Special features of Uzbekistan’s climate
Weather is the state of the air at a certain place and time (it is raining today). Climate is the typical long-term pattern of weather of that place. Because Uzbekistan is far from oceans and seas, deep inside Eurasia, its climate is continental: the sky is often clear, summers are long and scorching, winters are colder than usual for this latitude, yearly rainfall is small, evaporation is high and daily and annual temperature ranges are large. All four seasons are distinct. The textbook defines seasons by daily mean temperature: winter – below +5 °C, spring – the period when it rises from +5 to +20 °C, summer – above +20 °C, autumn – the period when it falls from +20 to +5 °C. About 30% of yearly rainfall falls in winter, 40% in spring, 10% in summer and 15–20% in autumn. On the plains the July mean is about +26 to +32 °C; close to +50 °C has been recorded at Termez, and in the north-west winter can drop below –30 °C. Seasons arise as the Earth orbits the Sun because its axis is tilted (about 23.5°).
Weather diary: for 5 days write down the weather (cloud, temperature, wind, rain) at the same time each day and notice how weather changes in a short time; then describe the four seasons with pictures as “climate”. Safety: on scorching days cover your head and drink plenty of water; never look at the Sun; do not shelter under trees in a thunderstorm.