Climate Vocabulary

Climate Vocabulary

Let's Review our Vocabulary Words

Weather and Climate

Weather is short term conditions of the atmosphere in an area and climate is the long term weather pattern for an area.

Multiple Choice

When determining the climate of an area, how much weather data do you need?

• A few days

• Several months

• A couple of years

• Multiple decades

Current and Gulf Stream

Currents are patterns of movement of air or water. The Gulf Stream is an ocean current that moves water from the equator into the Gulf of Mexico, along the east coast US, and over to Europe, bringing warmer temperatures.

Multiple Choice

What benefit does the Gulf Stream provide to those living on the east coast of the US?

• Warmer temperatures

• Fewer tornadoes

• Fewer earthquakes

• More water

Convection and Thermohaline Circulation

Convection is the movement of air or water due to changes in density. Dense air and water sinks and warm air and water rise. Thermohaline Circulation is caused by convection caused by cold surface water in Arctic sinking and pushing warmer water to surface.

Multiple Choice

What causes the deep ocean current known as thermohaline circulation?

• Strong winds

• Earth's rotation

• Convection

Upwelling and Mixing

Mixing of deep ocean water with surface water bringing needed nutrients to surface.

Multiple Choice

How does sea life benefit from upwelling and mixing?

• Nutrients from bottom come to top.

• Cold water sinks making the water more comfortable.

• Fish from the bottom rise to get more sunlight

El Ninyo and La Ninya

Short term changes to the earth's climate due to shifting of wind and surface currents in pacific. These phenomena cause changes to wind and rain patterns across the globe.

Multiple Choice

What effect do El Ninyo and La Ninya have on the climate?

• A permanent change to how winds blow and where rain falls in the US.

• A temporary change to how winds blow and where rain falls across the world.

• A temporary change to only the weather on the west coast of US.

Climate Change

A change to the long term weather patterns around the world.

Multiple Choice

What effect does Climate change have on the lives of people around the world?

• Warmer or Cooler Temperatures

• Stronger storms

• Flooding of coastal areas

• All of these