Final Blog: Give or take 100M years

Lima Peru, 100 Million years ago was relatively at the same location except for maybe a few degrees more south latitude of where it is today. The weather of Lima was very much similar to what it is today. Since it is till in the southern hemisphere it experiences the wind patterns created by the core-oles effect.

Earth 100 million years ago. with Lima shown as star. source :http://www.cpgeosystems.com/mollglobe.html

The climograph for the area would look much like it does today. There would be minimal variation in the temperature much like today's weather.  It would still get minimal precipitation because the Andes mountains are still far enough from the city create the elevation necessary elevation to cool the air mass enough to reach the dew point. The air mass that also comes to the city is the cold polar air-mass which does not carry much moisture. 

Climograph of Lima 100 millin years ago. 

100 Years from now however Lima will be in a very different place. It would be located almost at the equator which gives it a whole new climate. There will be even less variation in the temperature through out the year and would have a lot more precipitation than it does now. It would have a climate much similar to Quito Ecuador today. 

Earth 100 Million years in the future with lima shown as star source: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pGACbD4zbWs

The climograph of Lima would look like the following. The main difference from the previous being the amount of precipitation it receives.  This is due to the maritime equatorial air-mass that would be prevalent through out the year.  It would have a tropical climate characterized by high temperatures with little variation in temperature between seasons. 

Climograph of Lima 100 millions years into the future.

 

Reflection #2 Chicago, Il vs Lima, Peru

The major climate control factors that make the climate in Chicano and Lima so different and so similar at the same time are latitude and the air-masses that are prevalent to each area.  The climatology graphs below show the temperature and precipitation patters of different cities as they co-relate with lattitude. All maps and graphs courtesy of: (http://cwx.prenhall.com/bookbind/pubbooks/lutgens3/medialib/abcontrol/pages/question.html)

The above patterns can give an explanation to the difference in the climographs between Chicago and Lima. Their difference in latitude is a factor to the amount of sunshine each place receives and the the angle at which it receives sunlight in the summer and winter solstice. The higher the latitude the greater the difference in the in the sun angle resulting in the greater changes in temperature between the seasons. 

Another factor that makes the climates of these two places so different is the air masses that are prevalent in each area. In Chicago, the continental polar (cP) air mass that makes the bitter cold winter is replace by maritime tropical (mT) air mass that brings with it the mild temperature and a lot of precipitation. In contrast Lima does not get any of the maritime equatorial (mE) air-mass coming down from the Caribbeans because of the Andes to the east of the city, instead the colder weather is only relived by the retreating maritime polar (mP) air-mass. 

Air mass classifications (cities highlighted by stars) source: www.meted.ucar.edu/

Post 3: Climatology

Climate controls ranging from the macro or global scale to the micro or local scale dictate the long term climate for any location. For Lima, the global factors are that it is located at a latitude of about 12 S. This puts it in the a region that has a high sun angle and therefore high energy zone. This also classifies the region as subtropical which is characterized by Dominantly warm, dry summers, and cool, wet winters.  Winter rains come from cyclonic disturbances associated with the Polar Front (Climate slides). On the regional level the climate controls are features such as the Andes Mountain Range and the Pacific Ocean. There is also the dominant air mass which is the Maritime Polar air mass that is constantly blowing in from the south.

The mP air-mass located to the south Of Lima, Peru is the dominant air-mass that affects the temperature and precipitation for this weather station.

Lima peru, is classified as BWh under the Koppen-Geiger Climate Classification. The classifications is denoted as  B:Arid, W: desert and h: Hot arid. This is pretty much saying that Lima has a hot arid desert climate. This is surprising in that this is the same classification that is assigned to the Sahara Desert and Great Victoria Desert in Australia. The Geiger classificatin is based on a 49 year record spanning from 1951 to 2000.

