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

Tissue organization and specialized organs, Q. Do plants have tissue organi...

Q. Do plants have tissue organization and specialized organs? Plants have specialized organs (like roots, limbs, reproductive organs, leaves) and differentiated tissues (suppor

Retention of soil moisture, Retention of Soil Moisture The movement of ...

Retention of Soil Moisture The movement of water into and within the soil, moisture storing capacity of soils and the availability of moisture to plants are governed by soil pr

Natural selection of heterogeneous environments, While describing normalisi...

While describing normalising selection it was said that in uniform environments selection limits the variability of populations and evolves a genetic homeostasis. The type of selec

Do enzymes act better under acid or basic ph, Do enzymes act better under a...

Do enzymes act better under acid or basic pH? Most enzymes act in pH among 6 and 8, a range that corresponds to the general acidic level of cells and blood. There are enzymes,

Explain about the primary protein derivatives, Explain about the primary pr...

Explain about the primary protein derivatives? a) Proteins: These are the insoluble products which result from the incipient action of very dilute acids or enzymes. e.g. casein

Theory of embryology - mosaic thoery, MOSAI C THOERY - It was given by...

MOSAI C THOERY - It was given by W. Roux. He studied the development of frog's egg. He destroyed one cells by a hot needle out of 2-cells formed as a result of first cleava

State the study of linked genes, Why is drosophila a convenient animal for ...

Why is drosophila a convenient animal for the study of linked genes? The fruit fly drosophila is suitable for the study of Genetics because it shows many distinct traits but on

Vitamins requirement in dyslipidemia, Q. Vitamins requirement in dyslipidem...

Q. Vitamins requirement in dyslipidemia? Antioxidants and flavonoids, natural vitamin E, vitamins C and Aare nutrients (vitamins) that scavenge cell-damaging free radicals and

Explain the mendel''s laws in genetics, Explain the Mendel's Laws in geneti...

Explain the Mendel's Laws in genetics? Based on the results of his experiments, Mendel proposed three laws regarding the inheritance of traits: the Law of Segregation, the Law

Determine the most probable mode of inheritance, In the following pedigrees...

In the following pedigrees, the disorders or traits presented follow simple patterns of Mendelian inheritance. For each trait, determine the most probable mode of inheritance, stat

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