Much of the Mediterranean coast enjoys a hot-summer Mediterranean climate. However, most of its southeastern coast has a hot desert climate, and much of Spain's eastern (Mediterranean) coast has a cold semi-arid climate. Although they are rare, tropical cyclones occasionally form in the Mediterranean Sea, typically in September–November.
Climate
Mediterranean Sea
Mediterranean Sea | Climate
It enjoys a hot-summer climate. However, most of its southeastern coast has a hot desert climate, and much of Spain's coast has a cold semi-arid climate. Hot-summer Mediterranean climate hot-summer Mediterranean climate. Hot-summer Mediterranean climate
what ocean zone does the sperm whale live in
user
They are relatively abundant from the poles to the equator and are found in all the oceans.
assistant
where does this whale species get its name from?
user
It is a truncation of "spermaceti whale".
assistant
what does it look like?
user
It is distinguished by its large tooth.
assistant
can it make sounds?
user
Yes a "creak" and a "coda" are some of sound names used as per the situation they are in.
assistant
what do they feed on?
user
They feed on several species, notably the giant squid, colossal squid, octopuses and fishes such as demersal rays. However, their diet is mainly medium-sized squid.
assistant
are they under threat of extinction?
user
Currently, entanglement in fishing nets and collisions with ships represent the greatest threats. Other threats include ingestion of marine debris, ocean noise, and chemical pollution.
assistant
can you name any water body in particular where this whale is found?
user
Mediterranean Sea
assistant
where is this located?
user
it is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on the east by the Levant.
assistant
what type of climate is experienced here?
user
The cold-summer subtype of the Mediterranean climate ("Csc") is rare and predominately found at scattered high-altitude locations along the west coasts of North and South America. This type is characterized by cool summers, with fewer than four months with a mean temperature at or above , as well as with mild winters, with no winter month having a mean temperature below (or ), depending on the isotherm used). Regions with this climate are influenced by the dry-summer trend that extends considerably poleward along the west coast of the Americas, as well as the moderating influences of high altitude and relative proximity to the Pacific Ocean.
Mediterranean climate | Cold-summer Mediterranean climate
Occasionally also termed "Cool-summer Mediterranean climate", this subtype of the Mediterranean climate ("Csb") is a less common form of the Mediterranean climate. As stated earlier, regions with this subtype of the Mediterranean climate experience warm (but not hot) and dry summers, with no average monthly temperatures above during its warmest month and an average in the coldest month between or, in some applications, between . Also, at least four months must average above .
Mediterranean climate | Warm-summer Mediterranean climate
This subtype of the Mediterranean climate ("Csa") is the most common form of the Mediterranean climate, therefore it is also known as a "typical Mediterranean climate". As stated earlier, regions with this form of a Mediterranean climate experience average monthly temperatures in excess of during its warmest month and an average in the coldest month between or, in some applications, between . Also, at least four months must average above . Regions with this form of the Mediterranean climate typically experience hot, sometimes very hot and dry summers and mild, wet winters. In a number of instances, summers here can closely resemble summers seen in arid and semi-arid climates.
Mediterranean climate | Hot-summer Mediterranean climate
These have a favourable climate, with mild wet winters and fairly warm, dry summers.
Mediterranean climate | Temperature
Much of the Mediterranean coast enjoys a hot-summer Mediterranean climate. However, most of its southeastern coast has a hot desert climate, and much of Spain's eastern (Mediterranean) coast has a cold semi-arid climate. Although they are rare, tropical cyclones occasionally form in the Mediterranean Sea, typically in September–November.
Mediterranean Sea | Climate
The end of the Miocene also marked a change in the climate of the Mediterranean basin. Fossil evidence from that period reveals that the larger basin had a humid subtropical climate with rainfall in the summer supporting laurel forests. The shift to a "Mediterranean climate" occurred largely within the last three million years (the late Pliocene epoch) as summer rainfall decreased. The subtropical laurel forests retreated; and even as they persisted on the islands of Macaronesia off the Atlantic coast of Iberia and North Africa, the present Mediterranean vegetation evolved, dominated by coniferous trees and sclerophyllous trees and shrubs with small, hard, waxy leaves that prevent moisture loss in the dry summers.
Mediterranean Sea | Shift to a "Mediterranean climate"
The climate is continentalized Mediterranean obviously mediatized by its nearness to the sea. The winters are very mild, temperatures rarely become negative and rarely drop below 10 °C, on the contrary the summers are very warm middle registering in July and August over 33 °C. The annual average is around of 18 °C. The precipitations are not usually very abundant. Later, it shows the average of temperatures and rainfalls throughout the year 2007:
Cartaya | Climatology
Frequent cold mountain wave wind situations during winter associated with cold high pressure systems over the mainland prevail in the innermost Bay at Risan and vegetational zones are compressed by the impact of bora. In addition the thermophylic communities of maquies and phrygana formations show the noticeable absence of some mediterranean species.
Iris orjenii | Climate
The Mediterranean Region has a Mediterranean climate at the coast, with hot, dry summers and mild to cool, wet winters and a semi-arid continental climate in the interior with hot, dry summers and cold, snowy winters.
Mediterranean Region, Turkey | Climate
The climate is Mediterranean, characterized by harsh winters, during which snowfalls can occur, and summers of dry heat. Although it varies a lot from the city center to the more distant suburbs.
Acri | Climate
The climate of the region is arid and annual rainfall is between 100 and 300 mm. The rainfall occurs mainly during the winter months, normally as intermittent storms. It can get as cold as O°C during the winter and temperatures can climb to 40 °C during the summer months, the mean annual temperature is around 18 °C.
