Climate battle royale: marginally subtropical edition
Jun 28, 2021 11:51:58 GMT -5
alex992, jetshnl, and 1 more like this
Post by chesternz on Jun 28, 2021 11:51:58 GMT -5
One of the perennial debates on the old forum was the precise definition of "subtropical". The upshot of these discussions seems to be that the word means whatever one wants it to mean. I don't intend to rehash that argument here, but I thought these "marginal" (by Koppen standards) subtropical climates might make for an interesting battle. Most are marginal in terms of winter warmth (needing to have a 24 hr mean above 0 C in their coldest month) and thus represent the northern limit of the "subtropical zone" in their respective countries. But a couple have marginal summers instead (some have both).
All of these are from the Northern Hemisphere. In the Southern Hemisphere seasonal ranges are much lower, so climates that marginally meet the summer threshold (e.g. somewhere between Sydney and Melbourne) would be well above the winter one and it wouldn't be a fair battle. Note that the annual mean temps are all in the same ballpark, except for Corvo Island, which may be considered as a stand-in for marginally subtropical SH climates.
New York City, USA. This one needs no introduction. Moderately hot, humid summers and bipolar winters, typical of much of the eastern US.
Corvo Island, Azores. By far the warmest of the bunch overall, but it also has the coolest summers with a record high of under 29 C and pretty poor sunshine.
Toulouse, France. Really a dry oceanic climate, but summers are just hot enough to qualify as a subtropical paradise.
Lugano, Switzerland. You probably wouldn't expect to find a subtropical climate in Switzerland, but here it is. Even the winter lows average above freezing, but it still manages a bit of snow.
Simferopol, Ukraine. Another country where you might be surprised to find a "subtropical" climate. While they can get some brutal winter cold snaps the maritime influence keeps the means marginally above the threshold.
Akita, Japan. If you like snow, this is the one for you. Winters are not extremely cold, but have a solid four months of heavy snow. Summers are warm and muggy with noticeable lag.
Gangneum, South Korea. Typical monsoonal East Asian climate. Still gets decent snowfall but nowhere near Akita's levels.
Zhengzhou, China. Pretty standard Chinese climate - hot, humid summers with bone-dry winters. Warmest overall climate after Corvo Island. Also probably has the most storms of any of these. This is my choice.
All of these are from the Northern Hemisphere. In the Southern Hemisphere seasonal ranges are much lower, so climates that marginally meet the summer threshold (e.g. somewhere between Sydney and Melbourne) would be well above the winter one and it wouldn't be a fair battle. Note that the annual mean temps are all in the same ballpark, except for Corvo Island, which may be considered as a stand-in for marginally subtropical SH climates.
New York City, USA. This one needs no introduction. Moderately hot, humid summers and bipolar winters, typical of much of the eastern US.
Corvo Island, Azores. By far the warmest of the bunch overall, but it also has the coolest summers with a record high of under 29 C and pretty poor sunshine.
Toulouse, France. Really a dry oceanic climate, but summers are just hot enough to qualify as a subtropical paradise.
Lugano, Switzerland. You probably wouldn't expect to find a subtropical climate in Switzerland, but here it is. Even the winter lows average above freezing, but it still manages a bit of snow.
Simferopol, Ukraine. Another country where you might be surprised to find a "subtropical" climate. While they can get some brutal winter cold snaps the maritime influence keeps the means marginally above the threshold.
Akita, Japan. If you like snow, this is the one for you. Winters are not extremely cold, but have a solid four months of heavy snow. Summers are warm and muggy with noticeable lag.
Gangneum, South Korea. Typical monsoonal East Asian climate. Still gets decent snowfall but nowhere near Akita's levels.
Zhengzhou, China. Pretty standard Chinese climate - hot, humid summers with bone-dry winters. Warmest overall climate after Corvo Island. Also probably has the most storms of any of these. This is my choice.
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