1.6 Australia's Climate and Vegetation

1. Climate is the pattern of weather that is expected to occur in a certain place at a specific time. They usually base this on the weather patterns that have occurred over the passed 30 years.
   
2. The equator is the center Longitude line on the earth, it receives more sun than any other place on earth, so the closer somewhere is to the equator, the hotter it usually is because it receives more sun, and so will become hotter, and places that are further north and south, away from the equator get less sun and so are colder.
   
3. In the summer there are usually low pressure winds in the north, so there is no breeze and it gets hotter, but in the south there is higher pressure winds, so its cooler. While in winter its the opposite, so its much colder in the north and much hotter in the south.
   
4. Ocean currents from the direction of Antarctica bring colder conditions and those from closer to the equator bring warmer conditions.
   
5. The influence that relief has on the climate is that it makes more cloud cover and in higher areas there is more rainfall and it is generally cooler with thinner air.
   
6. 
   a) The average climate conditions are very useful for the average farmer. Farmers have to know the average climate temperature, rainfall, and other natural ocurances from past recordings. It helps them make an informed guess as to when the best time to plant their crops and/or harvest their crops.
   
   b) The average climate conditions are quite handy to know about if your a tourist coming to Australia. It allows them to predict a best time for them to come to Australia, and depending on the weather what they can/want to do while they are here.
   
7. The relationship between the climate and the vegetation in Australia is very important. All throughout the middle of Australia it is mostly dessert, only the coastline of Australia has/can be populated vastly. In the center of Australia there is mostly scrubland, and the coastline is full of forests, woodland, and farming land. Forests need more rainfall and more humid climates, where as in the dessert the shrubland needs the complete opposite.
   
8. 
   a) Darwin: Annual Precipitation= 1708.8 mm   Average Annual Temperature= 27.6 degrees Hobart: Annual Precipitation= 519.2 mm    Average Annual Temperature= 12.4 degrees
   b) The limitations with using average figures to describe the climate is that you can't get a definite idea of the present climate as it's very rarely the same as previous years, which is where the average come from.
   
9. Melbourne is in climate zone describe as being a 'temperate climate zone', with low to average rainfall and mid range-average temperatures. Alice Springs is in the middle of Australia, in a sub tropical climate zone. It has very low rainfall, and high temperatures. However temperatures can drop sharply at night time because its in the desert. Alice Springs has the greatest temperature range, from a maximum daily temperature of 35 degrees in January to a minimum temperature of 4 degrees in July. Melbourne has the most rainfall with rainfall pretty even throughout the year.