What Factors Affect the Climate in Canada? Student Worksheet

Name:______

CGC1D1

What Factors Affect the Climate in Canada? –Student worksheet

What are the 6 factors that affect climate in Canada?

___LATITUDE______Acronym to remember: ___LOWERN_____

___OCEAN CURRENTS______

___WINDS______

___ELEVATION______

___RELIEF______

___NEARNESS TO WATER______

LATITUDE and CLIMATE

What happens as you move north or south away from the equator?

- TEMPERATURE GETS COLDER

The energy hitting any spot on the Earth is ___THE SUN______

Why does temperature decrease as you move away from the equator?

- THE SUNS RAYS HAVE TO SPREAD OUT OVER A LARGER AREA. THEY ARE LESS CONCENTRATED IN ONE SPOT.

OCEAN CURRENTS and CLIMATE

What is an ocean current?

- A MOVEMENT OF WATER CAUSED BY WINDS, TEMPERATURES AND SALINITY.

How is the temperature of the current determined?

The temperature of the current will influence the temperature of the air passing over it. Explain how this is true by using the climate of BC and Newfoundland as an example.

NEARNESS TO WATER, OCEAN CURRENTS**

- WATER MODERATES LAND TEMPS.

- IN THE WINTER WATER RETAINS HEAT AND IN THE SUMMER IT’S COOLER THAN LAND  THE WINDS BLOW IT OVER THE LAND THEREFORE MAKING THE LAND WARMER OR COOLER (BC HAVE WARMER CURRENTS AND WARMER WINTERS THAN THE REST OF CANADA, NEWFOUNDLAND HAS COLD OCEAN CURRENTS AND THEREFORE COLDER TEMPS ARE BLOWN OVER THE LAND).

WINDS and CLIMATE

Write down the definitions of these words using your textbook.

Air Mass: A BODY OF AIR WITH THE SAME TEMPS, HUMIDITY AND PRESSURE.

Wind: WHEN AIR MOVES FROM HIGH PRESSURE TO LOW PRESSURE

Prevailing Wind: WINDS FOUND IN CANADA BLOWING WEST TO EAST (WESTERLIES).

Polar Front: STORMY BOUNDARY BETWEEN COLD/DRY AIR AND WARM/MOIST AIR.

Jet Stream: HIGH WINDS BLOWING WEST TO EAST, PUSHES AIR MASSES AROUND THE WORLD

Why are ocean air masses full of moisture and either cool or warm and land air masses dry and either warm or cool?

- OCEAN AIR MASSES ABSORB MOISTURE OVER THE WATER BEFORE IT HITS LAND, IT’S COOL OR WARM DEPENDING ON OCEAN CURRENTS.

- LAND AIR MASSES ARE DRY BECAUSE AIR MASSES HAVE TO PASS OVER A RELIEF BOUNDARY (MOUNTAINS) CAUSING MOISTURE TO BE RELEASED. WARM OR COOL DEPENDING ON THE TEMPS OF THE WINDS. (JET STREAMS, POLAR FRONTS ETC.)

What would be the result if you are:

North of the jet stream: __COLD WINDS/TEMPS_____

South of the jet stream: __WARM WINDS/TEMPS____

So, shifts in the jet stream can cause major changes in __CLIMATE & DAILY WEATHER PATTERNS_____

ELEVATION and CLIMATE

How does elevation affect climate?

- THE HIGHER YOU GET, THE COLDER IT GETS (INCREASE 100M, DECREASE 10)

Give an example of this occurring in Canada?_ CLIMBING/DRIVING THROUGH THE ROCKIES____

RELIEF and CLIMATE

What causes this factor to affect climate? – AREAS OF HIGH ELEVATION ACT AS A BARRIER FOR THE AIR MASSES TO PASS OVER. MOIST AIR BECOMES DRY AS IT RISES OVER THE MOUNTAINS ETC.

What is the windward side of the mountain? Is it wet or dry?

What is the leeward side of the mountain?Is it wet or dry?

Where would this be occurring in Canada?_ROCKIES, APPALACHIANS______

NEAR WATER and CLIMATE

Fill in the chart below, summarizing 2 general climates influenced by: ______

Continental Climate

Maritime Climate

- FAR FROM LARGE BODIES OF WATER
- DRY AIR
- COLD WINTERS, HOT SUMMERS
- LITTLE PRECIPITATION / - CLOSE TO LARGE BODIES OF WATER
- MOIST AIR
- COOL SUMMERS, WARM WINTERS
- LOTS OF PRECIPITATION

What climate factors are affecting the following regions in Canada?

Try and use at least 3 of the factors in explaining the climatic characteristics

Artic
(cold temperatures) / - LATITUDE (FARTHER FROM EQUATOR, LESS SUNLIGHT TO WARM EARTH THROUGHOUT THE YEAR)
- WINDS (NORTHERN JET STREAM)
- OCEAN CURRENTS (EXTREMELY COLD CURRENTS IN ARCTIC OCEAN = COLD TEMPS/WINDS ON LAND….MANY ISLANDS IN THE ARCTIC)

BC Interior

(dry climate) / - RELIEF (AIR MASSES HAVE PASSED OVER THE ROCKIES, BREAKING UP ANY MOISTURE)
- NEARNESS TO WATER (ISN’T CLOSER TO WATER, THEREFORE WATER DOESN’T HAVE A MODERATING EFFECT ON THE TEMPS OR AIR MASSES)

Newfoundland

(fog) / - NEARNESS TO WATER (THERE’S A TEMP. DIFFERENCE BETWEEN WATER AND LAND, WHICH CREATES FOG)
- OCEAN CURRENTS & WINDS (HELP CREATE THAT TEMPERATURE DIFFERENCE FROM SEA TO LAND, AND MOVE THE AIR MASSES OVER LAND)

BC Mountains

(snow on caps) / - ELEVATION (AS AIR MASSES RISE, THE TEMPERATURES COOL CREATING DIFFERENT TYPES OF PRECIPITATION – SNOW)
- RELIEF (AIR MASSES HAVE TO RISE AS THEY ARE BLOWN INWARDS AND OVER THE MOUNTAINS)
- WINDS (BLOW THE AIR MASSES IN LAND)