Question

How does latitude influence climate? Describe the temperatures and amounts of sunlight experienced at low, middle, and high latitudes. Be sure to write your response in four or more complete sentences.

Answer 1

Latitude is a major influence on climate because different locations on Earth receive varying degrees of sunlight. The low latitudes are located nearest to the Equator and receive the most direct and intense rays of sun. With so much sunlight to provide heat, these latitudes experience warm temperatures year-round. The middle latitudes receive varying degrees of sunlight depending on the time of year. With seasonal changes, they experience the most temperature extremes. The high latitudes are the farthest from the Equator. The Sun’s rays hit them at an angle, spreading heat out over a larger area. This causes these latitudes to have colder temperatures throughout the year.

Answer 2

Latitude is one of the most important factors that dictates the climate. The further away a place is from the equator, the colder it becomes. This is due to the amount of sunlight that places on different latitudes experience.

The places that are on a small latitude receive bigger mount of sunlight and are warmer, and that's because they are exposed to sunlight throughout the whole year, and the sunlight falls at more direct angles, thus the sunlight is more concentrated on a smaller space.

The places that are further away from the equator, on bigger latitudes, receive smaller amounts of sunlight because of the circular shape of the Earth, and the sunlight is much more dispersed over a wider area, which contributes to smaller heating and smaller temperatures.