You have noticed that most of the sun’s rays strike vertically in places near the equator. This makes the temperature higher in these areas, resulting in warm climate. Places that are not always vertically hit by the sun’s rays experience cold climate. As the latitude increases, the smaller the angle of the sun’s rays strike the surface. Therefore, when the area is farther from the equator, the air temperature is lower. When the place is closer to the equator, the air temperature is higher

. . Why do mountain climbers wear jackets and thick clothes when they go up the mountain? The air temperature decreases as

the altitude increases. For every 1000 m, elevations, there is less air. The air molecules are farther apart, thus making the air less dense. Lighter air cannot absorb much heat, making air temperature lower. Ultimately, the decrease of air temperature is due to the decrease of air pressure.

Mountain is an example of topographical features of the land. As you noticed, the pictureshows the two sides of the mountain. One side is facing the wind and has low temperature.Clouds are forming here due to the condensation of water vapor. This formation of cloudsdevelops to become rain. On the other side of the mountain, there is no cloud formation. Thetemperature is high and precipitation does not happen. This results in the formation of a dry andwarm region. Topography is another factor that affects the climate of a certain place. One of the topographic features of an area is mountain. Mountainous areas greatly affect the amount of precipitation in a certain region. The area in which the wind blows is called the windward side. Here, the wind is blocked by the mountain, forcing it to move upward. As it moves up, the water vapor condenses and forms clouds. This will result in precipitation on the windward side. The air moves down towards the opposite region called leeward side. The cold air mass starts to absorb heat

and becomes warm and dry. As a result, the area near the leeward side becomes dry and has less precipitation. The dry region on the leeward side is called rain shadow. Vegetation in this region includes desert plants and grassland. You have now identified some factors that affect climate. The next activity will help youdeepen your understanding about climate.

Different loops or gyres of surface currents around the world. Innorthern hemisphere, the current flows in clockwise direction. On the other hand, in southernhemisphere the current flows in counterclockwise direction. These clockwise andcounterclockwise of ocean currents are caused by Coriolis Effect. Ocean currents that flow awayfrom the equator carries warm water. The air above the warm water has higher temperature.When ocean currents that bring cold water move towards a coastal region, the temperature of thatarea decreases as warmer air from the land flows to the sea resulting to a cold climate. Whenwarm ocean currents that take along warm water go to a land mass, the temperature of that placeincreases as warmer air above the water flows inland, resulting to a warm climate.HOW DO OCEAN CURRENTS AFFECT CLIMATE?Ocean currents have also an important role in changing

the climate of a certain area. They affect the temperature of the nearby land mass. Warm currents move from the equator towards poles carry warm water. On the other hand, cold currents travel from the poles towards the equator carry cold water. When ocean current carries cold water, the air above it becomes colder. When this ocean current moves toward the coastal region, the temperature of that area becomes lower. For example, (see Figure 6.1) the southwestern parts of Singapore and Indonesia have lower temperature because of the cold air brought by West Australian Current. On the other hand, the ocean current that carries warm water makes the air warmer. When this current goes toward a land mass, the temperature of that place becomes higher. For example, (see Figure 6.1) the warm Kuroshio Current that comes from the northeastern part of the Philippines brings warm water. This raises the temperature of places in the southeastern part of Japan. Therefore, ocean currents that bring along cold water to inland make the climate cold. On the other hand, ocean currents that take along warm water to coastal areas make the climate warm.

Climate Change Is climate change real? Is climate change man-made or is it just a natural occurrence? These are just few questions that can be asked once we talk about climate change. Climate change is one of the most current worldwide issues. Some experts say that it is true that Earth.does go through a period of cooling and a period of warming. The increase of temperature that we are experiencing right now is caused by factors other than human activity. Another point of view is that the increase of Earth’s temperature is brought about by human intervention. Whether the cause is man-made or not, climate change is a change in the environment. Global warming can bring about a rising of sea level due to the melting of ice caps and glaciers.

We may experience severe weather disturbances such as much stronger typhoons and heavier rainfalls. Some parts of the world may experience El Niño or La Niña. And most of all, it can cause extinction of some fauna and flora.

*The thermometer reading inside the tank went up faster than the thermometer reading outside the tank. This was due to the temperature that is rising in the container. The rising of the temperature resulted from keeping the heat from flowing. Thermal radiation coming from the sun was absorbed by the air inside the tank. The wall of the tank keeps the warm air from flowing out, causing its temperature to rise as it continues to absorb heat from sunlight. Outside the tank, air warmed by sunlight can interact with the surrounding cooler air. This allows heat to flow from warm air to cooler air through convection, and keep the temperature from rising as fast as that of the air inside the tank.

Solar radiation warms the Earth as its energy is absorbed by the atmosphere. In the atmosphere, there are greenhouse gases present. These include water vapor, carbon dioxide, methane and nitrous oxide. Greenhouse gases prevent heat to escape from earth making earth’s temperature higher.

