SECTION

1 Weather and
TEKS 6A, 21B, 21C, 22A, 22D Climate
What You Will Learn… If YOU lived there...
Main Ideas You live in Buffalo, New York, at the eastern end of Lake Erie. One
1. While weather is short term, evening in January, you are watching the local TV news. The weath-
climate is a region’s average
weather over a long period.
er forecaster says, “A huge storm is brewing in the Midwest and
2. The amount of sun at a given moving east. As usual, winds from this storm will drop several feet
location is affected by Earth’s
tilt, movement, and shape.
of snow on Buffalo as they blow off Lake Erie.”
3. Wind and water move heat
around Earth, affecting how
Why will winds off the lake drop snow on Buffalo?
warm or wet a place is.
4. Mountains influence tem-
perature and precipitation.

Building Background All life on Earth depends on the sun’s

The Big Idea energy and on the cycle of water from the land to the air and back
The sun, location, wind, again. In addition, sun and water work with other forces, such as
water, and mountains affect wind, to create global patterns of weather and climate.
weather and climate.

Key Terms Understanding Weather and Climate

weather, p. 50
climate, p. 50 What is it like outside right now where you live? Is it hot, sunny,
prevailing winds, p. 51 wet, cold? Is this what it is usually like outside for this time of
ocean currents, p. 52 year? The first two questions are about weather, the short-term
front, p. 53 changes in the air for a given place and time. The last question
is about climate, a region’s average weather conditions over a
long period.
Weather is the temperature and precipitation from hour to
Use the graphic organizer online hour or day to day. “Today is sunny, but tomorrow it might rain”
to take notes on the factors that is a statement about weather. Climate is the expected weather
affect weather and climate.
for a place based on data and experience. “Summer here is usu-
ally hot and muggy” is a statement about climate. The factors
that shape weather and climate include the sun, location on
Earth, wind, water, and mountains.

Reading Check Finding Main Ideas How are weather and climate
different from each other?

50 Chapter 3
Sun and Location Global Wind Systems
Energy from the sun heats the planet. Dif- Prevailing winds blow in circular belts across Earth. These belts
ferent locations receive different amounts occur at about every 30° of latitude.
of sunlight, though. Thus, some locations Analyzing Visuals Which direction do the prevailing winds
are warmer than others. The differences are blow across the United States?
due to Earth’s tilt, movement, and shape.
NORTH POLE
You have learned that Earth is tilted on 90°N
its axis. The part of Earth tilted toward the
Polar easterlies
sun receives more solar energy than the
part tilted away from the sun. As the Earth 60°N
revolves around the sun, the part of Earth es
rli
te
that is tilted toward the sun changes dur-

s
We
ing the year. This process creates the sea- 30°N

ds
sons. In general, temperatures in summer

win
are warmer than in winter.

de
Tra
Earth’s shape also affects the amount
0° Equator Doldrums
of sunlight different locations receive. Tra
d e
Because Earth is a sphere, its surface is

wi
nds
rounded. Therefore, solar rays are more
direct and concentrated near the equator.
30°S
Nearer the poles, the sun’s rays are less

We
te
rlie

s
direct and more spread out. s
As a result, areas near the equator,
60°S
called the lower latitudes, are mainly hot Cool air
year-round. Areas near the poles, called the Polar easterlies Warm air
higher latitudes, are cold year-round. Areas Wind direction
90°S
about halfway between the equator and SOUTH POLE
poles have more seasonal change. In gen-
eral, the farther from the equator, or the Global Winds
higher the latitude, the colder the climate.
Wind, or the sideways movement of air,
Reading Check Summarizing How does blows in great streams around the planet.
mg7frs_winmap005a
Prevailing
3rd pass winds are winds that blow in the
Earth’s tilt on its axis affect climate? 5/5/5
same
cmurphy direction over large areas of Earth.
The diagram above shows the patterns of
Earth’s prevailing winds.
Wind and Water To understand Earth’s wind patterns,
Heat from the sun moves across Earth’s you need to think about the weight of air.
surface. The reason is that air and water Although you cannot feel it, air has weight.
warmed by the sun are constantly on the This weight changes with the temperature.
move. You might have seen a gust of wind Cold air is heavier than warm air. For this
or a stream of water carrying dust or dirt. reason, when air cools, it gets heavier and
In a similar way, wind and water carry heat sinks. When air warms, it gets lighter and
from place to place. As a result, they make rises. As warm air rises, cooler air moves in
different areas of Earth warmer or cooler. to take its place, creating wind.

Climate, Environment, and Resources 51

Major Ocean Currents
Warm current Arctic Ocean
Cold current

NORTH EUROPE
AMERICA
North ASIA
Pacific North
Ocean Atlantic
Ocean AFRICA

Equator
SOUTH
AMERICA Indian
Ocean

South AUSTRALIA
South
Pacific Atlantic
Ocean Ocean

Southern
Ocean
ANTARCTICA

Movement Ocean currents carry warm 1. Use the Map Does a warm or cold ocean current
water from the equator toward the poles flow along the lower west coast of North America?
and cold water from the poles toward the 2. Explain How do ocean currents move heat between
equator. The currents affect temperature. warmer and colder areas of Earth?