Mediterranean dry woodlands and steppe | Climate
However, high temperatures during summers are generally not quite as high as those in arid or semiarid climates due to the presence of a large body of water. All areas with this subtype have wet winters. However, some areas with a hot Mediterranean subtype can actually experience very chilly winters, with occasional snowfall. "Csa" climates are mainly found around the Mediterranean Sea, southwestern Australia, southwestern South Africa, sections of Central Asia, northern sections of Iran and Iraq, the interior of northern California west of the Sierra Nevada, and inland areas of southern Oregon west of the Cascade Mountains. Southern California's coasts also experience hot summers due to the shielding effect of the Channel Islands.
Mediterranean climate | Hot-summer Mediterranean climate
Areas with this climate are where the so-called "Mediterranean trinity" of agricultural products have traditionally developed: wheat, grapes and olives. Most historic cities of the Mediterranean basin lie within Mediterranean climatic zones, including Algiers, Athens, Barcelona, Beirut, İzmir, Jerusalem, Marseille, Naples, Rome, Tunis, Valencia, and Valletta. Major cities with Mediterranean climates outside of the Mediterranean basin include Adelaide, Cape Town, Casablanca, Dushanbe, Lisbon, Los Angeles, Perth, Porto, Sacramento, San Diego, San Francisco, San Jose, CA, Santiago, Tashkent and Victoria.
Mediterranean climate | Introduction
As a result, areas with this climate receive almost all of their precipitation during their winter and spring seasons, and may go anywhere from 4 to 6 months during the summer and early fall without having any significant precipitation. In the lower latitudes, precipitation usually decreases in both the winter and summer. Toward the polar latitudes, total moisture usually increases; for instance, the Mediterranean climate in Southern Europe has more rain. The rainfall also tends to be more evenly distributed throughout the year in Southern Europe, while in places such as the Eastern Mediterranean, or in Southern California, the summer is nearly or completely dry.
Mediterranean climate | Precipitation
Further, the altitude below sea level would result in 1.45 to 1.71 atm (1102 to 1300 mmHg) air pressure, further increasing heat stress. Although it was probably quite dry in the Basin, there is no direct way to measure how much drier it would have been. One can imagine that areas not covered by the remaining brine would have been very dry. Today the evaporation from the Mediterranean Sea supplies moisture that falls in frontal storms, but without such moisture, the Mediterranean climate that we associate with Italy, Greece, and the Levant would be limited to the Iberian Peninsula and the western Maghreb.
Messinian salinity crisis | Relationship to climate
Recent studies, however, show that repeated desiccation and re-flooding is unlikely from a geodynamic point of view. The end of the Miocene also marked a change in the Mediterranean Basin's climate. Fossil evidence shows that the Mediterranean Basin had a relatively humid subtropical climate with summer rainfall during the Miocene, which supported laurel forests. The shift to a Mediterranean climate occurred within the last 3.2–2.8 million years, during the Pliocene epoch, as summer rainfall decreased. The subtropical laurel forests retreated, although they persisted on the islands of Macaronesia off the Atlantic coast of Iberia and North Africa, and the present Mediterranean vegetation evolved, dominated by coniferous trees and sclerophyllous trees and shrubs, with small, hard, waxy leaves that prevent moisture loss in the dry summers.
Mediterranean Basin | Geology and paleoclimatology
Much of these forests and shrublands have been altered beyond recognition by thousands of years of human habitation. There are now very few relatively intact natural areas in what was once a heavily wooded region.
Mediterranean Sea | Shift to a "Mediterranean climate"
The climate and ecology of land immediately surrounding the Mediterranean Sea is influenced by several factors. Overall, the land has a Mediterranean climate, with mild, rainy winters and hot, dry summers. The climate induces characteristic Mediterranean forests, woodlands, and scrub vegetation. Plant life immediately near the Mediterranean is in the Mediterranean Floristic region, while mountainous areas further from the sea supports the Sub-Mediterranean Floristic province. An important factor in the local climate and ecology of the lands in the Mediterranean basin is the elevation: an increase of elevation by causes the average air temperature to drop by 5 C/ 9 F and decreases the amount of water that can be held by the atmosphere by 30%.
Life zones of the Mediterranean region | Introduction
A Mediterranean climate or dry summer climate is characterized by dry summers and mild, wet winters. The climate receives its name from the Mediterranean Basin, where this climate type is most common. Mediterranean climate zones are typically located along the western sides of continents, between roughly 30 and 45 degrees north and south of the equator. The main cause of Mediterranean, or dry summer climate, is the subtropical ridge which extends northwards during the summer and migrates south during the winter due to increasing north-south temperature differences. The resulting vegetation of Mediterranean climates are the garrigue or maquis in the Mediterranean Basin, the chaparral in California, the fynbos in South Africa, the mallee in Australia, and the matorral in Chile.
Mediterranean climate | Introduction
This resulted in a period of partial desiccation of the Mediterranean Sea, the first of several such periods during the late Miocene. After the strait closed for the last time around 5.6 Ma, the region's generally dry climate at the time dried the Mediterranean basin out nearly completely within a thousand years. This massive desiccation left a deep dry basin, reaching deep below normal sea level, with a few hypersaline pockets similar to today's Dead Sea. Then, around 5.5 Ma, less dry climatic conditions resulted in the basin receiving more freshwater from rivers, progressively filling and diluting the hypersaline lakes into larger pockets of brackish water (much like today's Caspian Sea).
