Factors Influencing Climate Explained
Factors Influencing Climate Explained
Science
Quarter 3 – Module 4
Factors Affecting Climate
Science – Grade 9
Alternative Delivery Mode
Quarter 3 – Module 4: Factors Affecting Climate
First Edition, 2020
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Science
Quarter 3 – Module 4
Factors Affecting Climate
Introductory Message
This Self-Learning Module (SLM) is prepared so that you, dear learners can continue
your studies and learn while at home. Activities, directions, exercises, and
discussions are carefully stated for you to understand each lesson.
Each SLM is composed of different parts. Each part shall guide you step-by-step as
you discover and understand the lesson prepared for you.
Pre-tests are provided to measure your prior knowledge on lessons in each SLM. This
will tell you if you need to proceed on completing this module or if you need to ask
your facilitator or your teacher’s assistance for better understanding of the lesson.
At the end of each module, you need to answer the post-test to self-check your
learning. Answer keys are provided for each activity and test. We trust that you will
be honest in using these.
In addition to the material in the main text, Notes to the Teachers are also provided
to our facilitators and parents for strategies and reminders on how they can best
help you on your home-based learning.
Please use this module with care. Do not put unnecessary marks on any part of this
SLM. Use a separate sheet of paper in answering the exercises and tests. And read
the instructions carefully before performing each task.
If you have any question in using this SLM or any difficulty in answering the tasks
in this module, do not hesitate to consult your teacher or facilitator.
Thank you.
What I Need to Know
This module was designed and developed to help you understand the lesson
about climate and the different factors that affect the climate of an area. Different
activities are designed and provided to achieve the objectives of the lessons.
The module focuses on the different factors that affect the climate of an area.
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What I Know
Directions: Choose the letter of the correct answer and write your answers in your
notebook/on a separate sheet of paper.
1. How does the windward side differ from the leeward side of a high land?
a. The windward receives more precipitation than the leeward.
b. The leeward side has more vegetation than the windward side.
c. The windward side receives more heat than the leeward side.
d. The leeward side receives more precipitation than the windward side.
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Lesson
If you are watching weather updates on television, you may notice that
weather conditions vary in a short period of time. It may be warm in the morning
but cold and windy in the evening, and may be another weather condition the
following day. Weather refers to a day-to-day temperature and precipitation activity.
It varies from time to time. You have not heard updates on climate, right? It is
because, when we say climate it is a pattern of weather in a certain area over a long
period of time. The climate of the Philippines is tropical and maritime, which is
characterized by relatively high temperature, high humidity and abundant rainfall.
Every January of the year, you experience the coldest temperature, while every May,
you feel the warmest temperature.
There may be two average weather conditions in the Philippines which we
are experiencing every year, but we have different atmospheric conditions that we
are experiencing every day.
In this module, you will learn to distinguish climate from weather. You will
also find out the factors that affect climate and explain how each factor affects the
climate of an area. With this learning, you will understand why the climate of one
country differs from that of others.
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What’s In
Word Hunt
Directions: List down at least 10 words that you could find in the puzzle which are
related to the factors affecting climate. Write them in your notebook/on a separate
sheet of paper.
L V N A U K X V Y Q J B T R
D X R C S I O E M Z O K E H
O A O E J U E J D D E D I G
Y J L D N T Z W Y U U G L X
L E E W A R D O C T T M F V
M H Y M O X F H I F A I C H
C R I L S W J T E U Q D T G
G L H K A O L A T I T U D E
C X M T R A W X S I O A I W
M D E T E M P E R A T U R E
I R V S Y H P A R G O P O T
E Y T N E R R U C N A E C O
X R L F P B W E A T H E R X
M S Q W N U O T S L G D Y B
E F B Y D R A W D N I W O K
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What’s New
Procedure:
Study the illustration below and answer the following questions. Write your answers
in your notebook/on a separate sheet of paper.
Guide Questions:
In Activity 1, you have learned that latitude affects the climate of an area.
The closer the place is to the equator, the warmer the climate is; the farther the place
is from the equator, the colder the climate is.
