Earth Science 7-Chicago, Illinois
Chicago, Illinois, United States of America
Latitude and Longitude: 41° 53'N/87° 38'W [1]
Elevation: 182 Meters [1]
Large Body of Water: Lake Michigan, located at the city's edge, part of Lake Michigan flows into the Chicago River. [1]
Contents
Climate
Climate Zone
The climate zone of Chicago is humid continental,Dfa on the Koppen Climate Chart. [2] A city with similar climate is Moscow, Russia Earth Science 7Moscow, Russia
Average Temperature
Chicago Temperature Jan. Feb. Mar. Apr. May June July Aug. Sept. Oct. Nov. Dec. Yearly
Average Temperature (°C) -4.0 -1.6 4.0 10.2 15.8 21.4 24.1 23.5 19.8 13.5 6.3 -1.0 11.0
Average Max. Temperature (°C) -0.2 2.1 8.1 15.0 21.1 26.9 29.0 28.2 24.8 18.3 10.1 2.5 15.5
Average Min. Temperature (°C) -7.8 -5.4 -0.1 5.3 10.5 15.9 19.2 18.6 14.7 8.7 2.6 -4.6 6.5
Average Precipitation
Chicago Precipitation Jan. Feb. Mar. Apr. May June July Aug. Sept. Oct. Nov. Dec. Yearly
Precipitation (inches) 1.9 1.6 2.9 3.6 3.6 4.0 3.7 3.6 3.0 2.6 2.7 2.4 35.7 [3]
Factors That Affect The Climate
Chicago's Latitude of about 41° North and elevation of 182 Meters affect the climate by making it cooler. Chicago is on relatively flat terrain and it is right next to Lake Michigan. Chicago is rich in vegetation due to its proximity to Lake Michigan. The prevailing wind is generally from the South-Southwest but in winter, winds come from the West and Northwest bringing cold air from the Arctic. [4] Chicago is in a predominantly Low pressure zone due to the westerly winds blowing in. [5]Also, air masses arrive in Chicago from the North, Northeast, or East, but the air masses are cooler than they were initially because they traveled over one of the Great Lakes, which cools the air mass. These air masses can arrive at any time of year. [6]
Geology
Tectonic Plate Boundary Near Chicago
Chicago is located on the North American Plate closest to the San Andreas Fault, a transform boundary.
Rocks That Underlie Chicago
Chicago has miles of sedimentary rock underneath it. Very little of the bedrock can be seen from the surface. Much of the rock was deposited by glaciers from the time of the ice age. Underneath the glacial sediments, most of the underlying rock is either limestone or shale formed during the Devonian. [7], [8]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Google Earth 2010.Google.com,12 Oct 2010.Web.12 Oct 2010.
- ↑ http://www.srh.noaa.gov/jetstream/global/climate_max.htm
- ↑ http://www.worldclimate.com/cgi-bin/grid.pl?gr=N41W087
- ↑ http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2001-04-23/news/0104230100_1_winds-speeds-chicago-area
- ↑ http://mynasadata.larc.nasa.gov/glossary.php?&word=Hadley%20Cell
- ↑ http://www.weatherexplained.com/Vol-3/2001-Chicago-O-Hare-International-Airport-Illinois-ORD.html
- ↑ http://geology.about.com/od/maps/ig/stategeomaps/ILgeomap.htm
- ↑
