East Coast Verses West Coast

Fort Lauderdale compared to San Diego

While some would believe that living on any coast would be paradise. This assumption is based on ocean living, white sandy beaches and the lure of  year round sunshine. However, the differences from the two coastal regions in the North American continent are vast. The biggest contributor to this fact are the oceans where both are located. Depicted below in the graph is the variation in the mean ocean temperatures located off of the coasts of Fort Lauderdale and San Diego.       

The warm currents of the Gulf Stream keep the Atlantic Ocean at a considerably higher temperature than the ocean off of the coast of San Diego. The California Current has a distinct climatic affect on San Diegon not only in ocean temperature, but in land temperature as well. (1) (2)

The annual temperatures between the two regions could be considered consistent and comfortable. On the other hand, when you throw in the heat index temperatures ---the distinction is colossal. It certainly would be the deciding factor on whether an individual would want to live in the cooler weather environment or a warm weather climate ---both being coastal.

The Heat index, sometimes called the apparent temperature, is a measure of the
contribution that the high temperature and high humidity (expresssed as relative humidity (RH) or dew point temperature) make in reducing the body's ability to cool itself. (3)

(3)

Fort Lauderdale's heat index temperatures of well over 100 degrees during the summer months along with the 133 annual days of perception make it the perfect combination for HOT AND MUGGY.  

San Diego accumulates only 10.77 inches of rain a year contrasted to Florida's 61.39 and it has only 42 days of precipitation.

The air mass that affect both Fort Lauderdale and San Diego are Maritime Tropical and Continental Tropical ---with a variation to Florida, which is also affected by the Continental Polar air mass that occasionally dips down during the winter months. San Diego has a unique air mass characteristic called the 'June Gloom', which is a thick marine layer that is present mainly along the coast. This happens because of the warm, moist air masses moving over the cool ocean current creating an inversion. South Florida never experiences such phenomena, due to the warm currents of the Gulf Stream in the Atlantic. Both these coastal areas have their own distintive climatic and geographical features----obviosly appealing to individuals of opposite extremes!!!! (4)

1 US Department of Commerce, NOAA, National Oceanic andAtmospheric Administaion
2 Integrated Ocean Observing Systems
3 www.ncdc.naoo.gov/ol/cloimate/conversion/heatindexchart.html
 4   http://weathersandiego.blogspot.com/

Blog 3

"Climate is what we expect, weather is what we get "

Mark Twain

Although Florida and South Carolina are located the eastern boarder of the United States and are only one state away from each other, their climate is very different. The average temperatures are similar with both sAlthough Florida and South Carolina are located the eastern boarder of the United States and are tates experiencing highs in the mid 70 degree Fahrenheit and lows in the mid 50 degree Fahrenheit. There is however, a great difference in the rainfall. With Florida being closer the the equator, the ITCZ, Intertropical Convergence Zone increases the amount rain in Florida, this along with Florida's intense sunshine, warm water and convergense of the trade winds the boyant air rises and creates thunderstoms.

Seasonal shifts in the location of the ITCZ drastically affects the rainfall in Florida, thus resulting in the wet and dry seasons of the tropics compaired to the cold and warm seasons of higher latitudes like South Carolina. (1)

The two states are affected by similar air masses, maritime tropical and comntinental polar at certain times of the year. South Corolina has mid-latitude cyclones that meet the Bermuda Highs and creates a 'noreaster' in the wintertime and lends to the state experiencing snow. Florida, on the other hand will encounter  a drop in the continental polar mass but will rarely experience snow.

 Appreciating how the ITCZ moves and taking in the globe-enriching Rossby Waves.  Air

temperature depicted in a Robinson projection. (1)

Finally, the geographical locations are quite different with Florida having mostly flat land and Corolina having a mix of flat land and mountains.

1. www.geograhpages.co.uk

Sunny and Warm !!!

Sunny and warm with a temperature of 84 degree, but it feels like 88!!!!! South Florida has three different air masses that affect the weather in the Sunshine state; maritime tropical, continental tropical and continental polar. An air mass is a large body of air of relatively similar temperatures and humidity characteristics covering thousand of square kilometers. Typically, air masses are classified according to the characteristics of their source region.

Source sites and movement patterns for

North America's major air masses. (1)

Maritime Tropical

So much for winter....this depicts a weak front stalled over Lake Okeechobee. High pressure drifts south providing heat and humidity that brings in the south by southwest winds. This transports a tropical air mass to the south Florida area. (2)

Continental Polar 

Does the cold Canadian air mass really dip as far south as Florida??? Absolutely. Back in mid-February this high pressure produced temperatures in the low 40's. (2)

                                       Continental Tropical
Continental tropicals source region is the desert south west, the high plains and Mexico. The boundary of the Continental tropical is most notable with the creation of a Darline. The dry line separates the maritime tropical air from the continental air. Depending on the strength, convergence along the dry line and the dynamics above the dry line can create the the 'severe thunderstoms' that south Florida experiences.

South Florida experiences mid-latitude cyclones as well as subtropical hurricanes. Represented below in the Robinson projection. (3)

Many factors affect the climate in south Florida. The fact that no point in the state is more than 60 miles from salt water, has a latitude of 26 degrees north and is only 345 feet above sea level attributes to the tropical climate.The proximity to the ocean along with the currents of the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico creates a uniform seasonal weather pattern for Florida. Numerous inland lakes and the mass area of the Florida Everglades aids in holding heat and maintaining the steamy, humid climate. Additionally, just as climate determines the type of vegetation in a given region, vegetation can contribute to a region's weather. The more trees and plant, the more water vapor in the atmosphere, thus creating a tropical paradise for all to enjoy.

 

The Florida Everglades

The everglades, also known as 'the river of grass',  covers

some 11,000 square miles of land in south Florida. (4)

  

 1)www,physicalgeography.net/fundamentals/7rhtml

 2)http;//www.wsvnnews.com/weather/blog/posts/mI94374   

 3)NWS Jet Stream-North American Masses

 4)www.usatoday.com/weather/climate/2006-05-30-everglades-global