1. CLIMATE The sun is our heat source, but due to the tilt of the Earth, the heat is not the same at each spot of the surface. This tilt gives us different climate areas. Climate is a long time average of the daily weather.

2. All weather is powered by the premise that hot rises and cold sinks. At the equator the air is warm, and the farther north or south that you travel from the equator, the colder it gets. This is due to the shape of the Earth and the slant from the heat source.

3. It is because of this shape that we get uneven heating of the surface. This uneven heating creates convection cycles or currents in our atmosphere which creates weather and winds.

4. LAND BREEZE & SEA BREEZE When air rises it creates a low pressure area. When air sinks, it creates a high pressure area. Warm air rises and cold air sinks. Air moves from an area where it sinks to an area where it rises. Moving air is called wind. The uneven heating of the Earth creates this movement.

5. Another contributing factor of uneven heating is the surface. Some types of ground cover heats/cools at different rates than others. Water is slow to heat, but when it does, it becomes slow to cool off. Sand is quick. Color also plays a role. During the day, land heats faster than water, so the breeze flows to the land. At night, the water is warmer than the land, so the air moves to the water. As warm air rises, more must move in to fill the void.

7. Air is made of molecules. When the air is cold, these molecules are close together. When the air is warm, the molecules are farther apart. As the area warms, the moisture is evaporated into the air. The colder the air is, the tighter the molecules are squeezing together, the less moisture it can hold. The amount of moisture that is in the air is called humidity. When we reach 100% humidity, the air can hold no more moisture and it rains. Cold air can’t hold as much as warm air can. The temperature at which the air is fully saturated is called the dew point.

8. As wind moves up a mountain, it cools. As it cools, it rains. When it goes down the other side, it warms and is in search for extra moisture.