Koppen Map for South America, Lima, Peru Shown as Star. Source:Wikipedia

Reflection Post: Lima, Peru Vs. Liberia, Costa Rica

For this reflection blog, I chose to compare Lima, Peru with Liberia, Costa Rica. There are a few reasons for this. One of them is because both cities are relatively equal distance away from the equator, one to the north and one to the south. This can typically mean similar weather since both locations would get similar amounts of sun light but we will see in this blog the different factors that make each destination so unique.

Lima sits about 12 degrees south and Liberia sits at about 11 degrees north.  Source: Google Maps

The fist major difference we see between the two locations is their average yearly temperatures. You would expect to see similar temperature patterns but with opposite seasons but that is not the case here. Lima seems to have a higher variance in its seasonal temperatures than Liberia does. Another factor we see from these two graphs, is Lima consistently gets Southern Winds driving the mP air-mass up, where as for Liberia, the winds are consistent from January to April coming form the east which also corresponds with the higher temperature averages for the year. This is because the winds brings in the mT air-mass from the warm Atlantic Ocean situated to the east. (Graphs sourced from Wundergrond.com) 

Average yearly temp for Liberia, Costa Rica

Average Yearly temp for Lima, Peru

On the grander scale, I expected to find that both of these locations would have similar weather patterns but I found that the local features of each locations have a prevailing effect on their respective climates. 

Blog 2: Fronts and Air Masses

Lima's weather is affected by a few different fronts that affect its day to day weather. The major air mass that comes into Peru is mP air mass a driven from the south by the prevailing wind currents.It can also get some mE air mass driven by the SE trade winds, thou this is rare. Depending on the time of year and how far the air mass travels north, the temperature can vary from mild to cold.

Major air masses of the world, Source:

http://africanpaintingsgallery.com/air-mass-pictures

The  Major means of transportation for air masses are prevailing wind patterns and currents aloft which drive the movement. For Lima, the sub tropical high pressure system that sits on the Pacific south of Peru, creates northerly winds as it rotates counterclockwise bringing with the the maritime polar air mass. This brings with it a cold front that cools the temperature as it moves inland.

Major Wind Current patterns In January and July  Source:http://www.seafriends.org.nz/oceano/currents.htm

Something that is Happens in Lima, that is unique due to its land scape is the creation of the clouds from the moist and cold air mass as it rises in altitude due to the Andes. Lima it self gets minimal precipitation because as discussed in the previous blog, the temperature through out the year stays pretty mild. As the air mass climbs in altitude and gets colder, it reaches it due point and creates precipitation on the windward side of the Andes.

Clouds create as air mass reaches the Andes, Source: 
http://www.wunderground.com/wundermap

Blog 1, Average temperature and precipitation.

Located at 12° 2′ 36″ S, 77° 1′ 42″ W coordinates, Lima has what would be subtropical climate. Its climate however is highly influenced by its proximity to the Pacific Ocean to the east and the Andes Mountains to the west.

Lima In referance to the Pacific Coast and continental South America
Source: http://www.viewzone.com/lima.html

Lima has pretty mild average temperatures ranging from Yearly lows of about 57 degrees Fahrenheit which is experienced from Mid September to mid October and 79 degrees Fahrenheit for the yearly high which is experienced from mid February to mid march. It gets very minimal precipitation in the form of rain, averaging only about half an inch total for the whole year. Most of this comes in the months of July, August and September.  With such major shortage of rain fall, most of the water supply comes from rivers that start in the Andes Mountains. 

Tempreture, pressure, wind speed and wind direction for lima, Peru  from oct 2010 to 0ct 2011. Source: http://www.wunderground.com/history/airport/SPIM/2010/10/27/CustomHistory.html?dayend=27&monthend=10&yearend=2011&req_city=NA&req_state=NA&req_statename=NA 

INTRO

HELLO,  My  name is Misgana Yifru. For the weather assignment I Chose the to do Lima, Peru. I chose Lima because it is a place i would love to travel to and because of interest in the place from other classes i am taking. Cant wait to get started.