World Climate Zones › Revision notes
World Climate Zones — Revision notes
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Quick recap
6 clipsShort clips from the lesson video. Watch a couple to jog your memory, then try the Brain dump below.
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Brain dump
Before you look at anything else, write down everything you can remember about this lesson: key words, facts, examples. Spelling doesn't matter. Then see which of the 8 key terms you remembered.
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Ones you missed. Read these, then try again tomorrow:
Key terms
- Climate zone
- A large band of the planet sharing roughly the same long-term climate characteristics, arranged in neat belts running east to west
- Equatorial zone
- A hot and wet climate zone located right along the Equator, home to tropical rainforests
- Tropical and desert zone
- A hot and bone-dry zone sitting just outside the equatorial belt, home to the world's largest deserts
- Temperate zone
- A mild and damp climate zone located further from the Equator, which is where the United Kingdom sits
- Polar zone
- A cold and dry climate zone located near the top and bottom of the Earth around the poles
- Latitude
- The measurement of how far north or south a location is from the Equator, which dictates how directly sunlight strikes the surface
- Altitude
- The height of land above sea level, which causes temperature to drop by roughly one degree Celsius for every hundred metres gained
- Ocean current
- An enormous river of water drifting across the oceans that shifts heat around the planet, warming or cooling nearby coasts
TERM — tap to reveal
What this lesson covers
How well do you know each one? Be honest: red means go back over it.
- Explain what a climate zone is and why they form east-west belts
- Explain how latitude creates tropical, temperate and polar zones
- Describe the characteristics of each of the main climate zones
- Explain how altitude affects temperature, including the drop per 100 metres
- Explain how distance from the sea moderates a place's climate
- Explain how ocean currents such as the North Atlantic Drift affect winter temperatures
Test yourself
Cover the answer, say it out loud, then check the full quiz on the lesson page.
- Why is it hotter at the Equator than at the Poles?
- What happens to temperature as you climb higher up a mountain?
- Why are Glasgow's winters milder than Moscow's?
Topic quiz
13 questions on this topic only — not mixed with anything else, one at a time.
Question 1 of 13
Score: 0 out of 13
Spelling challenge
Read the definition, then type the correct spelling of the term. Uses the same terms as above.
Score: 0/0
