Climate

Climate encompasses the statistics of temperature, humidity, atmospheric pressure, wind,

rainfall, atmospheric particle count and other meteorological elemental measurements in
a given region over long periods of time. Climate can be contrasted to weather, which is
the present condition of these same elements and their variations over shorter time
periods.

The climate of a location is affected by its latitude, terrain, and altitude, as well as nearby
water bodies and their currents. Climates can be classified according to the average and
the typical ranges of different variables, most commonly temperature and precipitation.

The most commonly used classification scheme was originally developed by Wladimir
Köppen. The Thornthwaite system.in use since 1948, incorporates evapotranspiration in
addition to temperature and precipitation information and is used in studying animal
species diversity and potential impacts of climate changes. The Bergeron and Spatial
Synoptic Classification systems focus on the origin of air masses that define the climate
of a region.

Paleoclimatology is the study of ancient climates. Since direct observations of climate are
not available before the 19th century, paleoclimates are inferred from proxy variables
that include non-biotic evidence such as sediments found in lake beds and ice cores, and
biotic evidence such as tree rings and coral. Climate models are mathematical models of
past, present and future climates. Climate change may occur over long and short
timescales from a variety of factors; recent warming is discussed in global warming.

Definition
Climate (from Ancient Greek klima, meaning inclination) is commonly defined as the
weather averaged over a long period of time.The standard averaging period is
30 years,but other periods may be used depending on the purpose. Climate also includes
statistics other than the average, such as the magnitudes of day-to-day or year-to-year
variations. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) glossary definition
is:

Climate in a narrow sense is usually defined as the "average weather," or more

rigorously, as the statistical description in terms of the mean and variability of relevant
quantities over a period of time ranging from months to thousands or millions of years.
The classical period is 30 years, as defined by the World Meteorological Organization
(WMO). These quantities are most often surface variables such as temperature,
precipitation, and wind. Climate in a wider sense is the state, including a statistical
description, of the climate system.

Difference b/w climate and weather

The difference between climate and weather is usefully summarized by the popular
phrase "Climate is what you expect, weather is what you get."Over historical time spans
there are a number of nearly constant variables that determine climate, including latitude,
altitude, proportion of land to water, and proximity to oceans and mountains. These
change only over periods of millions of years due to processes such as plate tectonics.
Other climate determinants are more dynamic: for example, the thermohaline circulation
of the ocean leads to a 5 °C (9 °F) warming of the northern Atlantic ocean compared to
other ocean basins.Other ocean currents redistribute heat between land and water on a
more regional scale. The density and type of vegetation coverage affects solar heat
absorption,water retention, and rainfall on a regional level. Alterations in the quantity of
atmospheric greenhouse gases determines the amount of solar energy retained by the
planet, leading to global warming or global cooling. The variables which determine
climate are numerous and the interactions complex, but there is general agreement that
the broad outlines are understood, at least insofar as the determinants of historical climate
change are concerned.

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Climate classification

There are several ways to classify climates into similar regimes. Originally, climes were
defined in Ancient Greece to describe the weather depending upon a location's latitude.
Modern climate classification methods can be broadly divided into genetic methods,
which focus on the causes of climate, and empiric methods, which focus on the effects of
climate. Examples of genetic classification include methods based on the relative
frequency of different air mass types or locations within synoptic weather disturbances.
Examples of empiric classifications include climate zones defined by plant
hardiness,evapotranspiration,or more generally the Köppen climate classification which
was originally designed to identify the climates associated with certain biomes. A
common shortcoming of these classification schemes is that they produce distinct
boundaries between the zones they define, rather than the gradual transition of climate
properties more common in nature.

How Climate change

Climate change is the variation in global or regional climates over time. It reflects
changes in the variability or average state of the atmosphere over time scales ranging
from decades to millions of years. These changes can be caused by processes internal to
the Earth, external forces (e.g. variations in sunlight intensity) or, more recently, human
activities.
In recent usage, especially in the context of environmental policy, the term "climate
change" often refers only to changes in modern climate, including the rise in average
surface temperature known as global warming. In some cases, the term is also used with a
presumption of human causation, as in the United Nations Framework Convention on
Climate Change (UNFCCC). The UNFCCC uses "climate variability" for non-human
caused variations.

