Climographs Desert vs. Taiga

Taiga


                                                                      

   Desert

Radiant heat energy transfer

All energy that reaches the earth comes from the sun. Intercepted first by atmosphere, a small part is directly absorbed  by gasses and some is reflected into space by clouds and earth's surface.

Desert Biome

                                                            Desert Biome

We are researchers paired with Earth Support, working and researching to improve conditions in many of the deserts around the world. What we discover will aid in the preservation of this beloved biome, and all the creatures that call it home.

All the biomes make up our biosphere. Deserts cover about one fifth of the Earth's biosphere. Most Hot and Dry Deserts are near the Tropic of Cancer or the Tropic of Capricorn. Cold Deserts are near the Arctic part of the world.

Hot and Dry Deserts temperature ranges from 20 to 25° C. The extreme maximum temperature for Hot Desert ranges from 43.5 to 49° C. Cold Deserts temperature in winter ranges from -2 to 4° C and in the summer 21 to 26° C a year.

Hot and Dry Deserts usually have very little rainfall and/or concentrated rainfall in short periods between long rainless periods. This averages out to under 15 cm a year.

Plants are almost all ground-hugging shrubs and short woody trees. All of the leaves are packed with nutrients. Some examples of these kinds of plant are Turpentine Bush, Prickly Pears, and Brittle Bush. For all of these plants to survive they have to have adaptations. Some of the adaptations in this case are the ability to store water for long periods of time and the ability to stand the hot weather.

Dry Desert climates are formed by high-pressure zones in which cold air descends. Then the descending air becomes warm but, instead of releasing rain, the heat from the ground evaporates the water before it can come down as rain. The ground is super hot because the sun's rays beat down on it directly overhead. Not a lot of atmosphere to protect it from radiant energy. Since it is near the equator, the insolation reaches the earth at right angles. This concentrates the insolation and causes the earth to heat up more quickly.

The Sahara desert is often experiencing a high net radiation budget. This is due to the high surface albedo, the warm surface temperatures, and the dry and cloud free atmosphere. The radiative cooling is maintained by subsidence warming, which also has a drying effect and therefore helps maintain the desert.

The research confirms a long-held suspicion that one of the side effects of greenhouse gasses is lusher plant life. Plants pull carbon dioxide from the air — the gas is part of photosynthesis, which plants use to make food. More carbon dioxide should lead to an average increase in vegetation across the desert.

Jet streaming is also becoming an issue.  The migration of these jet streams has widened the planet's tropical belt and could expand dry regions around the world in coming decades.Due to global warming, deserts around the world are moving into heavily populated areas as the jet streams shift. Thus, areas already dry may get even drier.

This biome needs our help and our research shows the different things we must do in order to keep this biome- and the species living in it- thriving.