Why are coastal climates more moderate than inland climates and climate change around coastal areas less dramatic than being further inland?
Water has a higher heat capacity than soil and rock, so the ocean takes much longer to heat and to cool than the land. Coastal areas will generally have more moderate temperatures than inland areas because of the heat capacity of the ocean. The winds blowing from sea to land bring a lot of moisture with them. They make the climate in the coastal areas very humid. The temperature of offshore currents affect nearby land areas. A maritime climate is less extreme than a continental climate, because the ocean moderates temperatures. Coastal climates tend to have wetter winters and drier summers, whereas inland climates have more humid summers and drier winters. Coastal climates are typically limited to narrow strips along the edges of continents, whereas inland climates tend to occur over broad swaths of continental interiors. As such, sand gets heated or cooled more rapidly as compared to water under the similar conditions. Thus a large difference in temperature is developed between the land and the sea due to which land and sea breezes are formed. These breezes make the climate near the sea shore moderate. The humidity in the atmosphere is called moisture. Since the proportion of moisture in the atmosphere depends on temperature and the air near the coastal areas has fewer variations in terms of temperature the higher temperatures hold a greater amount of moisture and make the climate of coastal regions humid.
- Badges
- Science topic