Perform the next activity to understand how altitude affects the climate of an area.
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Activity 2 – The Higher, the Colder
Table 1. Elevation and annual average temperature of selected areas in the country
Source: [Link]
Guide Questions:
Q1. Which place is the coldest?
Q3. Based on the data, what is the relationship between altitude and
temperature of a place?
Activity 2 gave you concrete evidence how altitude influences the climate of
different places. The air temperature decreases as the altitude increases. Places with
higher elevations have colder climates. Do the next activity for another factor that
affects climate.
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Activity 3. Which Should I Choose, Windward or Leeward?
Guide Questions:
[Link] happens when air becomes warmer and drier as it moves down the
leeward side?
Q5. What dry region forms at the back of the mountain?
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Activity 4 – Ocean Currents
Materials: pencil/ballpen
map that illustrates ocean currents
ruler
short bond paper
Procedure:
Study the map below and answer the guide questions that follow. Write your answers
in your notebook/ on a separate sheet of paper.
Source: [Link]
Guide Questions:
Q1. What are the different ocean currents that carry warm water? Give at least
three examples.
Q2. What are the different ocean currents that carry cold water? Give at least three
examples
[Link] kind of air does Greenland Current take along? Explain.
Q4. How do the Kamchatka and Kuroshio Current affect the northeastern part and
southern part of Japan?
Q5. How do ocean currents affect climate change?
In this activity, you learned that ocean currents also have an important role
in changing the climate of a certain area. They affect the temperature of the nearby
landmass. Warm currents that move from the equator towards the pole carry warm
water. On the other hand, cold currents that travel from the poles toward the equator
carry cold water.
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What Is It
Climate and weather are words which are commonly interchanged or
mistaken for one another. Climate is the general pattern of weather in a certain
area over a long period of time. On the other hand, weather is the condition of
the atmosphere at a specific place and time.
The climate of a particular place is affected by five factors. These are
latitude, altitude, bodies of water, topography, and ocean currents.
Latitude
Latitude is the measurement of distance north and south of the equator. These
are imaginary lines that form circles around the Earth’s east - west regions
parallel to the equator. Latitude influences the climate of a region because
different latitudes receive different amounts of solar radiation.
Figure 1
Source: [Link]
The above figure shows that the sun’s rays strike vertically in places
near the equator which makes the temperature in these areas higher. This
causes a warm climate in the region near the equator. Places that are not
vertically hit by the sun’s rays, experience cold climate. As the latitude increases,
the smaller the angle of the sun’s rays striking the surface. Therefore, when the
area is farther from the equator, the air temperature is lower. When the place is
closer to the equator, the air temperature is higher. So if you live close to the
equator, the climate will be warmer, while moving north or south from the
equator brings a cooler climate.
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Altitude
Figure 2
Source: [Link]
Next factor that affects climate is altitude. The altitude of a place will
affect the air temperature. Altitude refers to the elevation of a place above sea
level. Normally, climate conditions become colder as altitude increases because
the air temperature decreases as the altitude increases.
For every 1000 m, there is a drop of 6.50C. At higher elevation, there
is less air. The air molecules are farther apart, thus making the air less dense.
Lighter air cannot absorb much heat. Ultimately, the decrease in temperature is
due to the decrease in air pressure. This explains why Baguio, Mountain
Province, Tagaytay, and other highlands have colder climates as compared to
Bacolod, Manila and Tacloban which have lower altitudes.
At higher altitudes, the air is thinner. Imagine you are climbing a
mountain, why it's harder to breathe at high altitudes? Because there is less
oxygen. There's also less of everything else like carbon dioxide, water vapor, etc.
These gases, which are greenhouse gases, are the part of our atmosphere which
keep Earth at a warm temperature compared to outer space. Without this
atmosphere, Earth would be uninhabitably cold. So, even though higher altitude
areas are closer to the sun, they have less ability to absorb the warmth of the
sun because they have less of these gases.
Bodies of Water
Bodies of water also affect the climate of the nearby landmass. Large
bodies of water such as oceans, seas, and large lakes affect the climate of an
area. Water heats and cools more slowly than land. Therefore, in the summer,
the coastal regions will stay cooler and in winter warmer.
