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The first picture looks almost summer-like to me. There's certainly not even anything resembling what I'd call a Winter in the Northeast (exactly what part of the NE is this?). The other pictures look like Autumn, but perhaps the grass is too green, in which case it would be Spring. But I think Autumn is more appropriate. It's both weird and utterly detestable to have autumnal looks and weather (sometimes even summer-like weather, it's been so muggy there) hanging around all "winter".
One thing I noticed. One marker for a sub-tropical type climate I once made up is that, if the average DIURNAL RANGE is larger than the average SEASONAL RANGE, than that climate is sub-tropical or tropical. For example, in Melbourne the average range in January is 14.0 to 25.8 - 11.8, in winter it's something like 8C. The annual average range probably around 10.5C. If the January average is 19.6C, and the July average say 10.0C, that's 9.6C, making Melbourne 'sub-tropical' in a way.
It seems more scientific to classify sub-tropical climates by their consistency...which would include climates such as Lima, which at that latitude should be tropical, but is cool enough to feel temperate.
One thing I always found peculiar was some super-continental climates, like Central Asia, tended to have small diurnal ranges but huge seasonal swings. I wonder what explains that?
Cool. That would make the climate here subtropical. The diurnal range in every month, is greater than the yearly range.
I might have to concede that I live in a subtropical climate.
Location: The western periphery of Terra Australis
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Originally Posted by Joe90
Cool. That would make the climate here subtropical. The diurnal range in every month, is greater than the yearly range.
I might have to concede that I live in a subtropical climate.
In a sense it is...for me warmth/heat is not the be all and end all of a tropical climate. Few would disagree that highland equatorial climates, such as Bandung or Tororo are not tropical. They have the same weather patterns as equatorial climates - convective heating, the build-up of storm clouds and thunderstorms in the afternoon and evening being typical - just with cooler temperatures. So I actually think there is something in classifying moderate temperate climates as sub-tropical.
Of course I don't really see Melbourne as sub-tropical, but it's one way of looking at it.
One thing I always found peculiar was some super-continental climates, like Central Asia, tended to have small diurnal ranges but huge seasonal swings. I wonder what explains that?
That's really interesting. I usually associated big seasonal swings/continental climates with huge day-to-day and within-day variations -- and tend to picture the two going hand in hand, like the cities in the Canadian prairies, or the Great Plains in the US. Where, especially in spring or fall there can be days with T-shirt weather in the morning and below freezing at night or vice versa.
I remember that's one thing I didn't like about living with the weather in Alberta.
If it was actually the same kind of very continental climate like you describe, but with small diurnal ranges, I think I'd probably like it better (easier to dress for, based on the weather forecast, and acclimatize to).
The first picture looks almost summer-like to me. There's certainly not even anything resembling what I'd call a Winter in the Northeast (exactly what part of the NE is this?). The other pictures look like Autumn, but perhaps the grass is too green, in which case it would be Spring. But I think Autumn is more appropriate. It's both weird and utterly detestable to have autumnal looks and weather (sometimes even summer-like weather, it's been so muggy there) hanging around all "winter".
Those photos were from a suburb 20 miles outside of Philadelphia. I'd say the photos look too green to be summer, more early spring (a look common here late March or early April). I doubt it's actually been muggy or summer-like anywhere in the Northeast.
I see a green tinge to some of the grass here, but there's lots of beige mixed in and it's obviously dormant.
Those photos were from a suburb 20 miles outside of Philadelphia. I'd say the photos look too green to be summer, more early spring (a look common here late March or early April). I doubt it's actually been muggy or summer-like anywhere in the Northeast.
I see a green tinge to some of the grass here, but there's lots of beige mixed in and it's obviously dormant.
The pics are from 20 miles northwest of Philadelphia. Our grass fluctuates between green and green brown all winter depending on the temps and precip. In a normal Dec it is usually all green. In Jan more green/brown depending on temps and precip. It's been quite dry here for the last month or so.