Messinian salinity crisis | Introduction
The climate is typical of the Mediterranean. The weather is clear. During the year approximately 300 days are sunny and the few others are rainy, with a major concentration of rainfall in the winter and autumn, some heavy showers in the spring, and snowfalls on the highest massifs and highlands. The mistral is the dominant wind, fresh, strong, and usually dry and cold, blowing from the northwest throughout the year, but most frequently in winter and spring.
Gallura | Geography
The region has cool humid winters and hot dry summers. Wladimir Köppen divided his "Cs" mediterranean climate classification into "Csa" with a highest mean monthly temperature over and "Csb" where the mean monthly temperature was always lower than . The region may also be subdivided into dry zones such as Alicante in Spain, and humid zones such as Cinque Terre in Italy.
Mediterranean Biogeographic Region | Climate
During summer, regions of Mediterranean climate are strongly influenced by the subtropical ridge which keeps atmospheric conditions very dry with minimal cloud coverage. In some areas, such as coastal California, the cold current has a stabilizing effect on the surrounding air, further reducing the chances for rain, but often causing thick layers of marine fog that usually evaporates by mid-day. Similar to desert climates, in many Mediterranean climates there is a strong diurnal character to daily temperatures in the warm summer months due to strong heating during the day from sunlight and rapid cooling at night. In winter, the subtropical ridge migrates towards the equator, making rainfall much more likely.
Mediterranean climate | Precipitation
Nonetheless, one can study the forces at play in the atmosphere to arrive at a good speculation of the climate. As winds blew across the "Mediterranean Sink", they would heat or cool adiabatically with altitude. In the empty Mediterranean Basin, the summertime temperatures would probably have been extremely high even during ice age maxima. Using the dry adiabatic lapse rate of around per kilometer, the maximum possible temperature of an area below sea level would be about warmer than it would be at sea level. Under this extreme assumption, maxima would be near at the lowest points of the dry abyssal plain, permitting no permanent life but extremophiles.
Messinian salinity crisis | Relationship to climate
Mediterranean Climates, opposite to the humid subtropical and monsoonal climates, have a dry summer, with rainfall in the winter and cooler months. They occur mostly at the western edges and coasts of the continents and are bounded by arid deserts on their equatorward sides that cause the dry season of summer, and oceanic climates to the poleward sides that are influenced by cool ocean currents and air masses that bring the rainfall of winter. The five main Mediterranean regions of the world are the Mediterranean Sea basin in northwestern Afro-Eurasia, coastal California in the United States, the southwest of Australia, the Western Cape of South Africa and the south and southwestern coast of Chile.
Temperate climate | Mediterranean (Csa, Csb)
Because most regions with a Mediterranean climate are near large bodies of water, temperatures are generally moderate, with a comparatively small range of temperatures between the winter low and summer high (although the daily range of temperature during the summer is large due to dry and clear conditions, except along the immediate coasts). Temperatures during winter only occasionally fall below the freezing point and snow is generally seldom seen. In the summer, the temperatures range from mild to very hot, depending on distance from a large body of water, elevation, and latitude. Even in the warmest locations with a Mediterranean-type climate, however, temperatures usually do not reach the highest readings found in adjacent desert regions, because of cooling from water bodies, although strong winds from inland desert regions can sometimes boost summer temperatures, quickly increasing the risk of wildfires.
Mediterranean climate | Temperature
The climate is high-altitude Mediterranean. Annual snowfall averages 1.80 m with 20 days of snowfall annually. Rainfall averages 1384 mm, with heavy rains in the fall and drought in the summer. Up to 1600 m, the terrain is forested, and above that, are alpine meadows up to the rocky peaks.
Entraunes | Climate
Located 100 km away from the Mediterranean Sea, Oued Essalem experiences a warm and dry climate, with a slight alpine tendency, its winters are often rainy, and snowfall can sometimes occur.
Oued Essalem | Introduction
The climate on this stretch of the Mediterranean is hot and humid in summer. Winters are mild and wet ("Köppen: Csa"). At certain times of the year the town is swept by a strong wind called 'Yarıkkaya'. The countryside contains large areas of fruit groves. It is an important producer of oranges, tangerines and lemons, and even tropical fruits such as mangoes.
İskenderun | Climate
The city mainly experiences a Mediterranean climate that enters by the river Vardar and the valley from the Aegean Sea. The Mediterranean climate has more influence in the summer and less in the winter, which allows temperatures to become rather cold in the winter. The city receives fairly little rain, strong winds, and sometimes small amounts of snow during the winter.
Bogdanci | Climate
The climate is dry and continental, with extreme winter cold and heavy snowfall. Average annual precipitation ranges from 600 to 1,000 mm. The Mediterranean climate regions of the eastern Mediterranean lie to the south and southwest. The climate of the Black Sea region to the north is more humid and moderate.
Eastern Anatolian deciduous forests | Climate
The climate is maritime Mediterranean, with long dry hot summers and short mild winters. In winter a strong wind is characteristic, especially on the plains, while there is not much risk of frosts or fog. The average annual rainfall is 425 mm (17 inches), falling mainly in autumn is the form of violent storms.
Pla i Llevant (DO) | Climate
Cold summer Mediterranean climates ("Csc") exist in high-elevation areas adjacent to coastal "Csb" climate areas, where the strong maritime influence prevents the average winter monthly temperature from dropping below 0 °C. This climate is rare and is predominantly found in climate fringes and isolated areas of the Cascades and Andes Mountains, as the dry-summer climate extends further poleward in the Americas than elsewhere. Rare instances of this climate can be found in some coastal locations in the North Atlantic and at high altitudes in Hawaii. Examples
Köppen climate classification | "Csc": Mediterranean cold summer climates
The majority of the regions with Mediterranean climates have relatively mild winters and very warm summers. However, winter and summer temperatures can vary greatly between different regions with a Mediterranean climate. For instance, in the case of winters, Barcelona and Los Angeles experience mild temperatures in the winter, with frost and snowfall almost unknown, whereas Tashkent has colder winters with annual frosts and snowfall; or, to consider summer, Athens experiences rather high temperatures in that season—( has been measured in nearby Eleusis). In contrast, San Francisco has cool summers with daily highs around due to the continuous upwelling of cold subsurface waters along the coast.
