Principles of terrestrial ecosystem ecology.pdf

28 2. Earth’s Climate System
A
B
60
30
60
Latitude
90
H
January
Siberian
high
H
180
Aleutian
low
L
L
ITCZ
90
H
H
90
Longitude
180
90
0
90
L
L
0
Icelandic
low
30
Pacific H
high
Bermuda
high
H
30
0 0
60
30
90
180
Thermal
0 low
0
30
60
Latitude
L
July
Siberian
low
ITCZ
H
Pacific
high
H
L
90
90
Longitude
180
90
0
90
H
Icelandic
low
H
L
H
0
Bermuda
high
Figure 2.7. Average surface wind-flow patterns and the distribution of sea level pressure for January (A)
and July (B). (Redrawn from Essentials of Meteorology: An Invitation to the Atmosphere, 2nd edition,
by C. Ahrens © 1998, by permission of Brooks/Cole, an imprint of the Wadsworth Group, a division of
Thomson Learning; Ahrens 1998.)
The Oceans
Ocean Structure
Oceans maintain rather stable layers with
limited vertical mixing between them. The sun
H
heats the ocean from the top, whereas the
atmosphere is heated from the bottom. Because
warm water is less dense than cold water, oceans
maintain rather stable layers that do not readily
mix. The uppermost warm layer of surface
water, which interacts directly with the atmos-
L
H
H
90
H
L
90
60
30
60
60
30
30
60