3.6 Polar climates

• Aardrijkskunde
• Middelbare school
• havo, vwo
• Leerjaar 3

3.6 Polar climates

Learning objectives

After studying this section, you will be able to:

• Describe the polar climates
  
• Explain the location of the polar climates

Polar climates and landscapes

Three types of polar climate?

Polar climates and landscapes

Three types of polar climate?

• Tundra climate (ET)
• Ice cap climates (EF) > high latitude
• Mountain ranges (EH) > high altitudes

Polar climates and landscapes

Tundra climate: at least one month in which the temperatures are higher than 0 °C, but none of the months is warmer than 10 °C. 

Ice cap climate: the temperature never exceeds 0 °C. 

The tundra climate does experience precipitation, but the ice cap climate is quite arid.

The tundra climate 

A tundra pond in the summer months - surface snow melts, forming a freshwater pond.

The ice cap climate

Which climate does the graph show?

1. Tundra climate (ET)
2. Ice cap climate (EF)

Which climate does the graph show?

1. Tundra climate (ET)
2. Ice cap climate (EF)

Which climate does the graph show?

1. Tundra climate (ET)
2. Ice cap climate (EF)

Tundra climate (ET)

Ice cap climate (EF or EH)

The Albedo Effect

The Earth’s albedo, or reflectivity, is another reason why temperatures in the polar regions are low: white snow is a good reflector of sunlight, so not much gets absorbed. As a result, the temperature in the region does not increase significantly when sunlight does reach the polar region in the summer season.

https:

The changing polar climate

• Temperatures in the Arctic and Antarctic are increasing faster than in other regions.
  
  
• Effect on a regional scale: melting permafrost > buildings that were built on the once frozen soil have slowly started sinking
  
  
• On a global scale, melting permafrost impacts the climate