Mediterranean climate | Temperature
In the Triassic and Jurassic formations there are eruptions of faults from volcanic eruptions during the formative processes. The Mediterranean climate is heavily influenced by the Atlantic Ocean. The winters are mild, with little precipitation, but elevated atmospheric humidity, with temperatures starting at . In summer, the cool dry air, owing to the winds from the north, maintain temperatures around . Fog is persist and frequent, concentrating in many specific locations.
Vila do Bispo (parish) | Geography
However, unshielded areas of that coastline can have warm-summer Mediterranean climates with hot-summer areas just a few kilometres inland.
Mediterranean climate | Hot-summer Mediterranean climate
In places where evapotranspiration is higher, steppe climates tend to prevail, but still follow the basic pattern of the Mediterranean climate.
Mediterranean climate | Precipitation
The Mediterranean climate regime resembles the climate of the lands in the Mediterranean Basin, parts of western North America, parts of Western and South Australia, in southwestern South Africa and in parts of central Chile. The climate is characterized by hot, dry summers and cool, wet winters. A steppe is a dry grassland. Subarctic climates are cold with continuous permafrost and little precipitation.
Rain | Köppen climate classification
The Mediterranean climate regime resembles the climate of the lands in the Mediterranean Basin, parts of western North America, parts of western and southern Australia, in southwestern South Africa and in parts of central Chile. The climate is characterized by hot, dry summers and cool, wet winters. A steppe is a dry grassland. Subarctic climates are cold with continuous permafrost and little precipitation.
Precipitation | Role in Köppen climate classification
Precipitation patterns follow the classic Mediterranean range, from October to April. The city also receives high snowfall starting as early as October and lasting well into spring season. The annual average temperature does not exceed 11 °C.
Ifrane | Climate
As in every climatologic domain, the highland locations of the Mediterranean domain can present cooler temperatures in winter than the lowland areas, temperatures which can sometimes prohibit the growth of typical Mediterranean plants. Some Spanish authors opt to use the term "Continental Mediterranean climate" for some regions with lower temperature in winter than the coastal areas (direct translation from ), but most climate classifications (including Köppen's "Cs" zones) show no distinction. Additionally, the temperature and rainfall pattern for a "Csa" or even a "Csb" climate can exist as a microclimate in some high-altitude locations adjacent to a rare tropical "As" (tropical savanna climate with dry summers, typically in a rainshadow region, as in Hawaii).
Mediterranean climate | Temperature
In North America, areas with "Csc" climate can be found in the Olympic, Cascade, Klamath, and Sierra Nevada ranges in Washington, Oregon and California. These locations are found at high altitude nearby lower altitude regions characterized by a warm-summer Mediterranean climate ("Csb") or hot-summer Mediterranean climate ("Csa"). A rare instance of this climate occurs in the tropics, on Haleakalā Summit in Hawaii. In South America, "Csc" regions can be found along the Andes in Chile and Argentina. The town of Balmaceda is one of the few towns confirmed to have this climate.
Mediterranean climate | Cold-summer Mediterranean climate
Iaal's climate is typical of a Mediterranean plain village: with heavy rains, mild winters and hot, dry, arid summers. Its annual rainfall is . Its average monthly temperatures are shown below:
Iaal | Climate
Lloret de Mar has a climate that is on the border between a humid subtropical climate (Köppen "Cfa") and a coastal Mediterranean climate (Köppen "Csa"), with the former very rarely seen anywhere in Southwestern Europe; temperatures are always much softer due to thermal effect moderator of the sea. Nevertheless, it should be taken into account that the Mediterranean is a warm sea all year round, which means that the characteristic moderation of temperatures is more noticeable in winter than in summer. The summer dry period normally lasts three months and the maximum rainfall occurs in the autumn months.
Lloret de Mar | Climate
Heatwaves may occur, but they are usually quite mild at the coastal areas, where temperatures are moderated by the relatively cooler sea and the sea breeze. Winters are wet and any snow that falls does not last long, especially in the south-facing slopes. Rain in winter is often persistent: The west areas of this climate zone receive a relatively higher amount of precipitation.
Climate of Greece | Mediterranean (dry and wet)
Climates throughout the central and eastern basin of the Mediterranean and surrounding regions to the north and east would have been drier even above modern sea level. The eastern Alps, the Balkans, and the Hungarian plain would also be much drier than they are today, even if the westerlies prevailed as they do now. However, the Paratethys ocean provided water to the area north of the Mediterranean basin. The Wallachian-Pontic and Hungarian basins were underwater during the Miocene, modifying the climate of what is now the Balkans and other areas north of the Mediterranean basin. The Pannonian Sea was a source of water north of the Mediterranean basin until the middle Pleistocene before becoming the Hungarian plain.
Messinian salinity crisis | Relationship to climate
The lands bordering the Mediterranean Sea in southern Europe, north Africa, and western Asia are home to the Mediterranean Basin ecoregions, which together constitute the world's largest and most diverse mediterranean climate region of the world, with generally mild, rainy winters and hot, dry summers. The Mediterranean basin's mosaic of Mediterranean forests, woodlands, and scrub are home to 13,000 endemic species. The Mediterranean basin is also one of the world's most endangered biogeographic regions; only 4% of the region's original vegetation remains, and human activities, including overgrazing, deforestation, and conversion of lands for pasture, agriculture, or urbanization, have degraded much of the region.
