Types of Climatology: Introduction
Climatology, the scientific study of climate, encompasses various branches tailored to meet specific objectives and address the climate of particular locations. These branches facilitate our comprehension of diverse aspects, including the temporal and spatial changes in weather and climate elements, the scale of the areas under investigation, and the variations in climate across regions. Notably, H.J. Critchfield, an expert in the field, identified three primary branches within climatology.
1. Physical Climatology
Physical Climatology, also referred to as dynamic climatology, delves into the exploration of factors that contribute to the spatial and temporal variations in air circulation, heat, and humidity. It examines an array of weather elements such as sunlight (insolation), temperature, air pressure, wind, evaporation, humidity, precipitation, fog, and visibility. The combinations of these elements give rise to diverse climatic conditions.
Dynamic climatology investigates the processes and mechanisms underlying the exchange of heat, humidity, and interactions between the atmosphere and the Earth’s surface. It analyzes the factors and processes that give rise to regional disparities in climatic conditions. Physical climatology shares a close association with meteorology, which encompasses the study of atmospheric physics, chemistry, and dynamics as the foundation for general climatological principles.
In essence, physical climatology aims to describe and analyze the energy balance between the atmosphere and the Earth, which includes the global radiation balance or heat budget. Additionally, it examines atmospheric temperature, humidity, precipitation, atmospheric motions, air circulation, air masses, and extreme events such as disturbances, droughts, and floods.
2. Regional Climatology
The climate exhibits significant variations across different regions. Put simply, there are spatial differences in the combinations of weather and climate elements (such as insolation, temperature, air pressure, humidity, etc.), leading to the emergence of distinct climate types.
Regional climatology focuses on the study of these diverse climate types, which are determined by similar climatic conditions characterized by specific combinations of weather and climate elements within a particular spatial unit. The size of this unit varies depending on the spatial scale, ranging from small areas like vegetable gardens and crop fields to larger ones like villages, cities, forests, deserts, mountains, plains, countries, and even continents.
It becomes evident that the size of the area under investigation in regional climatology can range from micro areas (e.g., a crop field) to macro areas (e.g., an entire continent). Therefore, the primary objective of regional climatology is to examine the variations in climatic conditions across different spatial scales.
M.M. Yoshino identified four groups of climates to be considered in regional climatology based on spatial scale:
1. Microclimate
2. Local climate
3. Mesoclimate
4. Macroclimate
(1) Microclimate:
The climatic conditions within the smallest spatial unit, which extends horizontally from less than one meter to 100 meters and vertically from the ground surface to 100 meters (e.g., a single crop field, a household, or the area surrounding a single tree), are referred to as microclimate.
It is worth mentioning that climatic data, including temperature, air pressure, humidity, evaporation, precipitation, and air circulation, are not typically available in published climatological records. Therefore, researchers must gather such data through fieldwork, utilizing suitable instruments for measurement.
Microclimate is closely related to weather conditions at the ground surface level. Consequently, conducting microclimatic studies across various ground surface covers, ranging from bare surfaces to grass, crops, trees, and human structures, can reveal distinct microclimatic environments.
These investigations enable researchers to develop a comprehensive understanding of the variations in microclimatic processes that occur over different ground surfaces, their impacts on human beings, and microorganisms. Due to its practical applications, some climatologists consider microclimate as a part of applied climatology.
(2) Local Climate:
The local climate encompasses multiple microclimatic areas, extending its coverage beyond that of microclimate alone. The spatial extent of the local climate unit ranges horizontally from 100 meters to 1000 meters and vertically from the ground surface up to 1000 meters.
It is important to acknowledge that when studying the local climate of an area characterized by diverse features such as forest cover, orchards, villages, or urban areas, greater emphasis is placed on the horizontal variations in climatic conditions rather than the vertical disparities.
Even within forest covers, the local climate exhibits variations influenced by factors such as the characteristics of the forest canopy, tree density, ground cover, vertical structure, and seasonal changes.
(3) Mesoclimate:
The mesoclimate encompasses multiple local climatic areas, extending horizontally from 100 meters to 20 kilometers and vertically from the ground surface to 6 kilometers within the atmosphere. It is noteworthy that, topographically, the mesoclimatic area exhibits homogeneity, characterized by similar physical controls on climate.
For instance, regions such as the Ganga Delta, Konkan coastal plain, middle Ganga plain, Sundarban, Rewa plateau, Tarai region of Uttar Pradesh, Godavari Delta, and Sardar Sarovar area serve as examples of typical mesoclimatic areas.
