Latitudinal variations, Biology

Assignment Help:

Latitudinal Variations

The latitudinal variation of temperature over the earth is the result of two main variables

  • incoming solar radiation and
  • the distribution of land and water masses

 

What do you think could be the other factors influencing temperature?

The movement of wind and water, and the direction of slopes of hills and mountains also modify the temperature.

We know that the length of the day varies at higher latitudes. That means the incoming solar radiation varies. However, if we compute the average, every point on the earth gets the same total hours of daylight each year, an average of 12 hours per day, but not the same amount of heat. The latter depends upbn the amount of radiant energy delivered/unit area/hr and this depends upon the angle of landing sunlight. You have learnt in the previous section that vertical beams afe more intense than the oblique beams that land on the higher latitudes. Hence we find a gradual decrease in the amount of incident radiant energytunit area along the increasing latitudes, horizontally.

On the basis of temperature variation three distinct heat zones can be distinguished in each hemisphere (Figure shown below). The hot torrid zones are near the equator. moderate or temperate zones are in the middle, the cold zones are at the poles. Each zone is characterised by typical plants and animal populations found in the area.

1963_heat zones.jpg


Related Discussions:- Latitudinal variations

What are the plant hormones, What are the plant hormones? The Plant hor...

What are the plant hormones? The Plant hormones also called as phytohormones, are the substances that control the embryonic development and the growth of the adult plant.

Show Relation between tissue and the implant material, Relation between Tis...

Relation between Tissue and the implant material The biologic interaction between the tissue and the implant material at an  interface may result in a variety of phenomena such

Digestive system, I want to know how does our digestive system work

I want to know how does our digestive system work

Describe infection control sterilization protocol, Q. Describe Infection co...

Q. Describe Infection control sterilization protocol? Today is the age of modern technology coupled with medical challenges. Pervasive increase in serious transmissible disease

Determine the fructose to glucose ratio in honey, Q. Determine the fructose...

Q. Determine the fructose to glucose ratio in honey? This activity will help you to: • check the given samples of honey for any adulteration with commercial sugar

Zoonoses disease-tuberculosis, Tuberculosis Tuberculosis is a specific ...

Tuberculosis Tuberculosis is a specific communicable disease involving the pulmonary and extra- pulmonary tissues and is characterized by chronic clinical manifestations. The i

What is the difference between rna and dna, Q. Concerning the nitrogen- con...

Q. Concerning the nitrogen- containing bases that participate in nucleotides, what is the difference between RNA and DNA? In DNA nucleotides can be formed of thymine (T), adeni

Fatty Acids, How can I construct a fat molecule whose fatty acid tails are ...

How can I construct a fat molecule whose fatty acid tails are 4 carbon atoms long

Flow cytometry, The following histograms were produced using flow cytometry...

The following histograms were produced using flow cytometry after labelling B-cell lymphocytes with propidium iodide. Histogram A is from a healthy individual while Histogram B is

Write Your Message!

Captcha
Free Assignment Quote

Assured A++ Grade

Get guaranteed satisfaction & time on delivery in every assignment order you paid with us! We ensure premium quality solution document along with free turntin report!

All rights reserved! Copyrights ©2019-2020 ExpertsMind IT Educational Pvt Ltd