Palearctic realm | Mediterranean Basin
In biogeography, the Mediterranean Basin (also known as the Mediterranean region or sometimes Mediterranea) is the region of lands around the Mediterranean Sea that have a Mediterranean climate, with mild, rainy winters and hot, dry summers, which supports characteristic Mediterranean forests, woodlands, and scrub vegetation.
Mediterranean Basin | Introduction
The climate of the abyssal plain during the drought is unknown. There is no situation on Earth directly comparable to the dry Mediterranean, and thus it is not possible to know its climate. There is not even a consensus as to whether the Mediterranean Sea even dried out completely; it seems likeliest that at least three or four large brine lakes on the abyssal plains remained at all times. The extent of desiccation is very hard to judge, owing to the reflective seismic nature of the salt beds, and the difficulty in drilling cores, making it difficult to map their thickness.
Messinian salinity crisis | Relationship to climate
The Base's climate is characterized by the annual alternation between a dry period, which lasts more than four months and which has high temperatures, and another one humid (autumn-winter) with mild temperatures. The monthly distribution of rain corresponds to one typical of the Mediterranean climate; the rain season takes place during the autumn and the winter; during the summer the absence of rain is the prevailing rule, except for very occasional summer storms. 41% of the rain happens during the autumn. The average annual temperature is 17.5 °C (63.5 °F). The average absolute maximum temperature is 41.9 °C (107.4 °F).
Morón Air Base | Climate
The Mediterranean climate regime resembles the climate of the lands in the Mediterranean Basin, parts of coastal southwestern North America (including western parts of the Pacific northwest), parts of Western and South Australia, in southwestern South Africa and in parts of central Chile. The climate is characterized by hot dry summers and cooler winters with rainfall. In Europe, the northernmost mediterranean climates are found along the Italian Riviera, located at 44° latitude. Parts of southwestern Australia around Perth have a Mediterranean climate as do areas around coastal South Africa. Not all places with a Mediterranean climate can be classified as subtropical, as it's the case with the Northwestern United States or anywhere with a Cold-summer Mediterranean climate.
Subtropics | Mediterranean climate
The climate is modified Mediterranean, with the highest air temperature averaging during July and the lowest averaging , in January. Summers are usually very hot during the day, temperature goes up to 40 °C. Temperatures above last for more than 250 days a year. Two kinds of wind are common in the area - the northern to north-eastern bora, which usually brings cold and clear weather in winter, and the southern to south-eastern sirocco, which often brings rain.
Imotski | Climate
These climates usually occur on the western sides of continents between the latitudes of 30° and 45°. These climates are in the polar front region in winter, and thus have moderate temperatures and changeable, rainy weather. Summers are hot and dry, due to the domination of the subtropical high pressure systems, except in the immediate coastal areas, where summers are milder due to the nearby presence of cold ocean currents that may bring fog but prevent rain. Examples
Köppen climate classification | "Csa": Mediterranean hot summer climates
The Mediterranean climate regime resembles the climate of the lands in the Mediterranean Basin, parts of western North America, parts of Western and South Australia, in southwestern South Africa and in parts of central Chile. The climate is characterized by hot, dry summers and cool, wet winters. A steppe is a dry grassland. Subarctic climates are cold with continuous permafrost and little precipitation.
Earth rainfall climatology | Role in Köppen climate classification
The highland of Has territory, on geographical basis has a climate of three main types such as: a) Continental climate with elements of Mediterranean Climate elements in the valley of the Drina and b) mountain climate which reigns in the hilly areas of Has. The Has part in which the impact of the Mediterranean climate is felt is characterized with hot and dry summers, with little precipitation. The average annual temperature reaches 11.4C. The month of January is the coldest month in this region where the average temperature is 0.4C - 0.9C, while higher temperatures meet during July and August with 22C and 22 C.
Has (region) | Climate
The dry summer season has temperatures of more than , occasionally reaching over . In winter, the temperatures often drop below . In some areas the vegetation depends heavily on moisture produced by condensation fog. It is a continental Mediterranean climate with extreme temperatures. There are many ground frosts on clear nights, and sporadic snowfalls.
Ebro | Climate
The ecoregion has a Mediterranean climate, with hot dry summers and rainy winters. Average annual precipitation generally ranges from 400 to 600 mm. The climate is varies from east to west and north to south. Winters are milder and rainfall is generally higher where the climatic influence of the Mediterranean Sea is strongest, and while the eastern and northern portions of the ecoregion closer to Central Anatolia have a more continental climate, with colder winters and lower rainfall.
Anatolian conifer and deciduous mixed forests | Climate
The climate is temperate and Mediterranean with hot, dry summers (maximum temperature 36 °C) and cool, variably rainy winters (minimum temperature 0 °C).
Maten al-Sahel | Climate
Its climate is transitional Mediterranean steppe: cold and semiarid ( Köppen-Geiger: BSk), with a mild temperature of 16 °C on annual average, the highest daily average in August (24 °C) and the lowest in February (9 °C) and scarce rainfall (457mm) with high in October and low on July. This has favoured the agriculture, previously based on rainfed crops and nowadays citrus. The area of the non-cultivated term is very wooded, with abundant wildlife and a great diversity of autochthonous Mediterranean vegetation, such as the Holm Oak (Quercus Rotundifolia).
