Landforms E4.3F - Describe how landforms affect the formation of clouds and precipitation.
Dec 14, 2015
Landforms
E4.3F - Describe how landforms affect the formation of clouds and
precipitation.
Landforms• Three basic types
• Plains• Plateaus• Mountains
Plains
• Large, relatively flat areas• Two types
• Coastal - Interior
(lowlands) (Great Plains)
Plateaus
• Flat, raised areas that have been uplifted by forces within Earth
• Rise steeply from the land around them
Mountains
• High, steep peaks• Four types
• Folded• Upwarped• Fault-Block• Volcanic
Four types of mountains
Folded Mountains
Upwarped Mountains
Fault-Block Mountains
Volcanic Mountains
Major US Landforms
Climate
• Average weather conditions over many years
• Includes temperature, precipitation, air pressure, humidity, days of sunshine
• Affected by latitude, topography, location of lakes and oceans, wind patterns, ocean currents
Latitude
• Affects climate• Determines how much sunlight an area receives
and at what anglePolar Zone
Temperate Zone
Tropics
Temperate Zone
Polar Zone
US Climate Zones
Topography
• Topography is the surface features of the earth.
• Includes • Large bodies of water• Mountains• Large cities
Topography - Water• Coastal regions have warmer winters and
cooler summers.• Ocean currents affect coastal climates.• Coastal areas also have more moisture.• Causes “lake effect”
Topography - Mountains
• Mountains have cooler climates• Less air molecules to hold heat at high
elevations• Rain shadows form
Topography – Large Cities
• Radiation is absorbed by streets, parking lots and buildings and radiated back into the atmosphere
• Pollution traps heat in a “heat sink”• Skyscrapers can act like mountains and
create rain shadows