Climate in the Rainforest

Why are rainforests located

near to the equator?

What is the climate like in the rainforest?

Why does it always rain in the afternoon?

Climate of the Amazon Basin

Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec

Rainfall in mm

249 231 262 221 170 84 58 38 46 107 142 203

Temp in °C

28 28 28 27 28 28 28 28 29 29 28 28

Task 1. Produce a climate graph of the Amazon Basin using the table above.

What does this graph show? How does it compare with other places?

Manaus Climate Graph

0

50

100

150

200

250

300

Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec

Month

Pre

cip

itat

ion

in

mm

26

26.5

27

27.5

28

28.5

29

29.5

Tem

p i

n

C

What is the climate like in the rainforest?

Look at the climate graph above and describe what the climate is like.

Mention rainfall and temperature.

Why is it hot in the rainforest?

Why is it hot in equatorial regions?

• On the Equator the sun is always (high/low) in the sky. It is overhead at (midnight/midday). The vertical rays of heat have only a (large/small) area to heat up. Temperatures are therefore always high. In places like Britain the sun is much (higher/lower) in the sky. It is (never/often) overhead. The rays of heat have a much (larger/smaller) area to heat up. Temperatures are therefore never as high.

Why is it so wet in the

rainforests?

Convectional rain

Why is it wet in the rainforest?

High temperatures result in heavy convectional rainfall. Annual totals often exceed 2000mm per year. Rain falls throughout the year and spectacular thunderstorms are common.

• Air next to the ground is heated

• Cumulonimbus storm clouds form

• Warm air rises• Heavy rain/thunderstorms• Air cools and

condensation occurs• Sun rises high in the sky

by midday• Sun heats up the ground• Water evaporates from

ground and trees

Put the sentences into the correct

order.Use them to write a

paragraph describing

convectional rainfall

Convectional rainfall?

•Water on the ground or moisture on flora is warmed by the sun, throughout the day. •The air above the land becomes heated.

•This makes the air less dense, so it rises. •As the air rises it cools. •Cool air can not hold as much as warmer air, when the air becomes too cold for the amount of water it holds occurs. The point where this occurs is called the .

•These drops of condensation form into , gradually becoming tall thunderstorm clouds, called . •When these clouds become too big, containing too much water, gravity forces them to release the water in a huge downpour.

dew pointcondensation

water vapour

cloudscumulonimbus

What is the weather like each

day in the rainforests?

What is the daily pattern of weather in the rainforest?

• Due to its latitude, the equatorial climate is hot and wet throughout the year. The weather pattern is almost the same every day.

Watch the following weather forecast

• http://news.bbc.co.uk/weather/

• How long is the forecast?• What weather conditions are mentioned?• How is the forecast broken up/structured?

• Now it’s your turn. Write a weather forecast to be presented on Manaus TV for the weather in the rainforest. See your homework project sheet week 2

Extension workExtension work

1. To create a climate graph for the Birmingham.2. In your book write at least 4 comparisons and

differences that can be seen between the Manaus graph and the Birmingham graph

Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec

Rainfall in mm

55 40 45 46 48 55 44 61 55 56 52 61

Temp in °C

7 8 10 13 17 20 22 21 18 14 9 7