Earth has undergone periodic climate shifts in the past, including four major ice ages.
These consisting of glacial periods where conditions are colder than normal, separated by
interglacial periods. The accumulation of snow and ice during a glacial period increases
the surface albedo, reflecting more of the Sun's energy into space and maintaining a
lower atmospheric temperature. Increases in greenhouse gases, such as by volcanic
activity, can increase the global temperature and produce an interglacial. Suggested
causes of ice age periods include the positions of the continents, variations in the Earth's
orbit, changes in the solar output, and volcanism.

Regional climates levels

There are several levels of regional climates that are used to describe the terror or
immutable characteristics of an area. These levels can be as broad as a macroclimate
which includes entire wine regions or as small as a microclimate which includes the
unique environment around an individual grapevine. In the middle is the mesoclimate
which usually describes the characteristics of a particularly vineyard site.

Levels

 Macroclimate, in viticulture, refers to the regional climate of a broad area such as

an American Viticultural Area (AVA) or (AOC). It can include an area on the
scale of tens to hundreds of kilometers. On smaller scales are the related
designations of mesoclimate and microclimate.
 Mesoclimate refers to the climate of a particular vineyard site and is generally
restricted to a space of a tens or hundreds of meters.
 Microclimate refers to the specific environment in a small restricted spaces-such
as a row of vines. The more delineated term canopy microclimate refers to the
environment around an individual grapevine.although many viticulturlists use the
term "microclimate" when talking about an individual vine and the effects of
canopy management

Climate of Pakistan

Pakistan lies in the temperate zone. The climate is generally varied throughout the
country, characterized by hot summers and cool or cold winters. The upper parts of
Pakistan usually receive precipitation from the Western Disturbance. From June till
September most of the country is lashed by the South West Monsoon.
Pakistan has recorded one of the highest temperatures in the world, Mohenjo-daroo,
Sindh, 53.5 °C (128.3 °F) on 26 May, 2010 it is not only the hottest temperature ever
recorded in Pakistan, but also the hottest reliably measured temperature ever recorded in
the continent of Asia .As Pakistan is located on a great landmass north of the tropic of
Cancer (between latitudes 24° and 37° N), it has a continental type of climate
characterized by extreme variations of temperature, both seasonally and daily. Very high
altitudes modify the climate in the cold, snow-covered northern mountains; temperatures
on the Balochistan Plateau are somewhat higher. Along the coastal strip, the climate is
modified by sea breezes. In the rest of the country, temperatures reach great heights in the
summer; the mean temperature during June is 38 °C (100 °F) in the plains, the highest
temperatures can exceed 47 °C (117 °F). In the summer, hot winds called Loo (wind)
blow across the plains during the day. Trees shed their leaves to avoid loss of moisture.
The dry, hot weather is broken occasionally by dust storms and thunderstorms that
temporarily lower the temperature. Evenings are cool; the diurnal variation in
temperature may be as much as 11 °C (52 °F) to 17 °C (63 °F). Winters are cold, with
minimum mean temperatures in Punjab of about 4 °C (39 °F) in January, and sub-zero
temperatures in the far north and Balochistan.

Factors

The monsoon and the Western Disturbance are the two main factors which alter the
weather over Pakistan; otherwise, Continental air prevails for rest of the year. Following
are the main factors that influence the weather over Pakistan.

 Western Disturbances mostly occur during the winter months and cause light to
moderate showers in southern parts of the country while moderate to heavy
showers with heavy snowfall in the northern parts of the country. These westerly
waves are robbed of most of the moisture by the time they reach Pakistan.
 Fog occurs during the winter season and remains for weeks in upper Sindh,
central Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Punjab.
 Southwest Monsoon occurs in summer from the month of June till September in
almost whole Pakistan excluding western Balochistan, FATA, Chitral and Gilgit-
Baltistan. Monsoon rains bring much awaited relief from the scorching summer
heat. These monsoon rains are quite heavy by nature and can cause significant
flooding, even severe flooding if they interact with westerly waves in the upper
parts of the country.
 Tropical Storms usually form during the summer months from late April till June
and then from late September till November. They affect the coastal localities of
the country.
 Dust storms occur during summer months with peak in May and June, They are
locally known as Andhi. These dust storms are quite violent. Dust storms during
the early summer indicates the arrival of the monsoons while dust storms in the
autumn indicate the arrival of winter.
 Heat waves occur during May and June, especially in southern Punjab, central
Balochistanand interior Sindh.
  Continental air prevails during the period when there is no precipitation in the
country.

