Chapter 3: Wind, Climate, and Natural Environments

Giant streams of ocean water that move from warm to cold or from cold to warm areas.

The process by which Earth's atmosphere traps heat.

The weight of air, measured by a barometer.

The unstable weather where a large amount of warm air meets a large amount of cold air.

Giant streams of ocean water that move from warm to cold or from cold to warm areas.

The dry area on the leeward side of a mountain or mountain range.

The seasonal shift of air flow and rainfall, which brings alternating wet and dry seasons.

Dry with little rainfall.

A wide, flat grasslands region that stretches from Ukraine across southern Russia to Kazakhstan.

Tropical storms that bring violent winds, heavy rain, and high seas in the Northeast Pacific.

Tropical storms that bring violent winds, heavy rain and high seas, in the Northwest Pacific.

A cold region with low rainfall, lying generally between subarctic and polar climate regions.

The layer of soil that stays frozen all year in a tundra climate region.

Something that dies out completely; is no longer present.

The study of the connections among different forms of life.

The process by which plants convert sunlight into chemical energy.

A series of organisms in which energy is passed along.

Substances promoting growth.

Groups of plants that live in the same area.

All of the plants and animals in an area together with the nonliving parts of their environment.

The gradual process by which one group of plants replaces another.

Decayed plant and animal matter.