Landforms

E4.3F - Describe how landforms affect the formation of clouds and

precipitation.

Landforms• Three basic types

• Plains• Plateaus• Mountains

Plains

• Large, relatively flat areas• Two types

• Coastal - Interior

(lowlands) (Great Plains)

Plateaus

• Flat, raised areas that have been uplifted by forces within Earth

• Rise steeply from the land around them

Mountains

• High, steep peaks• Four types

• Folded• Upwarped• Fault-Block• Volcanic

Four types of mountains

Folded Mountains

Upwarped Mountains

Fault-Block Mountains

Volcanic Mountains

Major US Landforms

Climate

• Average weather conditions over many years

• Includes temperature, precipitation, air pressure, humidity, days of sunshine

• Affected by latitude, topography, location of lakes and oceans, wind patterns, ocean currents

Latitude

• Affects climate• Determines how much sunlight an area receives

and at what anglePolar Zone

Temperate Zone

Tropics

Temperate Zone

Polar Zone

US Climate Zones

Topography

• Topography is the surface features of the earth.

• Includes • Large bodies of water• Mountains• Large cities

Topography - Water• Coastal regions have warmer winters and

cooler summers.• Ocean currents affect coastal climates.• Coastal areas also have more moisture.• Causes “lake effect”

Topography - Mountains

• Mountains have cooler climates• Less air molecules to hold heat at high

elevations• Rain shadows form

Topography – Large Cities

• Radiation is absorbed by streets, parking lots and buildings and radiated back into the atmosphere

• Pollution traps heat in a “heat sink”• Skyscrapers can act like mountains and

create rain shadows