Land absorbs heat faster than water. At the same time, land releases
heat faster compared to water. This nature of water greatly influences the
climate.
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Ocean Boundaries
Figure 3
Source: [Link]
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Topography
Figure 4
Source: [Link](as of November 5, 2013)
Ocean Currents
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Land areas also absorb some sunlight, and the atmosphere helps to retain heat
that would otherwise quickly radiate into space after sunset.
The ocean doesn't just store solar radiation; it also helps to distribute
heat around the globe. When water molecules are heated, they exchange freely
with the air in a process called evaporation. Ocean water is constantly
evaporating, increasing the temperature and humidity of the surrounding air to
form rain and storms that are then carried by trade winds. In fact, almost all
rain that falls on land starts off in the ocean. The tropics are particularly rainy
because heat absorption, and thus ocean evaporation, is highest in this area.
Figure 5
Source: [Link]
The figure shows different loops and gyres of surface currents around
the world. In the Northern hemisphere, the current flows in a clockwise direction.
On the other hand, in the Southern hemisphere, the current flows in
counterclockwise direction. These clockwise and counterclockwise of ocean
currents are caused by the Coriolis effect. Ocean currents that flow away from
the equator carries warm water. The air above the water has higher temperature.
When ocean currents that bring cold water move towards a coastal region, the
temperature of the area decreases as warmer air from the land flows to the sea
resulting in a cold climate. When warm ocean currents that take long warm
water go to a land mass, the temperature of that place increases as warmer air
above the water flows inland, resulting in a warm climate.
All these five factors may affect the climate of an area. Climate may
differ from one place to another depending on latitude, altitude, bodies of water,
topography, and ocean currents. Now that you have learned the factors affecting
climate, you can now answer the succeeding activities.
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What’s More
I. Directions: Write TRUE if the statement is correct and FALSE if otherwise. Write your
answers in your notebook/on a separate sheet of paper.
1. Climate is a general pattern of weather that occurs over a long period of time.
2. Weather is a condition of the atmosphere at a particular place over a short period of
time.
3. Places near the equator are experiencing colder climate than places far from the
equator
4. The climate in Baguio and Tagaytay are colder than the climate in Manila and Laoag.
5. Leeward side of the mountain is more suitable for vegetation than its windward side.
II. Directions: Unscrambled the letters to have the correct answers. The four pictures for
each number serve as clues. Write your answers on your notebook/on a separate sheet of
paper.
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What I Have Learned
I. Directions: Arrange the unscrambled letters which are enclosed in a parenthesis
to complete the paragraph. Write your answers in your notebook/ on a separate sheet of
paper.
The word (lcimaet) means the overall atmospheric condition of a place over a
long period of time, while the word (wtherea) is the condition in the atmosphere at a specific
place and time. Climate of an area is influenced by the following factors; (attudetil),
(ltdeuita), (ocnea) currents. (topphyotgra), and distance from the bodies of water.
II. Directions: Choose the appropriate word found inside the parentheses to complete the
paragraph. Write your answers on your notebook/on a separate sheet of paper.
What I Can Do
Directions: Follow the given instructions for your output in this module.
1. Suppose you are a tourist guide in a company and your job is to showcase
beautiful places in the country.
2. Choose (2) famous places in our country and explain the climatic condition.
3. Make a written report for these two places. Use the table below as a guide. Do
this in your notebook/on a separate sheet of paper.
Kindly paste Location Tell about the Climate
a picture of place like giving condition
this place its
characteristic,
why people visit
this place, etc...
1.
2.
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Your will be guided by the rubrics indicated below.
Source:[Link]
Assessment
Directions: Choose the letter of the correct answer that best corresponds to each of
the following questions. Write your answer in your notebook/on a separate sheet of
paper.
1. Why do mountain climbers bring thick jackets when they go up the mountain?
a. The temperature increases as the altitude increases.
b. The temperature decreases as the altitude increases.
c. The altitude increases as the temperature increases.
d. The altitude decreases as the temperature increases.