We are on the boundary between southern and northern grasses. In August our grass is usually more brown if we don't get a ton of rain or it is watered. The grass in England is lush and green and I bet here that grass would stay green in winter (it is cool weather grass), but would fry to pieces in summer. People have an image of my area being like the arctic, and it is not. There are plenty of green bushes and trees all winter. Most of our precip is in the form of rain in an average winter. Snow cover (when we get it) doesn't last more than a week usually.
The large media market in the NE USA hypes up the cold in our area as if we were the arctic. The pics I posted don't look that out of the ordinary for Feb. In a colder winter the grass would still have some green but also brown from the cold. The grass doesn't grow a heck of a lot in winter though.
The grass is brown here. I live about 120 miles north of Tom.
My point of the pics was to show the Australian gentleman that though Atlanta has brown grass, it is due to the diff grass. If our grass here looks like that in winter, imagine how green it would be in Atlanta (if it were the same grass mixture). The diff is that their summer would fry it up. So I think they plant heat tolerant grasses there which don't like colder winters and temps below freezing. I can't believe that Atlanta would have less green bushes and shrubs than there though.
Thanks. Based on doing a lot of reading and interacting with reading Anthony Wood blogs (our local Philly Inquirer weather guru), I've learned more in the last months. I was very bummed about the last two winters which sucked for us in the east. I forgot how nice it is when we get a mild winter. I would never ever trade my summer for a NZ winter or even Melbourne. Melbourne looks beautiful, but forget about swimming in that ocean.
Currently it is the equiv of August in Sydney. Our beach water temps would peaking now at around 74-76F, usually hitting the upper 70's at times, bar upwelling events.
I keep checking Sydney water temps and they are not impressive to me for this time in summer. The current water temp in Sydney is barely cracking 71F.
Also, I found a neat site with buoy readings for various beaches in NSW. These readings look San Diego to me, going down below 68F at times and then up to around 71F ,not east coast summer.
Too be honest, I was not really attempting to make a point about which types of climates are “better” so to speak. Like the never ending cold vs warm debates it seems truly pointless. I readily admit – I like warm to hot climates. A mean temperature of below 70 F/21 C is not summer to me and I’m sure I would not last long in a climate where no months of the year have a mean temp of 70 F (Melbourne, Auckland, Cape Town, Seattle…etc). For me, my preference of a “good or proper hot season “ starts with a mean temp of 72 F/22 C and goes up to maybe 79 or 80 F (27 C). To me, Atlanta distribution of warmth is anything but wasted –it’s highly desirable.
My point was that when you compare THE WARM SEASONS in both Melbourne and even Sydney to Atlanta….by May (the start of the warm season) Atlanta with a mean temp (70 F ) that is warmer than Melbourne will get even at the absolute height of their respective summer (67 F)…and just 1 F less than Sydney (71 F) at the height of their summer. The three (3) warmest months in Melbourne struggle to even reach the middle/upper 60 ‘s F. For me, many of these types of climates (Melbourne, Auckland, Cape Town…etc) yes them have semi-mild winters and fewer frosts – but the trade off is just too much in terms of warmth. As I said above I draw a hard line a monthly mean temp of 70 F.If a climate can’t produce at least a few months of 70 F mean temps…I have little interest in it.
Although I think one does acclimate to SST – I agree lower 70’s in pretty cold. I used to think that lower 70’s were fine for SST when I grew up in the Tri-State area, the beaches on Long Island, NJ/CT/RI would have low 70’s SST and I just got used to it I guess. Then in our late teen/early twenties when we got out license, we always headed down to Hilton Head, Myrtle Beach, and Daytona Beach…etc and 80 F was the standard. Now, between southern Florida and trips to the Caribbean, 82 – 83 F is what I look for in terms of comfortable SST. I don’t think I could swim in 70 F SST even if I wanted too (lol).
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