Náquera | Climate
The climate is typically Mediterranean with warm dry summers and cool wet winters. August is the hottest month with an average maximum temperature of 29 °C and minimum of 18 °C. January is the coldest month with average maximum of 14 °C and minimum of 4 °C. The wettest months are October and November. Very little rainfall occurs in June, July and August.
Cargèse | Climate
The ecoregion has a Mediterranean climate, with a mild, rainy winter and hot dry summer. Rainfall varies across the ecoregion. It is generally higher on coastal-facing slopes, ranging from 1,000-1,250 mm annually near Antalya to 650-850 mm in Mersin, Adana, Iskendurun, and coastal Syria and Lebanon. Rainfall is lowest in the eastern and southernmost parts of the ecoregion, with less than 450 mm annually in eastern Anatolia, the interior of Syria, southern Israel and Palestine, and the Jordanian Highlands.
Eastern Mediterranean conifer-sclerophyllous-broadleaf forests | Climate
This area is characterized by equable climates with few extremes of temperature and ample precipitation in all months. It is located poleward of the Mediterranean climate region on the western sides of the continents, between 35° and 60° N and S latitude. The Köppen Climate Classification subtype for this climate is "Cfb". (Marine West Coast Climate).
Crépy, Aisne | Climate
Japan receives over half of its rainfall from typhoons. The Mediterranean climate is a subtropical climate with a wet season in winter and a dry season in the summer. Regions with this type of climate include the rim lands of the Mediterranean Sea, southwestern Australia, parts of the west coast of South America around Santiago, the coastal areas of southern North America.
Subtropics | Rainfall
The climate is Mediterranean-continental, with long, hot dry summers and cold winters. Maximum temperature in summer can reach 39 °C and minimum temperature in winter can be as low as -10 °C. Rainfall is sparse, per year, occurs mainly in autumn and spring, sometimes in the form of violent storms. Sunlight hours high, about 3,000 hours per year.
Yecla (DO) | Climate
The coastal areas of Turkey bordering the Aegean and Mediterranean Seas have a temperate Mediterranean climate, with hot, dry summers and mild to cool, wet winters. The coastal areas bordering the Black Sea have a temperate oceanic climate with warm, wet summers and cool to cold, wet winters. The Turkish Black Sea coast receives the greatest amount of precipitation and is the only region of Turkey that receives high precipitation throughout the year. The eastern part of that coast averages annually which is the highest precipitation in the country. The coastal areas bordering the Sea of Marmara, which connects the Aegean Sea and the Black Sea, have a transitional climate between a temperate Mediterranean climate and a temperate oceanic climate with warm to hot, moderately dry summers and cool to cold, wet winters.
Turkey | Climate
While the great inlet of the Bay of Kotor winds deep into the High-Karst zone of Mt. Orjen, Mediterranean climate penetrates far inland. Profound mixtures of species from more than one climatic zone and in addition endemic and stenoendemic species and special vegetation types with marked transitional vegetation units restricted exclusively to ecotons of humid (Csa) subtropical and hyper humid oceanic- (Cfs) climates are especially notable. Mediterranean cyclones and sirocco storms are accountable for the heavy precipitation (up to 5000 mm/m2 at Crkvice, 940 m AMSL) that feeds the luxuriant and hyper-humid type of eastern Mediterranean vegetation comparable to colchidia-hyrcanian formations of the Caucasus and Asia Minor in the exceptionally damp and mild climate of the Montenegrin coast.
Iris orjenii | Climate
The Marmara region has a hybrid mediterranean climate/humid subtropical climate on the Aegean Sea coast and the south Marmara Sea coast, an oceanic climate on the Black Sea coast and a humid continental climate in the interior. Summers are warm to hot, humid and moderately dry whereas winters are cold and wet and sometimes snowy. The coastal climate keeps the temperatures relatively mild.
Marmara Region | Climate
The climate is warm and dry and could be described as humid subtropical, but not as Mediterranean, because the drying summer trend is not pronounced enough.
Feodosia | Climate
The city enjoys a Mediterranean climate. The winter is mild despite the frosts that can sometimes occur. Summer is hot. In autumn, Mediterranean episodes occur with heavy rain showers.
Clermont-l'Hérault | Climate
The climate of the area is Mediterranean, characterized by mild winters and dry summers, with three times more rain in the rainier than in the drier months, during which the mean precipitation does not exceed . The mean yearly precipitation observed is of . The dominant winds come from the north, north-east and north-west. The average sea temperature (as observed in Neum) ranges from in January to in July and August. Vegetation is the evergreen Mediterranean type, and subtropical flora (palm trees, agaves, cacti) grow in Neum and its surroundings.
Neum | Climate
Köppen-Geiger climate classification system classifies its climate as hot-summer Mediterranean ("Csa"). Summers are hot and rainless, while winters are rainy and cool. The all-time record high temperature was on June 16, 2012.
Idlib | Climate
Efil has a continental mediterranean climate, with average summer high temperatures of 33 °C, and average winter lows of -4 °C. There is a large range of rainfall, with a wet period in April (52.3mm of rain) and a dry period in August (2.5mm of rain).
Efil | Climate
The island has a Mediterranean climate with warm and dry summers, and wet and cool winters. Although summer is the driest season, some rainfall does occur in summer. Snow and ground frost are not uncommon in winter.
Imbros | Climate
There might be an additional impact from climate change in the frequency of the observed Medicanes, but this is not deducible from the data.
Mediterranean tropical-like cyclone | Climatological statistics
The climate of Ripatransone is close to the Mediterranean: winters are colder and, although the hilly altitude limits the frequency of snowfalls, they occur more or less annually and can also be intense and lasting. Summers are generally cooler and more airy, with temperatures that are still quite high.
