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Read up more on what Koppen had to say. Not just concentrate on temperature parameters, that were established at a time when we knew a lot less about how the climate works.
Do you think understanding Copenhagen's climate, is going to help you understand better Wollongong's climate?
What is that supposed to mean? Are you saying that these climates are too contrasting to be under the same classification? If that's what you're implying, then why are NYC and Washington DC grouped with Sydney and Brisbane under Koppen?
How am I supposed to know what I was concentrating on? You're the one who said that his maps, at least those I linked, are based on temperatures ("22C+"). I did not know that. I always thought the maps were based on every climatic attribute.
Can you link his climatic map that is based on every climatic factor (and not just the temperature)? You know, a climatic map that doesn't have Bowral and Wollongong under Cfb.
The dynamics of Copenhagen and Wollongong are completely different. Wollongong's influence in summer, is that of the subtropical descending air - like all Cfa climates. Copenhagen's influence in summer, is that of the prevailing westerlies, generated by the polar low -like all Cfb climates.
Brisbane, Sydney, NYC and DC are all Cfa because they all come under the influence of summer time descending subtropical air.
Don't worry about maps. Pay more attention to Koppen's qualifying factors, and less attention to the quantifying factors.
The dynamics of Copenhagen and Wollongong are completely different. Wollongong's influence in summer, is that of the subtropical descending air - like all Cfa climates. Copenhagen's influence in summer, is that of the prevailing westerlies, generated by the polar low -like all Cfb climates.
Brisbane, Sydney, NYC and DC are all Cfa because they all come under the influence of summer time descending subtropical air.
Don't worry about maps. Pay more attention to Koppen's qualifying factors, and less attention to the quantifying factors.
Read up more on what Koppen had to say. Not just concentrate on temperature parameters, that were established at a time when we knew a lot less about how the climate works.
Where? I haven't read anywhere that the Cfa boundaries where carefully set to coincede where high pressure has an influence, though it does kinda match. The Cfa/D climate boundaries were set by Koppen to correspond with where there'd be consistent snowpack.
The dynamics of Copenhagen and Wollongong are completely different. Wollongong's influence in summer, is that of the subtropical descending air - like all Cfa climates. Copenhagen's influence in summer, is that of the prevailing westerlies, generated by the polar low -like all Cfb climates.
Brisbane, Sydney, NYC and DC are all Cfa because they all come under the influence of summer time descending subtropical air.
NYC and DC get prevailing westerlies in the summer, like most midlatitude climates, though a southern flow more often in the summer. Descending air isn't really accurate either for any Cfa climate in the summer.
Where? I haven't read anywhere that the Cfa boundaries where carefully set to coincede where high pressure has an influence, though it does kinda match. The Cfa/D climate boundaries were set by Koppen to correspond with where there'd be consistent snowpack.
Well that's my point -they weren't carefully set. Koppen described a system loosely based on vegetation and prevailing weather systems. The cutoff points using temperature were based on the rather limited data available at the time. Now some pedantic folk see it as a system where 22.1C = Cfb and 22.2C = Cfa.
Quote:
Originally Posted by nei
NYC and DC get prevailing westerlies in the summer, like most midlatitude climates, though a southern flow more often in the summer. Descending air isn't really accurate either for any Cfa climate in the summer.
My mistake. I didn't mean descending air. A flow of warm, wet air from the tropics.
Well that's my point -they weren't carefully set. Koppen described a system loosely based on vegetation and prevailing weather systems. The cutoff points using temperature were based on the rather limited data available at the time. Now some pedantic folk see it as a system where 22.1C = Cfb and 22.2C = Cfa.
Well you said earlier "read up on Koppen", was curious on a source.
Quote:
My mistake. I didn't mean descending air. A flow of warm, wet air from the tropics.
Ah, that makes more sense. To nitpick, the warm wet air flow isn't really tropical for eastern North America in the summer; it's subtropical (using subtropics to refer to latitude bands). Biggest source of humid air is the Gulf of Mexico which is mostly 25-30°N. Atlantic ocean temperatures are hot enough up to 35°N to create high humidity air masses.
And it should weather dominated by a warm, wet air flow from lower latitudes; Canada even north of 50°N gets a humid airflow in the summer at times but that's not the usual. Here it goes back and forth from near-tropical stickiness to not that humid and back again. You remember I mentioned Atlanta and Montreal have similar weather patterns, with one just warmer? I looked a bit deeper. Atlanta has a much lower standard deviation in summer mins than stations further north or in the rest of the year. Summer minimums are correlated with dewpoint, so a small standard deviation in the min mean humidity doesn't change much (or rather the same humid airflow is always on).
Amherst has a higher standard deviation in mins than maxes midsummer; this might reflect the larger humidity changes. Washington DC shows some change while Atlanta is rather stable; it's almost to tropical-like levels. So summers should feel less stable going up the east coast. Note Atlanta and Washington DC have the same average midsummer daily minimum temperature.
Btw, the C/D climate boundary might not be the best indicator of consistent humid airflow in the summer. Dfa climates get humid summers as well [though in the US, they're borderline, and switch between humid and drier air]. In East Asia, Dfa or rather Dwa climates are under a monsoonal or humid airflow during the summer. The C/D boundary corresponds with winters not summers, so it's not always going to match "edge of subtropical high pressures influence" correctly.
I would call it humid continental, although with oceanic influence. The summers are cool, and if the 24 hour average in the coldest month was above freezing with those summers it would be oceanic. But it's about 5 F / 3 C too cold in the winter.
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