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What is the difference between weather and climate?

Climate of the UK

The UK's climate is never boring. This GCSE Geography quiz looks at temperature, rainfall, and wind patterns, and explains why the weather changes so much across the country.

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Fascinating Fact:

Coastal areas usually have smaller annual temperature ranges than inland locations, because the sea warms and cools more slowly than land.

In GCSE Geography, pupils learn how the climate of the UK is shaped by latitude, the surrounding seas, prevailing winds, and relief. You will explore how these factors influence regional differences in temperature and rainfall, helping you explain why places such as western uplands, eastern lowlands, and coastal towns experience contrasting weather patterns through the year.

Key Terms

Climate: The average weather conditions, such as temperature and rainfall, recorded over at least thirty years in a particular region.
Prevailing wind: The wind direction that blows most often in an area; in the UK this is mainly from the south-west, bringing moist air from the Atlantic Ocean.
Temperate maritime climate: A type of climate with mild temperatures, relatively cool summers, and frequent rainfall, strongly influenced by nearby oceans and seas.

Frequently Asked Questions (Click to see answers)

What factors affect the climate of the UK in GCSE Geography?

In GCSE Geography, students learn that the UK's climate is affected by latitude, distance from the sea, altitude, ocean currents such as the North Atlantic Drift, and prevailing south-westerly winds from the Atlantic.

How is the climate of the UK usually described?

The climate of the UK is usually described as temperate maritime. This means it has relatively mild temperatures, no extreme dry or wet season, and changeable weather with rainfall spread across the year.

Why is the west of the UK generally wetter than the east?

The west of the UK is generally wetter than the east because moist air from the Atlantic is forced to rise over upland areas. This causes relief rainfall in western regions and a drier rain shadow further east.

Try These Related Quizzes

1 .

Why do the Lake District and Wales have high rainfall?

They are mountainous which creates relief rainfall

They are on the east coast

There are no trees

Pollution from tourist vehicles causes passing clouds to drop rain

The air coming in from the Atlantic is warmed and can hold a lot of moisture in the form of water vapour. As the air is pushed upwards by the mountains, it cools and the moisture condenses. In winter, the moisture often falls as snow on the high ground but is still counted as rainfall

2 .

During the 20th century, the average temperatures in the UK have risen. Which of the following statements is NOT true?

The growing season for UK farmers has increased

The UK will experience severe weather more frequently

In general, winters are getting drier and summers are getting wetter

More flooding is likely to occur because of an increase in precipitation

Climate studies show that winters are actually getting wetter and summers drier. Another impact is that rainfall patterns are sometimes out of season - a good example of this is the extreme rainfall experienced during the UK summer of 2007 and 2012

3 .

Which of the following terms can be used to describe the climate of the UK?

Polar maritime

Temperate maritime

Polar continental

Temperate continental

The word maritime means something to do with the sea

4 .

From which direction do the UK's prevailing winds blow?

North west

South west

North east

South east

This brings moist air from the Atlantic Ocean

5 .

During the winter, which of the following bring bad weather to the UK?

Anticyclones

Monsoons

High pressure air masses

Depressions

Make sure that you revise the clouds and weather sequence as a depression (low pressure area) passes

6 .

For any given location in the UK, there will be fewer than 10 days on which it thunders. In cities like London and Birmingham, the average is 15 days. Why?

There are more accurate climatic records for these two cities

These two cities are built in areas where thunderstorms are naturally more likely to occur

They both contain many rivers and canals

Large urban areas heat up more than other areas

As they heat up, so does the air in and around them and therefore contains more energy. On particularly hot days, the air becomes warmer than normal and contains sufficient energy to create thunderstorms. This is a good example of how humans can affect climate

7 .

Climate is ...

a measure of the average rainfall of an area

an average of the weather over at least 30 years

a way of predicting exactly what the weather will be doing tomorrow

the average temperature for a country

There are many factors taken into account when describing the climate of an area, temperature and rainfall are two that are most commonly used

8 .

Temperatures in the United Kingdom are affected by which of the following?

Latitude

Longitude

Altitude

All of the above

Average temperatures decrease as you move north, there are some much smaller differences as you travel east or west and the higher you go, the colder it gets

9 .

What is thought to make the climate of the western coast of Scotland generally milder than the centre and the east of the country?

The North Atlantic Drift

It lies below sea level

It gets more sunshine

It hardly ever rains

The North Atlantic Drift is also known as the North Atlantic Current. Winds coming across the Atlantic to the UK are warmed and the west is often 2 - 3 degrees warmer than other areas, including Scotland

10 .

Which of the following parts of the UK has the wettest climate?

North

South

East

West

Air masses arriving from the Atlantic carry a lot of moisture. The western side of the UK has a lot of mountains which push the air masses upwards so they cool down and drop the moisture as precipitation

You can find more about this topic by visiting BBC Bitesize - Weather and climate

Author: Kev Woodward (PGCE, Science & Chemistry Teacher, Quiz Writer)