5th Grade Science
Harcourt Science
Unit C
Chapter 3: Weather Study GuideName: _________________________________________
Date: __________________________________________
You will be asked to write a paragraph or more about weather and climate. Most of Earth’s weather takes place in the troposphere. The
troposphere is the lowest level of Earth’s atmosphere. Meteorologists use many ways to measure weather conditions and to predict the weather. Weather conditions that can be measured are: air temperature, air pressure, humidity, wind speed and direction, and precipitation. Air pressure and types of clouds are used to predict changes in weather. Four cloud types are: Stratus, Cirrus, Cumulus, Cumulonimbus.You will need to know that climate is the average of all weather conditions through all seasons over a period of time. Sometimes Earth’s climate changes for a year or so. El Nino is an example of a short-term climate change. Temperature and precipitation are the major factors measured to determine climate. Human activities, such as pollution, affect climate. Currently, scientists are concerned about global warming due to rising carbon dioxide levels in Earth’s atmosphere.
There are 5 world climate zones:
1. Polar-cold all year, light precipitation
2. Mountain-cold winters, cool summers; moderate to heavy precipitation
3. Temperate-cold winters, warm summers; moderate precipitation
4. Tropical-warm to hot all year; moderate to heavy precipitation
5. Desert-hot summers, cool winters; light precipitationWebsite: http://www.illiniweather.com
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