■ FACTORS CONTROLLING, THE DISTRIBUTION OF TEMPERATURE □ Prev | Upsc geography
■ FACTORS CONTROLLING, THE DISTRIBUTION OF TEMPERATURE
□ Prevailing Winds
◇ The prevailing winds help in redistribution of temperature and in carrying moderating effects of the oceans to the adjacent coastal land areas.
◇ The winds blowing from low latitudes to high latitudes raise the temperature of the regions where they reach while winds blowing from high latitudes to low latitudes lower the temperature.
◇ The winds blowing from oceans to coastal lands bring in marine effects and thus lower the daily range of temperature.
◇ The winds coming from higher parts of the mountains lower the temperature in the valleys.
◇ The temperature rises at the time of arrival of temperate cyclones while it falls sharply after their passage or their occlusion.
◇ The winds associated with warm oceanic currents raise the temperature of coastal lands while the winds coming in contact with cold currents lower the temperature of affected coastal lands.
◇ Sometimes, local winds change the temperature dramatically. For example, the warm chinook winds raise the temperature by 30 to 40°F within a few minutes along the eastern slopes of the Rockies in the USA and the snow melts as by magic at the arrival of chinook.
◇ Loo, a local hot wind, raises the temperature in the Ganga Plain of north India to such an extent (maximum temperature ranges between 40°C to 48°C during the day) that heat waves prolong for several days in continuation and several people die of sun stroke.