Ripatransone | Climate
The region is under the influence of a typical Mediterranean climate with mild and rainy winters and hot, dry summers.
Ayvalık | Geography
Anatolia has a varied range of climates. The central plateau is characterized by a continental climate, with hot summers and cold snowy winters. The south and west coasts enjoy a typical Mediterranean climate, with mild rainy winters, and warm dry summers. The Black Sea and Marmara coasts have a temperate oceanic climate, with cool foggy summers and much rainfall throughout the year.
Anatolia | Climate
This climate has characteristics of both continental and Mediterranean climate.
Climate of Greece | Transitional continental- Mediterranean
Two wind systems are noteworthy for their ecological significance: bora and jugo. Strong cold downslope winds of Bura type appear in winter and are most severe in the Bay of Risan. Gusts reach 250 km/h and can lead to a significant fall of temperatures in several hours with freezing events problematic for most of the Mediterranean cultures. Jugo is a warm humid wind and is important as it brings heavy rain. It appears throughout the year but is most frequent in autumn and spring.
Crkvice | Climate
Being nearly landlocked affects conditions in the Mediterranean Sea: for instance, tides are very limited as a result of the narrow connection with the Atlantic Ocean. The Mediterranean is characterised and immediately recognised by its deep blue colour. Evaporation greatly exceeds precipitation and river runoff in the Mediterranean, a fact that is central to the water circulation within the basin. Evaporation is especially high in its eastern half, causing the water level to decrease and salinity to increase eastward. The average salinity in the basin is 38 PSU at 5 m depth. The temperature of the water in the deepest part of the Mediterranean Sea is .
Mediterranean Sea | Oceanography
Its climate is a mixture of Mediterranean and mountainous in the western portion. Much of the area receives snow in winter and is warm during the summer months.
Evrytania | Climate
Some, however, use a level. The third letter indicates the degree of summer heat: ""a"" represents an average temperature in the warmest month above , while ""b"" indicates the average temperature in the warmest month below . Under the Köppen classification, dry-summer climates ("Csa", "Csb") usually occur on the western sides of continents. "Csb" zones in the Köppen system include areas normally not associated with Mediterranean climates but with Oceanic climates, such as much of the Pacific Northwest, much of southern Chile, parts of west-central Argentina, and parts of New Zealand. Additional highland areas in the subtropics also meet "Cs" requirements, though they, too, are not normally associated with Mediterranean climates, as do a number of oceanic islands such as Madeira, the Juan Fernández Islands, the western part of the Canary Islands, and the eastern part of the Azores.
Mediterranean climate | Köppen climate classification
Libya and the Middle Atlas became gradually more dry, and drying in Morocco took place about 6,000 radiocarbon years ago, Drier conditions in Iberia accompanied the end of the African humid period between 6,000 and 4,000 years ago, perhaps as a consequence of increasingly frequent positive North Atlantic Oscillation episodes and the shift of the ITCZ. More complicated changes have been found for the northern margin of the Mediterranean. A 4.2 kiloyear event is recorded in dust records from the Mediterranean and might have been caused by changes in the circulation of the Atlantic Ocean.
African humid period | Mediterranean
The region around Sidi Said experiences a degraded Mediterranean climate, undergoing continental influences during the summer and winter seasons. However, the geographical diversity of the region means that each of its natural areas has particular climatic nuances. The temperature of the hottest month varies between 30 °C and 45 °C, and that of the coldest month varies between 0 °C and 7 °C, but the freezing period is very strong.
Sidi Said, Morocco | Climate
In the period from 7 to 5 million years ago the Mediterranean Sea was closed and remained isolated from the Atlantic Ocean. This resulted in the increase of the temperature of the water that turned the Mediterranean into a low-salt lake with many areas dried up, this condition lasted for several hundreds of thousands of years was deposited sediment type saline evaporites. Subsequently, the Mediterranean Sea was opened, and the ocean water began to circulate between the Alps and the Apennines had formed a triangular gulf that covered the entire Po Valley. Due to the continuous lifting of the Alps and the Apennines to the sea withdrew from this gulf and the accumulation of sediments carried by the rivers gave rise to a flood plain which corresponds to the Po Valley.
Montferrat | Geology
The country's Mediterranean climate is similar to that of southern California, with lush forests in the northern and central mountain ranges of the country, giving way to drier conditions and inland deserts further southeast. The Moroccan coastal plains experience remarkably moderate temperatures even in summer, owing to the effect of the cold Canary Current off its Atlantic coast. In the Rif, Middle and High Atlas Mountains, there exist several different types of climates: Mediterranean along the coastal lowlands, giving way to a humid temperate climate at higher elevations with sufficient moisture to allow for the growth of different species of oaks, moss carpets, junipers, and Atlantic fir which is a royal conifer tree endemic to Morocco.
Morocco | Climate
The Mediterranean forests, woodlands, and scrub biome mostly occurs in, but not limited to, the Mediterranean climate zones, in the mid-latitudes: The biome is not limited to the Mediterranean climate zone. It can also be present in other climate zones (which typically border the Mediterranean climate zone), such as the drier regions of the oceanic and humid subtropical climates, and as well as the lusher areas of the semi-arid climate zone. Non-Mediterranean climate regions that would feature Mediterranean vegetation include the Nile River Valley in Egypt (extending upstream along the riverbanks), parts of the Eastern Cape in South Africa, southeastern Australia, southeastern Azerbaijan, southeastern Turkey, far Northern Iraq, the Mazandaran Province in Iran, Central Italy and parts of the Balkans (including Northern Greece).