Seasonal climate

Pakistan has a cool, dry winter starting from November in the North and December in the
South but it gets progressively wetter during January and February especially in the
western parts of the country. Snowfall is common in Northern Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa,
Azad Kashmir, Gilgit Baltistan and Central Balochistan. Spring (March-April) in the
North receives ample rain due to the Western Disturbances, Most of Punjab and Khyber-
Pakhtunkhwa also receive substantial spring precipitation. Most of the country remains
dry and hot during May and June and Balochistan remains this way until Autumn. The
Southwest Monsoon reaches Pakistn in the beginning of July and this leads to heavy
rainfall and high humidity. As the Monsoons retreat a short, dry Autumn commences in
September in the far North and October in the rest of the country

Temperature regions

Pakistan can be divided into four broad temperature regions:

1. Hot summer and mild winter: 32 °C (90 °F) or more in summer and 10 °C (50 °F)
to 21 °C (70 °F) in winter.
2. Warm summer and mild winter: 21 °C (70 °F) - 32 °C (90 °F) in summer and 10
°C (50 °F) to 21 °C (70 °F) in winter.
3. Warm summer and cool winter: 21 °C (70 °F) - 32 °C (90 °F) in summer and 00
°C (32 °F) - 10 °C (50 °F) in winter.
4. Mild summer and cool/cold winter: Summer temperature between 10 °C (50 °F)
and 21 °C (70 °F) and winter temperature between 00 °C (32 °F) and 10 °C
(50 °F)

Extreme weather events

Highest temperature and rainfall ever recorded

The weather extremes in Pakistan include high and low temperatures, heaviest rainfall
and flooding. The highest temperature ever recorded in Pakistan is 53.5 °C (128.3 °F)
which was recorded in Mohenjo-daro, Sindh on 26 May, 2010. It was not only the hottest
temperature ever recorded in Pakistan but also the hottest reliably measured temperature
ever recorded on the continent of Asia.and the fourth highest temperature ever recorded
on earth. The highest rainfall of 620 millimetres (24 in) was recorded in Islamabad during
24 hours on 24 July, 2001. The record-breaking rain fell in just 10 hours. It was the
heaviest rainfall in Islamabad in the previous 100 years.

Tropical cyclones and tornadoes

Each year before the onset of monsoon that is 15 April to 15 July and also after its
withdrawal that is 15 September to 15 December, there is always a distinct possibility of
the cyclonic storm to develop in the north Arabian Sea. There is a 98 per cent chance of
cyclones to turn towards the Indian state of Gujarat, one per cent chance of moving
towards the Gulf and one per cent chance of moving towards the Pakistani coast.
However tornadoes mostly occur during spring season that is March and April usually
when a Western Disturbance starts effecting the northern parts of the country. It is also
speculated that cycles of tornado years may be correlated to the periods of reduced
tropical cyclone activity.

Drought

The drought has become a frequent phenomenon in the country. Already, the massive
droughts of 1998-2002 has stretched the coping abilities of the existing systems to the
limit and it has barely been able to check the situation from becoming a catastrophe. The
drought of 1998-2002 is considered worst in 50 years. According to the Economic Survey
of Pakistan, the drought was one of the most significant factors responsible for the less
than anticipated growth performance. The survey terms it as the worst drought in the
history of the country. According to the government, 40 percent of the country's water
needs went unmet

List of extreme weather records in Pakistan

The weather extremes in Pakistan include high and low temperatures, heaviest rainfall
and flooding. The highest temperature ever recorded in Pakistan is 53.5 °C (128.3 °F)
which was recorded in Mohenjo-daro, Sindh on 26 May 2010. It was not only the hottest
temperature ever recorded in Pakistan but also the hottest reliably measured temperature
ever recorded on the continent of Asia.[1][2] and the fourth highest temperature ever
recorded on earth. The highest rainfall of 620 millimetres (24 in) was recorded in
Islamabad during 24 hours on 24 July 2001. The record-breaking rain fell in just 10
hours. It was the heaviest rainfall in Islamabad in the previous 100 years.