2. What will happen if there is too much carbon dioxide in the atmosphere?
a. Greenhouse effect occurs. [Link] vapor condenses.
b. Temperature increases. d. Climate changes.
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3. Why does cloud formation disappear as the air moves slowly towards the leeward
side of a mountain?
a. The air condenses as it moves to the leeward side.
b. The amount of water vapor is not enough.
c. The temperature becomes lower.
d. There is too much water vapor.
9. During summer, many people visit Baguio because of the cold weather. What do
you think makes Baguio cold?
a. The latitude c. The altitude
b. The topography d. The distance from the ocean
10. Why do places at the same latitude but different altitudes have different
climates?
a. Amount of heat received varies.
b. Amount of precipitation differs.
c. Higher altitudes have lower temperature.
d. Higher altitudes have higher temperature.
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18
Activity 2 Activity 4
[Link] Q1. Kuroshio Current, Gulf
What I Know Q2. Manila Stream, Agulhas Current,
1. a Q3. As the altitude increases, North Equatorial Current
2. b the temperature decreases [Link] Current,
3. d Activity 3 Kamchatka Current, East
4. d Q1. Water vapor or moist air Australian Current,
5. d rising over a mountain will Greenland Current
cool and precipitate as Q3. Cold air because it
rainfall carries cold water from the
Q2. Windward side. pole towards the equator
Q3. Leeward side Q4. Kamchatka Current
[Link] rises up the brings cold water to the
atmosphere. north-eastern part making
Q5. Rain shadow the temperature lower.
Q6. Moist wind coming from Kuroshio current brings
the sea flow up the warm water towards
What’s In
mountain. Because southern part of Japan
What’s New
temperature falls with making the temperature
Activity 1
altitude, water vapor higher
Q1. 23.5°
eventually condenses and Q5. Ocean currents either
Q2. Equator
there is precipitation. warm or cool the air above
Q3. When the area is farther
them. When ocean currents
from the equator, the air
that bring cold water move
temperature is lower
towards a coastal region, the
resulting in a cold climate.
temperature of that area
When the place is closer to What’s More
decreases. When the ocean
the equator, the air Activity 1
currents that take along
temperature is higher which [Link]
warm air go to a land mass,
results in a warm climate [Link]
the temperature of that place
Q4. The poles are the coldest 3. FALSE
rises.
places because of the Earth’s [Link]
tilt and relative location of [Link] What I Have
the sub
Q5. Due to the tilting of the Activity 2
Learned
earth’s axis, places near the 1. ALTITUDE
equator receive more heat
A.
2. OCEAN CURRENT
making the air temp. higher [Link]
3. TOPOGRAPHY
Q6. Places found in the 4. LATITUDE 2. weather
equator has high 5. BODIES OF WATER [Link]
temperature because they [Link]
receive a direct hit angle of 5ocean
sun rays. Assessment
[Link]
1. b
2. a B.
3. b 7. closer
4. a 8. higher
5. a [Link]
6. d [Link]
7. b [Link]
8. d
12 leeward
9. c
10.c
Answer Key
References
Book
Science 8 Learner’s Module. Campo, Pia C., et al. 2013. pp. 189-205.
Online Websites
Renuga (2011). Lower Secondary Physics Secondary 1 & 2 Science. Fairfield Book
Publishers, Singapore.
[Link]
[Link] GOVPH. Climate of the Philippines. Accessed January 13, 2021.
[Link]
[Link]
NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Md., and excerpts from
NOAA's CPC web page, and the U.S. EPA web page. 2/2005
[Link]
climate-17079163/ Citation: Stevens, A. N.P. (2011) Factors Affecting Global
Climate. Nature Education Knowledge 3(10):18
[Link]
[Link]
concepts/proximity-to-water-bodies. 12 Helene Street North, Unit 1003
Mississauga, ON L5G 3B5
[Link]
act%20as%20conveyer,influencing%20both%20weather%20and%20climate.&text=
Land%20areas%20also%20absorb%20some,radiate%20into% 20space%20after%20
[Link] Exploration and Research
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