mgfvs_winmap006a
2nd pass Ocean Currents
On a global scale, this rising, sink-
5/5/5
ing, and flowing of air creates Earth’s Like wind, ocean currents       —       large streams
cmurphy
prevailing wind patterns. At the equator, of surface seawater—move heat around
hot air rises and flows toward the poles. Earth. Winds drive these currents. The
At the poles, cold air sinks and flows map above shows how Earth’s ocean cur-
toward the equator. Meanwhile, Earth is rents carry warm or cool water to different
rotating. Earth’s rotation causes prevail- areas. The water’s temperature affects air
F OCUS ON ing winds to curve east or west rather temperature near it. Warm currents raise
R EADING than flowing directly north or south. temperatures; cold currents lower them.
What is the effect
Depending on their source, prevailing The Gulf Stream is a warm current that
of Earth’s rotation
on prevailing winds make a region warmer or colder. In flows north along the U.S. East Coast. It
winds? addition, the source of the winds can make then flows east across the Atlantic to become
a region drier or wetter. Winds that form the North Atlantic Drift. As the warm cur-
from warm air or pass over lots of water rent flows along northwestern Europe, it
often carry moisture. In contrast, winds heats the air. Westerlies blow the warmed
that form from cold air or pass over lots of air across Europe. This process makes Europe
land often are dry. warmer than it otherwise would be.

52 Chapter 3
Large Bodies of Water Tornadoes can be extremely deadly as well.
Large bodies of water, such as an ocean or In 1925 a tornado that crossed Missouri,
sea, also affect climate. Water heats and Illinois, and Indiana left 695 people dead.
cools more slowly than land does. For this It is the deadliest U.S. tornado on record.
reason, large bodies of water make the tem- The largest and most destructive storms,
perature of the land nearby milder. Thus, however, are hurricanes. These large, rotat-
coastal areas, such as the California coast, ing storms form over tropical waters in the
usually do not have as wide temperature Atlantic Ocean, usually from late summer
ranges as inland areas. to fall. Did you know that hurricanes and
As an example, the state of Michigan typhoons are the same? Typhoons are just
is largely surrounded by the Great Lakes. hurricanes that form in the Pacific Ocean.
The lakes make temperatures in the state
milder than other places as far north. Extreme Weather
Wind, Water, and Storms Severe weather is often dangerous and destructive. In
If you watch weather reports, you will hear the top photo, rescuers search for people during a flood
in Yardley, Pennsylvania. Below, a tornado races across a
about storms moving across the United wheat field.
States. Tracking storms is important to us
because the United States has so many of
them. As you will see, some areas of the
world have more storms than others do.
Most storms occur when two air masses
collide. An air mass is a large body of air.
The place where two air masses of different
temperatures or moisture content meet is a
front. Cold air masses from the North and
warm air masses from the South frequently
collide over the United States, producing
dramatic storms.
Fronts can produce rain or snow as well
as severe weather such as thunderstorms
and icy blizzards. Thunderstorms produce
rain, lightning, and thunder. In the United
States, they are most common in spring
and summer. Blizzards produce strong
winds and large amounts of snow and are
most common during winter.
Thunderstorms and blizzards can also
produce tornadoes, another type of severe
storm. A tornado is a small, rapidly twist-
ing funnel of air that touches the ground.
Tornadoes usually affect a limited area and
last only a few minutes. However, they
can be highly destructive, uprooting trees
and tossing large vehicles through the air.

53
 Mountains
Mountains can influence an area’s climate
Snow by affecting both temperature and precipi-
Warming
dry air
tation. Many high mountains are located
Rain
in warm areas yet have snow at the top all
Cooling year. How can this be? The reason is that
moist air temperature decreases with elevation—the
height on Earth’s surface above sea level.
Rain
Shadow Mountains also create wet and dry
areas. Look at the diagram at left. A moun-
tain forces air blowing against it to rise. As
it rises, the air cools and precipitation falls
Rain Shadow Effect as rain or snow. Thus, the side of the moun-
Most of the moisture in the ocean air falls on the moun- tain facing the wind is often green and lush.
tainside facing the wind. LIttle moisture remains to fall on However, little moisture remains for the
the other side, creating a rain shadow.
other side. This effect creates a rain shadow,
a dry area on the mountainside facing
7fvs_win000009aa away from the direction of the wind.
pass Hurricanes produce drenching rain
01/05 and strong winds that can reach speeds of Reading Check Finding Main Ideas How
vino 155 miles per hour (250 kph) or more. This does temperature change with elevation?
is more than twice as fast as most people
drive on highways. In addition, hurricanes
form tall walls of water called storm surges.   
SUmmary and PReview As you can
When a storm surge smashes into land, it see, the sun, location on Earth, wind,
can wipe out an entire coastal area. water, and mountains affect weather
and climate. In the next section you will
Reading Check Analyzing Why do coastal learn what the world’s different climate
areas have milder climates than inland areas? regions are like.

Section 1 Assessment ONLINE QUIZ

Reviewing Ideas, Terms, and Places Critical Thinking Effect on

Climate
1. a. Recall What shapes weather and climate? 5. Identifying Cause and
Sun and Location
b. Contrast How do weather and climate differ? Effect Draw a chart like
Wind
2. a. Identify What parts of Earth receive the most this one. Use your notes
Water
heat from the sun? to explain how each fac-
b. Explain Why do the poles receive less solar tor affects climate. Mountains

energy than the equator does?

3. a. Geographic Questions Examine the model Focus on Viewing
of Global Wind Systems in this section. Pose and
answer a question about the geographic patterns 6. Writing about Weather and Climate Jot down
of winds shown on the model. information to include in your weather report. For
b. Summarize How do ocean currents and large example, you might want to include a term such as
bodies of water affect climate? fronts or describe certain types of storms such as
4. a. Define What is a rain shadow? hurricanes or tornadoes.
b. Explain Why might a mountaintop and a nearby
valley have widely different temperatures?

54 Chapter 3