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What is Köppen Climate Classification?
How does the Köppen-Geiger climate classification system work?
What is the Köppen classification?
Does Köppen classify highland climate?
The Köppen climate classification divides climates into five main climate groups, with each group being divided based on patterns of seasonal precipitation and temperature. The five main groups are A (tropical), B (arid), C (temperate), D (continental), and E (polar).
- Overview
- System
•The Köppen classification subdivides terrestrial climates into five major types, represented by the capital letters A, B, C, D, and E.
•Type B climates are defined by dryness; all others are defined by temperature.
•Type A climates focus on the seasonality of their precipitation.
•Type E climates are separated into tundra (ET) and snow/ice climates (EF).
•The midlatitude C and D climates are given a second letter, f (no dry season), w (winter dry), or s (summer dry), and a third symbol, a, b, c, or d (the last subclass exists only for D climates), indicating summer warmth or winter coldness.
•The H climate (highlands), which Köppen did not use, is sometimes added to other classifications to account for elevations above 1,500 metres (about 4,900 feet).
Köppen’s classification is based on a subdivision of terrestrial climates into five major types, which are represented by the capital letters A, B, C, D, and E. Each of these climate types except for B is defined by temperature criteria. Type B designates climates in which the controlling factor on vegetation is dryness (rather than coldness). Aridity is not a matter of precipitation alone but is defined by the relationship between the precipitation input to the soil in which the plants grow and the evaporative losses. Since evaporation is difficult to evaluate and is not a conventional measurement at meteorological stations, Köppen was forced to substitute a formula that identifies aridity in terms of a temperature-precipitation index (that is, evaporation is assumed to be controlled by temperature). Dry climates are divided into arid (BW) and semiarid (BS) subtypes, and each may be differentiated further by adding a third code, h for warm and k for cold.
As noted above, temperature defines the other four major climate types. These are subdivided, with additional letters again used to designate the various subtypes. Type A climates (the warmest) are differentiated on the basis of the seasonality of precipitation: Af (no dry season), Am (short dry season), or Aw (winter dry season). Type E climates (the coldest) are conventionally separated into tundra (ET) and snow/ice climates (EF). The mid-latitude C and D climates are given a second letter, f (no dry season), w (winter dry), or s (summer dry), and a third symbol (a, b, c, or d [the last subclass exists only for D climates]), indicating the warmth of the summer or the coldness of the winter. Although Köppen’s classification did not consider the uniqueness of highland climate regions, the highland climate category, or H climate, is sometimes added to climate classification systems to account for elevations above 1,500 metres (about 4,900 feet).
The Köppen classification has been criticized on many grounds. It has been argued that extreme events, such as a periodic drought or an unusual cold spell, are just as significant in controlling vegetation distributions as the mean conditions upon which Köppen’s scheme is based. It also has been pointed out that factors other than those used in the classification, such as sunshine and wind, are important to vegetation. Moreover, it has been contended that natural vegetation can respond only slowly to environmental change, so that the vegetation zones observable today are in part adjusted to past climates. Many critics have drawn attention to the rather poor correspondence between the Köppen zones and the observed vegetation distribution in many areas of the world. In spite of these and other limitations, the Köppen system remains the most popular climatic classification in use today.
Britannica Quiz
Oct 19, 2023 · Koppen Classification Map. The Köppen-Geiger system uses colors and shades to classify the world into five climate zones based on criteria like temperature, which allows for different vegetation growth. Map by H.E. Beck, N.E. Zimmermann, T.R. McVicar, N. Vergopolan, A. Berg, and E.F. Wood.
The Köppen climate classification was developed based on the empirical relationship between climate and vegetation. This type of climate classification scheme provides an efficient way to describe climatic conditions defined by multiple variables and their seasonalities with a single metric.
Oct 30, 2018 · The Köppen-Geiger system classifies climate into five main classes and 30 sub-types. The classification is based on threshold values and seasonality of monthly air temperature and...
- Hylke E. Beck, Niklaus E. Zimmermann, Tim R. McVicar, Tim R. McVicar, Noemi Vergopolan, Alexis Berg,...
- 2018
The Köppen classification depends on average monthly values of temperature and precipitation. The most commonly used form of the Köppen classification has five primary types labeled A through E. These primary types are A) tropical, B) dry, C) mild mid-latitude, D) cold mid-latitude, and E) polar.
Jul 19, 2018 · Learn how the Koppen system divides the world into six climate regions based on temperature and precipitation. See maps and examples of the subcategories and how they are modified by geographers.