Initially, spatial scales (i.e., area scales) were used to determine the areas for mesoclimatic studies. However, with recent advancements in meteorological data acquisition through advanced satellite and radar techniques, greater emphasis is now placed on the scales of atmospheric motions.
Consequently, the study of mesoscale meteorological phenomena, involving atmospheric motions such as severe atmospheric storms (super cyclones, severe tornadoes, and hurricanes), patterns of precipitation within a specific area, heatwave areas, cold wave areas, and more, has gained significance.
(4) Macroclimate:
Macroclimate, also referred to as geoclimate or geographical climate, encompasses the largest area compared to the other three types of regional climate mentioned above. The horizontal distance extends beyond 20 kilometers and can span several hundred kilometers. In terms of vertical extent, it can surpass 6 kilometers.
Therefore, macroclimatic areas can encompass entire continents or large countries like the USA, China, Russia, Brazil, India, and others. It is important to note that when studying the climatic characteristics of a microclimatic area, which comprises several mesoclimatic areas, the focus is on determining the general characteristics of the study area by considering average atmospheric circulation patterns over an extended period of time.
Smaller-scale patterns of atmospheric motions (circulation), both in terms of time and space, are filtered out or omitted. For instance, when studying the climate of India, the circulation of heat waves (loo) would be ignored. Similarly, mesoscale motions such as mountain and valley winds, land and sea breezes, and local cold or warm winds would not be taken into account when examining the general characteristics of a macroclimatic area.
Based on the analytical approach towards macroclimates, climatology is categorized into two main branches: (i) descriptive climatology and (ii) synoptic climatology.
Descriptive climatology focuses on studying the climatic characteristics of the Earth’s surface within macroclimatic areas. On the other hand, synoptic climatology involves the examination of dominant patterns of atmospheric circulation.
The synoptic approach in climatology provides a concise overview or summary of the atmosphere’s state at a specific moment, hence it is referred to as synoptic climatology (Oliver and Hidore, 2003). It aims to capture a condensed view of atmospheric conditions.
It should be noted that the descriptive approach in macroclimatic studies involves the classification of world climates into specific types based on surface climatic characteristics and the principles derived from synoptic climatology. Examples of such classifications include equatorial climate, monsoon climate, Mediterranean climate, and others.
3. Applied climatology
Applied climatology is a specialized field of study that focuses on examining how climate impacts human activities and applying this knowledge practically to address various societal challenges, including global warming and climate change. During the late 19th century, the concept of environmental determinism paved the way for the emergence of climatic determinism, which emphasized climate as the primary factor shaping and influencing human activities.
E. Huntington’s notable works, such as ‘Civilization and Climate’ (1915) and ‘Season of Birth’ (1938), vividly illustrate the significant influence of climate on human life.
Over time, the study of climate and its relationship with human activities has evolved into a more systematic and rational discipline. It now relies on meticulous analysis and interpretation of available data, incorporating quantitative methods. Applied climatology currently investigates the complex interactions between climate and the biosphere, exploring how climate shapes and regulates the behavior of plants, animals, and humans.
Additionally, it explores how human activities, both intentional and unintentional, can alter the climate and introduce changes to the physical environment. Examples of such modifications include cloud seeding and induced precipitation.
In conclusion, applied climatology delves into the intricate connections between climate and human activities. By understanding these connections, we can effectively tackle the challenges posed by climate change and strive towards creating a more sustainable future.
Human Biometeorology, in recent times, there has been a growing interest in human biometeorology, which explores how our bodies respond to changes in the atmospheric environment. Its primary focus is to determine the extent to which variations in weather, climate, and seasons contribute to overall biological diversity, as highlighted by J.E. Hobbs in 1980.
The field of applied climatology, too, can be categorized into three divisions based on the impact of the climatic environment on human health and behavior across different spatial scales. These categories include the microclimate, ecoclimate, and geoclimate.
M. Bates (1966) outlines three levels of climatic environment that influence human behavior:
(1) the microclimate, which encompasses the weather conditions surrounding an individual organism;
(2) the ecoclimate, which refers to the weather elements found in the habitats of organisms, including human habitats such as houses, factories, offices, mines, agricultural farms, and pastures; and
(3) the geoclimate, which encompasses the weather conditions of larger geographic areas over longer periods of time.
What are the primary branches of climatology?
What does Physical Climatology focus on?
What is Regional Climatology?
What are the different types of climatic areas within Regional Climatology?
What is Applied Climatology?
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