals can survive, but the ones that do are adapted to the tortuous climate.

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Solar variability is one attempt to account for global warming

Solar variations are fluctuations in the amount of energy emitted by the Sun. Small variations have been measured from satellites during recent decades. Solar variation theory is one attempt to account for global warming. Various hypotheses have been proposed to link terrestrial temperature variations to solar variability. The solar variation theory shows that the intensity of sunlight at the Earth's surface actually fell from the 1950s?1990s.

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Solar activity - Influence on our atmosphere

Sunspots are relatively dark areas on the surface of the Sun and are thus cooler than its average surface. The Sun has profound influence on our atmosphere. Changes in sunspot activity or other solar events may affect Earth in ways that are indirect but that can have a significant impact. Energy from the Sun may influence global temperatures indirectly by affecting the formation of clouds.

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Tropical climate - Paradise on the Earth

Are you looking for a place to spend your vacation like in paradise? Then imagine blossoming tropical gardens, shimmering pink sand beaches, azure blue seas and spectacular sunsets. The air, water and earth are charged with energy. It's time to draw strength from the surroundings as you connect your spirit with the magic of the tranquil ocean and clear blue sky.

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UK temperatures and weather

The UK has a benign humid-temperate climate moderated by the North Atlantic Current and the country's proximity to the sea. Warm, damp summers and mild winters provide UK temperatures pleasant enough to engage in outdoor activities all year round. Having said that, the weather in the UK can be changeable and quite often contitions are windy and wet. The British rain is legendary, but in practice it rarely rains more than about half an hour at a time and sometimes parts of the country stay dry for weeks, especially in the East.

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Aspects and features of subarctic regions

Tourism in recent years has become a major source of revenue for most countries of the subarctic due to the beautiful, generally glacial, landscapes so characteristic of the region. Subarctic regions were not explored until the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries because of the difficulty of transportation. The K?ppen climate classification is one of the most widely used and represents different climate groups.

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Regions with temperate climate can have very unpredictable weather

In geography, temperate latitudes of the globe lie between the tropics and the polar circles. The changes in these regions between summer and winter are generally subtle Temperate climates can have very unpredictable weather. One day it may be sunny, the next it may be raining. The idea of a temperate "zone" was first hypothesized by the ancient Greek scholar Aristotle.

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Grassland climate is one of terrestrial biomes

Grassland is one of several types of terrestrial biomes, where grasses form the predominant vegetation, usually mixed with herbs and sometimes with shrubs, but usually without trees. Grasslands may occur naturally or as the result of human activity. Covering most of inland Canada, northern Russia and Siberia, taigas are one of the world's major sources of oxygen.

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Urban climatology is necessary for the modern world

There has been a simultaneous growth in the developed urban and suburban land area of big cities which influenced badly on urban climatology. New York City urban climate needs a better understanding of how air mixes between subterranean, street-level and regional airflow. Important quality of life issues, including everyday pulmonary health and even occasional emergency conditions depend upon this understanding.

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Urban areas agriculture can help improve food security

Urban areas is a term used to define an area where there is an increased density of human-created structures in comparison to the areas surrounding it. This term is at one end of the spectrum of suburban and rural areas. An urban area is more frequently called a city or town. Urban areas are created and further developed by the process of urbanization. Urban areas agriculture involves using small plots such as vacant lots, gardens or roof tops in the city for growing crops and even for raising small livestock or milk cows. It can take many forms, from small "micro-gardens" to larger operations.

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Be prepared for the wide variations in Alaska temperatures

Visiting Alaska for the first time, do not forget to find out some information, concerning its climate. A vast forty ninth state is a big one, and weather conditions can vary greatly by region and season. As a rule, tourists flow into Alaska at the end of May or early June, as many attractions open at that time. However, some popular activities and festivals take place during the spring, fall or even winter.

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The climate of Alaska Southeast, the most visited area of the state

Southeast Alaska, also known simply as "Southeast", is a portion of the state that is from the southeast corner of the state's main land mass. Southeast justifies its name of the "Gateway to Alaska" due to the relative accessibility, and for decades it has been a common destination for tourists. However, visitors often know little about the climate of this area and get discouraged by the weather conditions, when they arrive. Helpful information on the typical weather of Alaska Southeast will reduce surprises.

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A colorful, complex mosaic of Alpine vegetation

The Alpine vegetation is highly adapted to survive in a particularly harsh setting. It has to withstand low temperatures, frost and snow for more than six month a year. At the same time, solar energy in the atmosphere is only enough to provide a frugal day to day living and a renewal of leaves. There are no natural resources for maintaining large root systems and branches, which normal trees have. The plants in Alpine zones are mostly ground hugging and, as a rule, reach no more than a meter in height.

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Peculiarities of Australian rainfall

Eighty percent of Australia continent annually receives less than six hundred milimeters of precipitation. A low rainfall together with a very high evaporation (predominantly in inland Australia) results in seasonal river systems and low surface water flows. Scientists are likely to consider that irregular and insufficient rainfall patterns in Australia are the consequences of the high pressure belt and the El Nino-Southern Oscillation.

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Variations of Australian temperatures with its climatic zones

As a result of a large size, the Australian continent experience a great variety of weather patterns on its vast territory. Seasonal fluctuations of average temperatures range from fifty degrees Celsius above zero to well below zero. The lack of mountains and the influence of surrounding oceans have a paramount effect on typical Australian weather conditions.

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Drastic changes in the Bering Sea ecosystem

The climate and ecosystem of the Bering Sea has changed drastically over the previous fifty years. The first serious "regime shift" was noted in the late 1970s, the second- around 2000. They both resulted in a significant temperature increase and a reduction in the seasonal ice cover. At the same time, some species of the Bering Sea and adjacent regions have undergone large and sometimes sudden population fluctuations. Obviously, any interaction in this region, climatic/ oceanographic or biological, can have unexpected, complex ecological outcomes.

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A Travelers Guide for South Africa Climate.

Visit South Africa, baby! Culture, safari, wild animals and more! South Africa is a country of beautiful and astonishing nature, extraordinary culture, customs and traditions. The diversity in nature and wildlife of the country is greatly dilated by stunning climatic conditions that vary considerably throughout the whole territory of the South Africa. When traveling, the fact of fast changes in the South Africa climate must be taken into consideration.

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South Africa Weather Forecast for Travelers and Tourists.

South Africa is one of the most diverse and stunning countries in the Africa continent as well as in the world. Visitors and tourists flock to South Africa for its natural beauty, wildlife, sunshine and of course the opportunity to visit the extremely popular safari. But being in South Africa one should take into consideration its climate that is quite diverse in different parts of the country. So let's take a look at the South Africa weather forecast for travelers and tourists.

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The Climate in India may Surprise you!

India is one of the most stunning and amazing countries in all of Asia. It's impossible not to be astonished and flabbergasted by this country. Nowhere on Earth can you find such great variety of cultures, nations, customs, religions and, that is also very important for a traveler, climatic and weather conditions. So before you hop on the plane with just the barest of summer attire, check the weather forecast! Because the climate in India may surprise you!

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Rich biological populations of the Bering Sea and Bering straits waters

The Bering Sea is a zone that links the North Pacific Ocean and the Arctic Ocean, and shares characteristics of each and is influenced by both. Its intermediary location results in neither a truly north temperate nor arctic type of this sea. However, such juxtaposition also makes the Bering Sea extraordinarily productive, with a high marine biodiversity and large populations of birds, mammals and fish.

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