Greenhouse Gases such as carbon dioxide, methane(CH4),chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs), and nitrous oxide(N2O) trap heat preventing it to escape from the

earth. All gases absorb heat, some just absorb

more than others. So assuming solar radiation is

constant, the average atmospheric temperature

depends on the mix of gases. More greenhouse gases in the atmosphere means that the equilibrium temperature will be higher as theseabsorb more heat. This will result to the increase of global temperature. Less greenhouse gaseswill mean lower temperature. Mankind more or less evolved under conditions of a specific mixof gases (of course with certain degree of variation) in the atmosphere, and we thrived underthese conditions. If the mix of gases in the atmosphere were altered considerably, earth’s temperature would change significantly, and we will be faced with new conditions that we arenot used to, which we will have to somehow adapt to, or face extinction. Areas that are found intemperate regions may have shorter winter. Countries that are found in tropical regions may havelonger and drier summer. Glaciers that cover land will melt which results in the increase of sealevel. El Niño and La Niña El Niño is an abnormal and lengthy warming in the eastern part of the Pacific Ocean. This natural phenomenon occurs at irregular intervals of two to seven years and last for nine months or two years at most. Usually, it starts at the end of the year or during Christmas season that is why; it is termed as El Niño which means”Christ child”.

Normally, as trade windmoves from east to west, it collects warm air. But when trade wind is weakened, it causes thepiling up of warm surface water and making thepart of the Pacific Ocean warmer leading to ElNiño phenomenon. This happens when theupwelling of colder water is blocked by the largequantities of warm surface water. (The cause of

the weakening of the trade winds is still unknown and it is still being investigated) Since the Pacific Ocean is to the east of the Philippines, El Niño phenomenon will affectthe country. When there is an increase of the temperature inthe eastern part of the Pacific Ocean,it isexpected that some areas in the Philippines will experience this climatic phenomenon. Some areas in the country will experience near to above rainfall and some areas may experience drierthan normal rainfall. El Niño will most likely bring severe drought. It is believed that it causes stronger thunderstorm disturbance and massive storms. It also causes the decrease the population of some species.

La Niña is theopposite climatic disturbance to El Niño.This natural phenomenon may, but doesnot always follow El Niño events. It maylast for nine to twelve months but in somecases, it lasts for two years. This event istriggered by the cooling of the eastern part of the Pacific Ocean. That‘s why, it is sometimes called cold Pacific. Trade winds that move from east to west are strengthened. Upwelling of colder waterintensifies. Moving air brings along too much water vapor. When it reaches the land mass suchas Philippines, precipitation is experienced. There would be an increase of rainfall in some areas

in the Philippines. For instance, areas that experienced severe drought which caused by El Niñomay encounter above normal rainfall. But in some cases, areas that experience dry season will bedrier than normal conditions. La Niña’s effects are the opposite of El Niño.

ASSIGNMENT ( 12/07/15 )Altitude- the height above sea level.Climate- the overall condition of an area over a long period of time.climate change- a long term shifting of global weather pattern.El Niño brought about by thecurrentof the ocean bringing warm airto a landmass in the Pacific region.Fauna – composed of living animals.Longitude- an imaginary line that extends from north pole to south pole.Mitigation – a manner of modifying something to become useful.Topography- the surface features of an area.Windward- the side of the mountain that receives most of the precipitation.Flora- composed of different plant vegetation.Greenhouse effect- the increase of global temperature due to some atmospheric gases.Gyre- the circular patterns formed by surface currents. Latitude- an imaginary line that is parallel to the equator. Leeward- the side of the mountain that receives less amount of precipitation.Precipitation- forms when water vapor condenses and falls to the ground as rain, snow, hail orsleet.Temperature- refers to the hotness or coldness of an object.Factors being equal,gas (mainly water vapor)dissolved in magma tends to increase its ability to flow. Therefore, in near-surface environments, the loss of gasesmakes magma more viscous, forming a dome or a columnar as shown in Figure 65.

Types of volcanic eruptions

Volcanoes erupt differently.They are generally classified as wet or drydepending on the magma’s water content. Volcanoes are described according to thestyle of eruption as follows:

a. Phreatic or hydrothermal – is a stream-driven eruption as the hot rocks come in contact with water. It is shortlived,characterized by ash columns but may be an onset forof alarger eruption.Shown on the right is our TaalVolcano in Batangas.

b. Phreatomagmatic – is a violent eruption due to thecontact between water and magma. As a result, a largecolumn of very fine ash and high-speed and sidewayemission of pyroclastics called base surges areobserved.

c. Strombolian -- a periodic weak to violenteruption characterized by fountain lava,just like the Irazu Volcano in Costa Rica.

d. Vulcanian – characterized by talleruption columns that reach up to 20 kmhigh with pyroclastic flow and ashfalltephra like that of Paricutin Volcano inMexico.

e. Plinian – excessively explosivetype of eruption of gas and

pyroclastics, just like our PinatuboVolcano in Zambales.