In the northern hemisphere, the summer solstice (June 21) is the longest daylight of the year.

The winter solstice, December 21, has the least amount of daylight hours of any day in the year.

The eqinox occurs when the sun is directly over the equator and the daylight hours and night ours all over the world are equal in length.

The vernal equinox (spring) occurs on March 21 while the autumnal equinox occurs on September 21.

Land on the leeward side of a mountain

(opposite the windward side of the mountain)

Large storms that form over warm tropical ocean waters.

They are called hurricanes in the Americas, typhoons in Asia

Hurricanes cover large areas, often in hundreds of miles - up to 500 miles with maximum winds of 200 miles per hour.

A powerful funnel shaped colum of spirling air.  Winds may reach as much as 300 mph.

Unlike a hurricane, a tornado's size is typically about 300 feet - the length of a football field. 

They usually travel only about a mile and last only a few minutes.

Convection

Ocean currents are like rivers flowing in the ocean.

Moving in large ciruclar systems, warm waters flow away from the equator toward the poles and cold water flows back toward the equator.

For example, the Gulf Stream and North Atlantic Drift keep the temperature of Europe moderate.

As altitude increases, air temperature drops about 3.5 degrees (F) for every 1000 feet.

Climates above 12,000 feet become like those in Arctic areas - with snow and ice.

Mt. Kilimanjaro in east Africa is an example - it has a glacier at the top even though it is near the equator.

The warming of the waters off the west coast of South America.

This condition occurs every 2 to 7 years due to changing wind direction.

The opposite occurs, called La Nina, causes increased precipitation in India and dryness along the Pacific Coast of the Americas.

An interdependent community of plants and animals.

The ecosystem of a regionis referred to as a biome.

Biomes are further divided into forest, grassland, desert, and tundra.

Deciduous

located in the tropical zone and is covered with heavy concentrations of broadleaf trees.

In the rainforest region, some broadleaf trees stay green all year.

Trees that are cone bearing, found in the northern regions of North America, Europe, and Asia.

Coniferous trees do not shed all their needles or leaves at once, only partially.

A tropical grassland region,

flat, grassy, and mostly treeless plains.

In the northern hemisphere, steppe or prairie is used to identify temperate grasslnads. 

In the southern hemisphere, the temperate grasslands are referred to as pampas.

Flat, treeless lands forming a ring around the Artic Ocean

The climate sub-region is also called Tundra.

The land has Permafrost

In the tundra of the Arctic,

the subsoil that is constantly frozen.

An ecosystem is an interdependent community of plants and animals. 

The ecosystem of a region is referred to as a biome. 

Biomes are further divided into forest, grassland, desert, and tundra.

The term, in some locations, for a

biome of a dry area

with drought-resistant trees and vegetation