GEOG 203 1st Edition Lecture 3 Outline of Last Lecture I Introduction to the earth s radiation balance and temperature patterns II Radiation balance a Incoming energy shortwave energy from the sun Outline of Current Lecture III IV Radiation Balance a Outgoing energy longwave energy lost from the earth b Latitudinal variations in energy gain and loss Global temperature patterns a Latitudinal variations b Land and water contrasts c Effects of ocean currents d Elevation e Geographic situation Current Lecture Outgoing energy longwave energy lost from the earth Some waves lost by convection ozone or other pathways Evaporation o Temperature of earth s surface cools o When vapor condenses into clouds latent heat is released o High large influence of temperature of Earth s surface o Simpson Drill field is cooler than surfaces around it due to the evaporation in the grass Evaporation and transpiration combined evapotranspiration These notes represent a detailed interpretation of the professor s lecture GradeBuddy is best used as a supplement to your own notes not as a substitute Convection o Heat is rising off of Earth s surface into the atmosphere More energy going out into the atmosphere than what is going into the surface Greenhouse effect o Energy is stored in the surface Upper levels of the atmosphere can much more easily radiate energy back out than the surface can o Greenhouse gas concentration is much higher down low Latitudinal Variations in energy gain and loss The equator receives much more radiation than the higher and lower latitudes Tropics are hotter than the poles therefore emitting more radiation back out More sunlight is received in the middle latitudes near the tropics and equator than is emitted back out energy gain Lower latitudes closer to the poles receive less radiation than is emitted energy deficit Temperature differences cause the wind to blow and changes in ocean temperature Global temperature patterns Highest temperatures of the day occur later in the afternoon due to radiation being stored all morning followed by a lag of emitting the energy back out The same is true of seasonal temperature changes temps in June are highest but don t drop until August due to the lag Latitude is the predominant factor in temperature Land and water contrasts is also one of most important contributing factors o Temperature of land and water will not be the same even if they receive the same amount of radiation Water has higher specific heat therefore taking longer to heat up Water is transparent radiation is heating the entire volume of a body of water compared to one single surface on land Water mixes around causing warm water to go down lower When water evaporates it cools Bottom line water heats up and cools down much slower than land o Marine and continental climates vary greatly Continental climates have much bigger seasonal differences than marine climates Highest seasonality occurs in Siberia and higher latitudes in north America Effects of ocean currents o Temperatures of ocean currents effect direction they are flowing and patterns throughout the Earth Elevation o Mountains greatly effect temperature o Large differences in temperature are not always recorded due to a lack of weather stations in lowly populated mountain areas Geographic situation o West coast of north America has much more of a marine climate verses the east coast which has more of a continental climate Happens in part because of the Rocky mountains blocking different climate factors from reaching the west coast