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This may come off as an elementary question, but what drives California and Spain to have a Csa climate? I live 40°N so I'm comparing my location with Redding, CA and Eureka, CA along with Madrid and Valencia, Spain and Beijing. So why do, and generally, the western sides of continents have a Csa climate while the eastern side at the same latitude has Dfa or Dwa? If there were no mountains between the sides of continents, how would it be different? Does water temperature have anything to do with it? In this case, I'm not sure how the Atlantic plays a role in the climate of the Iberian peninsula, specifically (does it have a warm or cold current?)
Also, would the eastern U.S. have more of a Dwa and Cwa climate if the Gulf wasn't present, like in eastern China?
This may come off as an elementary question, but what drives California and Spain to have a Csa climate? I live 40°N so I'm comparing my location with Redding, CA and Eureka, CA along with Madrid and Valencia, Spain and Beijing. So why do, and generally, the western sides of continents have a Csa climate while the eastern side at the same latitude has Dfa or Dwa? If there were no mountains between the sides of continents, how would it be different? Does water temperature have anything to do with it? In this case, I'm not sure how the Atlantic plays a role in the climate of the Iberian peninsula, specifically (does it have a warm or cold current?)
Also, would the eastern U.S. have more of a Dwa and Cwa climate if the Gulf wasn't present, like in eastern China?
The lack of precipitation has to do with the colder water temperatures.
My guess is because the water is colder less will evaporate into the air; producing less rain / more dryness?
Because most western parts of continents are beside the ocean and in the nh weather travels west to east.
I was looking for a more in depth answer I already knew that since primary school The U.S. is not like Ireland where both sides of the island are Cfb. One coast of the US is Csa while the exact latitude on the east side (me) is Dfa.
By the way, weather travels west to east in the n.h. mid latitudes only. In the tropical latitudes (where I am from originally) weather travels east to west
Last edited by theunbrainwashed; 08-01-2012 at 04:48 PM..
So, is it only water that causes the difference between the coasts? If the Pacific coast had a warm ocean current running beside it like the Gulf Stream, would the precipitation regime be more like the east coast and PNW? I wasn't asking simple questions like how does rain form and fall. I was asking more.....are the ocean current temperatures the only reason why California has a Csa climate and here a Dfa? Forget the C and D classifications, since weather moves east in the n.h. that's a given
Ok, I'm gonna rephrase again how different would the U.S. look if it were surrounded by warm water currents on the Pacific, in addition to the Atlantic? I'm not talking about the immediate coast, but the whole country
I think the reason the west coast has a Csa and the east coast has a Dfa is simply due to the thermal inertia of water vs. land. Since prevailing winds at midlatitudes go from west to east then the winds and hence the temperature will be moderated by the large bodies of water to the west of continents vs the east of continents which have land to the west. Water holds heat longer and releases it slower than land hence you have milder climates on the west coast vs. the east.
If the Pacific had a warm water ocean current, I think the main consequence vs. now would be that you have more precipitation in the summer months and more thunderstorms due to more convection.
As far as if the US were surrounded by warm ocean currents both west and east, I think overall the whole country would receive more precip as more moisture makes its way from the Pacific ocean due to more evaporation and there would be a large difference in the rainfall of California and the SW in summer but otherwise not much difference IMO.
I asked this question myself about if the California Current was a warm water current what would the climate there be like. There were alot of ideas given in the thread one of which was that for there to be a climate in California like the East Coast the warm humid air must come from somewhere's
I asked this question myself about if the California Current was a warm water current what would the climate there be like. There were alot of ideas given in the thread one of which was that for there to be a climate in California like the East Coast the warm humid air must come from somewhere's
Your previous thread answered my questions. Interesting we both had the same question to ask I just hate how Wikipedia doesn't elaborate on the various permanent pressure systems, how and why they form, and what their effects are
Your previous thread answered my questions. Interesting we both had the same question to ask I just hate how Wikipedia doesn't elaborate on the various permanent pressure systems, how and why they form, and what their effects are
I don't even remember why I asked that question, mabey to do with Manboria World my fantasy earth with climates I mentioned a few times on here before.
The whole weather system in general is so complex and involved that I'm not surprise that wikipedia can only explain this so much. This is the fun of asking questions on the weather.
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I already knew that since primary school 
The U.S. is not like Ireland where both sides of the island are Cfb. One coast of the US is Csa while the exact latitude on the east side (me) is Dfa.
how different would the U.S. look if it were surrounded by warm water currents on the Pacific, in addition to the Atlantic? I'm not talking about the immediate coast, but the whole country
