Question

explain any three factors affecting the climate of any place

Answer 1

rainfall
relief
altitude
distance from equator

Answer 2

Distance from the sea (Continentality)

The sea affects the climate of a place. Coastal areas are cooler and wetter than inland areas. Clouds form when warm air from inland areas meets cool air from the sea.  The centre of continents are subject to a large range of temperatures.  In the summer, temperatures can be very hot and dry as moisture from the sea evaporates before it reaches the centre of the land mass.

Ocean currents

Ocean currents can increase or reduce temperatures. The diagram below shows the ocean currents of the world (view original source map). The main ocean current that affects the UK is the Gulf Stream.The Gulf Stream is a warm ocean current in the North Atlantic flowing from the Gulf of Mexico, northeast along the U.S coast, and from there to the British Isles.

The Gulf of Mexico has higher air temperatures than Britain as it is closer to the equator.  This means that the air coming from the Gulf of Mexico to Britain is also warm.  However, the air is also quite moist as it travels over the Atlantic ocean.  This is one reason why Britain often receives wet weather.

The Gulf Stream keeps the west coast of Europe free from ice in the winter and, in the summer, warmer than other places of a similar latitude.


Distance from the equator

The distance from the equator affects the climate of a place. At the poles, energy from the sun reaches the Earth's surface at lower angles and passes through a thicker layer of atmosphere than at the equator. This means the climate is cooler further from the Equator. The poles also experience the greatest difference between summer and winter day lengths: in the summer there is a period when the sun does not set at the poles; conversely the poles also experience a period of total darkness during winter. In contrast, daylength varies little at the equator.