Mediterranean forests, woodlands, and scrub | Distribution
A Mediterranean climate is sometimes called an etesian climate.
Etesian | Introduction
Compared to Mediterranean bioclimatic divisions, the area belongs to the humid zone with cold winters. Conditions in the mountain might be significantly different from those of lower regions in the same area. Winters are particularly harsh and the mountain is covered in snow from autumn until late May.
Tymfi | Climate
Temperatures in winter rarely drop below freezing at night while during the summer, absolute maximum temperatures can sometimes surpass 40 °C (104 °F) in the shade. The annual average precipitation is between 15-22 cm "(depending on the zone, see same source pages 1 & 4/30)" with only 1/3 falling in the hot season (May to October). The average annual sunshine is about 3000 hours. Thus the climate, between 400 and about 800–900 meters, is semi-arid of "Syrian" type "(see Georges Viers, Éléments de climatologie, Paris, Nathan, 1990) "which means that the dry season occurs during the hot season" (= 6 hottest months of the year)".
Tabernas Desert | Climate
The climate is continental Mediterranean, very extreme: strong frosts in winter (especially in February) and outside of the heat (but not as hard as the Ebro Valley). Temperatures of 13 or 14 below zero are normal, and the record low is still much lower.
Mainar | Climate
It includes the Mediterranean climate Levant at the eastern end of the Mediterranean, bounded on the east and south by the Syrian and Negev deserts.
Mediterranean Basin | Geography
The Vallesian crisis indicates a typical extinction and replacement of mammal species in Europe during Tortonian times following climatic upheaval and overland migrations of new species: see Animation: Messinian salinity crisis (and mammal migrations), at right. The almost complete enclosure of the Mediterranean basin has enabled the oceanic gateways to dominate seawater circulation and the environmental evolution of the sea and basin. Circulation patterns are also affected by several other factors—including climate, bathymetry, and water chemistry and temperature—which are interactive and can induce precipitation of evaporites. Deposits of evaporites accumulated earlier in the nearby Carpathian foredeep during the Middle Miocene, and the adjacent Red Sea Basin (during the Late Miocene), and in the whole Mediterranean basin (during the MSC and the Messinian age).
Mediterranean Sea | Desiccation and exchanges of flora and fauna
Berat experiences a Mediterranean climate. Due to its location in a rain shadow of Mount Tomorr the summer in Berat is much warmer than the rest of Mediterranean.
Berat | Climate
Snow falls on the coastal areas of the Sea of Marmara and the Black Sea almost every winter, but usually melts in no more than a few days. However snow is rare in the coastal areas of the Aegean Sea and very rare in the coastal areas of the Mediterranean Sea. Mountains close to the coast prevent Mediterranean influences from extending inland, giving the central Anatolian plateau of the interior of Turkey a continental climate with sharply contrasting seasons.
Turkey | Climate
Beginning December 11, there was a big anticyclone inside a big northward meander in the jet stream over Europe; its east edge drew a strong current of cold air south from the Arctic. This polar outbreak overspread Turkey and the Eastern Mediterranean region, pushing below moist air associated with a passing front, causing heavy snow and sleet over higher ground in Syria, Lebanon, Jordan, and Israel. At lower elevations, heavy rain from the system caused flooding in some areas.
2013 Middle East cold snap | Meteorological history
On rare occasions, tropical-like systems that can reach the intensity of hurricanes, occur over the Mediterranean Sea. Such a phenomenon is called a Medicane (Mediterranean-hurricane). Although the geographical dimensions of tropical oceans and the Mediterranean Sea are clearly different, the precursor mechanisms of these perturbations, based on the air-sea thermodynamic imbalance, are similar. Their origins are typically non-tropical, and develop over open waters under strong, initially cold-core cyclones, similar to subtropical cyclones or anomalous tropical cyclones in the Atlantic Basin, like Karl (1980), Vince (2005), Grace (2009), Chris (2012), or Ophelia (2017). Sea surface temperatures in late-August and early-September are quite high over the basin (24/28 °C or 75/82 °F), though research indicates water temperatures of 20 °C (68 °F) are normally required for development.
Tropical cyclone basins | Mediterranean Sea
The climate is hot-summer Mediterranean (Köppen: "Csa"), similar to the rest of the south-central coast of Italy.
Decimomannu | Climate
It is now known that the Mediterranean Sea went through great changes in sea level and variations in the relative positions of the continental plates of Europe and Africa. These brought changes of climate and vegetation. The Iberian Peninsula, located on an important route between Africa and Europe, was enriched by the arrival, following the climate change, of wetland plants, thermophilic plants (those that require a great deal of heat), xerophilic plants (those that require a dry climate), orophilic (sub-alpine) plants, Boreo-alpine plants, and so on, many of which managed to remain, thanks to the diversity of environments that exist in the mountain ranges, and which allowed them to rise in altitude if the climate was too warm, or descend if it became too cold.
Forests of the Iberian Peninsula | Origin and characteristics
The coastal plain has a Mediterranean climate but is affected by the upwelling cold Canary Current close off-shore; this gives it wet winters and warm summers. The Rif Mountains rise to and have mountain ridges cut by gorges and valleys and clad with forests of Atlas cedar, cork oak, holm oak, and Moroccan fir. The climate here is Mediterranean with up to of precipitation, hot summers and mild winters. The Middle and High Atlas mountains have a more continental climate, with colder winters and hotter summers. At elevations above , the climate is alpine with warm summers and very cold winters.
Wildlife of Morocco | Geography