Ch 14 Earth’s Climate and Biomes Study Guide

Name: ____________________________ Date: ____________ Period: _____

Lesson 1 with Surface Current Map

1. Terms to know…climate (and how it differs from weather) and climatology
_____________________________________________________________________
2. What are 3 factors that describe the climate of a location? ________________________
3. What are 4 factors that determine the climate of a location? Which is most important?
_____________________________________________________________________
4. Where is each of the following climate zones located? In general, what temperatures would
you experience in each zone?
a. Tropics _________________________________________________________
b. Temperate ______________________________________________________
c. Polar ___________________________________________________________
5. What is the rain shadow effect? ____________________________________________
What does it create on the leeward side of a high mountain range like the Himalayas?
______________________________________________________________________
6. How do air masses affect climate? ___________________________________________
7. How do ocean currents affect climate? ________________________________________
a. Which current affects our climate? ________________ California’s? __________
b. On which coast would you find cold current? _________ warm currents?_________
8. How do coastal climates differ from continental (inland) climates?
______________________________________________________________________
How does the differential heating of oceans and continents explain this difference?
______________________________________________________________________

Lesson 2 with Planet Earth: Pole to Pole…

9. What scale classifies climates? ______________________________________________
10. Know the average temperatures, location by latitude, precipitation and unique characteristics
for each of the following climate classes…
a. Tropical – wet, wet and dry _________________________________________
b. Dry – arid and semi-arid ___________________________________________
c. Mild – humid subtropical ____________________________________________
d. Continental – subarctic _____________________________________________
e. Polar – ice cap and tundra __________________________________________
11. Which climate zone, class, and subclass do WE live in? _____________________________
12. What is a microclimate? Give an example.
______________________________________________________________________
13. Are coastal areas cooler or warmer than inland areas in the winter? (Think about the
difference in temperature between Clemmons and Wilmington.) Why?
14. What is a heat island? Give an example.
______________________________________________________________________
15. What is a biome? ________________________________________________________
What do the terms biotic factors _________________________ and abiotic factors
_______________________ mean?
16. What are the unique characteristics of the six biomes? How can you describe the climate of
each? What plants and animals live in each? What adaptations must the plants and animals
have to survive in each biome? What air mass is each affected by?
a. Tundra _________________________________________________________
b. Taiga __________________________________________________________
c. Deciduous forest _________________________________________________
d. Desert _________________________________________________________
 e. Grasslands ______________________________________________________
f. Rain forest ______________________________________________________
17. Which biome is most of North Carolina in? _____________________________________

Lesson 3: Natural Climate Changes …

1. What is an ice age? ______________________________________________________
2. What causes the seasons? _________________________________________________
3. What is El Niño? ________________________________________________________

a. Which current is affected? __________________________________________

b. Which global wind system is involved? __________________________________
c. How does it affect the California coast? ________________________________
The Gulf Coast? __________________ The Atlantic? ______________________
4. What are 5 natural variations that can lead to changes in Earth’s climate?
______________________________________________________________________
5. Why was the Maunder Minimum (Little Ice Age) so cold? ___________________________
6. Do volcanic eruptions warm or cool the Earth? Why? ______________________________

Lesson 4: Manmade Climate Change – Fact or Fiction?

1. Do the United Nations IPCC and former Vice President Al Gore think that climate change is
natural or manmade?
2. Do the scientists William Gray, Willie Soon, and Joe Bastardi think that climate change is
natural or manmade?
3. Do the United Nations IPCC and Al Gore think that climate change is caused by carbon
dioxide emissions or variations in solar radiation (the sun)?
4. Do the scientists William Gray, Willie Soon, and Joe Bastardi think that climate change is
caused by carbon dioxide emissions or variations in solar radiation?
5. Do the United Nations IPCC and former Vice President Al Gore (and President Obama) think
that the gas carbon dioxide is or is not a toxic pollutant?
6. Do the scientists William Gray, Willie Soon, and Joe Bastardi think that the gas carbon
dioxide is or is not a toxic pollutant?
7. What evidence do the United Nations IPCC and former Vice President Al Gore use to try to
show that climate change is manmade?
______________________________________________________________________
8. What evidence do the scientists William Gray, Willie Soon, and Joe Bastardi use to show that
climate change is natural?
______________________________________________________________________
9. According to the DVD “Solar Cycles”, what is the relationship between warm oceans and
carbon dioxide? _________________________________________________________

Lesson 5: Biodiversity with Webquest…

1. What is the biosphere? ____________________________________________________
2. What is biodiversity? _____________________________________________________
a. What are the levels of biodiversity? _______________________________________
b. Which biome has the most biodiversity? Why? _______________________________
c. Which biome has the least biodiversity? Why? _______________________________
3. What are 5 things that can reduce biodiversity?
a. Specifically, what is an invasive species? ___________________________________
How does it impact biodiversity? _________________________________________
What is an example of an invasive species here in NC? __________________________
b. What is overharvesting? ________________________________________________
c. What is habitat alteration? _____________________________________________
4. What impact does the loss of biodiversity have on our society – local and global?
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5. How can we prevent the loss of biodiversity? List ways below.