CLIMATE 



313 



J. F. M. A. M. J. J. A. S. 0. N. D. Jl 



Oceanic climates. 1 Oceanic climates are less variable than 

 continental climates. Between the latitudes of and 40, the 

 daily range of temperature is only 2 to 3 over the sea. It is 

 far more on land. The annual 

 range of temperature over the 

 sea is also much less than that 

 on land. This is illustrated by 

 Fig. 261, which shows the yearly 

 variation on the island of Ma- 

 deira (curve M, about 13 F.) 

 and at Bagdad (curve Bd, more 

 than 40 F.) , in Asia Minor, both 

 in rather low latitudes (about 

 33). The former represents a 

 marine climate, the latter a con- 

 tinental climate. In higher lat- 

 itudes, the differences are still 

 greater, as shown by the curves 

 V and N. The former represents 

 the marine climate of Valentia, 

 on the southwest coast of Ire- 

 land (lat. about 52, tempera- 

 ture range about 14 F.), and 

 the latter the continental cli- 

 mate of eastern Siberia, some- 

 what farther north (range more 

 than 90 F.). 



The humidity of the oceanic 

 climate is greater than that of 

 continental climates. This re- 

 sults in more cloudiness, and 



-10 



-20 



-3QO 



J. F. M. A. M. J. J. A. S. 0. N. D. J. 



Fig. 261. Graphs to illustrate oceanic 

 and continental climate.* in differ- 

 ent latitudes. M = Madeira, Bd 

 = Bagdad, V = Valentia, and N = 

 Eastern Siberia. The numbers at 

 the sides show the temperature in 

 degrees, Fahrenheit at the left and 

 Centigrade at the right. The let- 

 ters at the top are the initial letters 

 of the months. (Angot.) 



often in more rainfall, especially in winter. The winds of the sea are, 

 on the whole, stronger than those of the land. The leeward shores 

 of the oceans (the shores to which winds blow from the sea) have cli- 

 mates which are essentially oceanic. The less variable temperatures, 



1 The classification of climates on the basis here considered, is well dis- 

 cussed by Ward. Bull. Geog. Soc. of Am., 1906, p. 401. 



