The role of the atmosphere in the life of the Earth. Distribution of air temperature on Earth
1. What are the main properties of the atmosphere?
The atmosphere is a necessary condition for the birth and existence of life on Earth. The air from which the atmosphere consists is necessary for breathing all living things. A person can not help breathing air even for 1 minute, and only prolonged workouts can extend this time to several minutes. After that, if breathing is not resumed, a person will die from suffocation. It is no accident that there is such an expression: “it is necessary as air”. Air for living beings is much more important than water and food, although it is impossible to live without them for a long time. The atmosphere protects the inhabitants of the Earth from the harmful influence of space: from radiation, cooling, mechanical action of various cosmic bodies that fall to Earth, falling into the zone of gravity of our planet. Only the largest bodies – meteorites – do not burn in the atmosphere and reach the Earth.
2. What is
With the state of the lower atmosphere, such climatic phenomena as precipitation, changes in wind strength and velocity, heating or cooling of the Earth’s surface are associated. In different regions of the Earth, depending on their position relative to the equator, the features of the relief, the state of the surface and the lower atmosphere, different types of climates are formed. In the region of the equator and tropics, hot equatorial and tropical types of climate are formed, in the region of the North and South Poles – cold Arctic and Antarctic types of climate.
3. What can be learned from the climate maps?
With the help of climate maps you can get acquainted with different types of climate, find out what climatic zones and regions formed over the territory of each continent and the oceans. You can also give a characteristic of the climatic belt. The sequence of actions is the following:
Determination of the boundaries of the climate belt; Determination of climatic differences within the belt; Determination of average maximum and minimum temperatures; Determination of the average for the year, the maximum and minimum amount of precipitation, the mode of their fallout; Determination of the main climate-forming factors affecting the formation of different types of climate within the climatic zone.