Weather, climate and zones
Weather is what the air outside is like at a certain time: sunny, cloudy, windy, rainy, hot or cold. Weather can change from hour to hour and from day to day. Climate is the usual weather of a place over many years. For example, the climate of Luxor is hot and dry, even if one winter morning there is a cool breeze. No two places have exactly the same climate, but scientists group climates into zones that share similar patterns. A polar zone is cold all year. A mountain zone has cold winters and cool summers. A temperate zone has four seasons, with warm summers and cold winters. A desert zone is hot and gets very little rain. A tropical zone is warm all year and has a lot of rain. Most of Egypt has a desert climate, with hot, dry summers and very little rain. The north coast by the Mediterranean Sea is milder and has some rain in winter. To describe your own climate to a visitor, say what the year is like, when it rains, and the best time to visit and why.
| Sentence | Weather or climate? |
|---|---|
| It is raining this morning. | weather |
| Summers in Luxor are hot and dry. | climate |
| Today is windy, so we fly kites. | weather |
| The north coast gets some rain every winter. | climate |
Weather diary. For one week, look outside at the same time each day and draw the weather: sun, cloud, rain or wind. Never look straight at the Sun. At the end, count the days of each kind with a tally. Then write a climate sentence for your town, such as “In my town the summers are usually …”. Choose a climate zone and make a list of what you would pack for a visit there.