Climate and Weather of Asia

1. Climate and Weather of Asia Asia stretches about 5,000 miles from north of the Arctic Circle to south of the equator. From east to west Asia stretches nearly halfway around the world. This vast area has many different kinds of climate. Asia has some of the coldest and some of the hottest, some of the wettest and some of the driest places on earth. Asia has a wide variety of biomes and climates, from the highest coldest mountain peaks in the Himalayas to the deserts of the Middle East.

2. Central and Northern Asia Climate The great interior lands of Asia are far from the ocean. Winds from the oceans are cut off by the high mountain chains which surround the interior. Because of this, the climate of central Asia is one of extremes. Winters are long and cold, chilled by cold winds from the polar regions. Summers everywhere but the highlands are short and hot. Except in the mountains, there is little rainfall. Consequently, much of the region is desert. Northern Asia has much the same sort of climate as central Asia, except that is has more rainfall. Winters are extremely cold-the coldest inhabited place in the world is a village in Siberia called Verkhoyansk. The temperature there sometimes drops to 90 degrees below zero.

3. Southeast Asia and Monsoons In southern Asia the climate is quite different. It is hot here all year round, except in the mountains. The temperature in the lowlands may reach as high as 125 degrees. There are no summer and winter as we know them. Instead, there is a rainy season and a dry season. The rainy season usually lasts from June through October. During that period it rains heavily everyday. More rain falls in this part of the Asia than in any other place in the world. Some areas in India get more than 450 inches of rainfall during the rainy season. The rainy and dry seasons are caused by winds called monsoons, which blow from central Asia toward the southern and eastern edges of the continent. Winter monsoons are dry winds because they blow over dry land. They are cold because they come from a cold region. The summer monsoons blow inland from the oceans, bringing moisture as far inland as they reach.

4. Asia Summers and Typhoons Asia summers vary with location and altitude. Areas along the coast and just inland are susceptible to typhoons, which bring heavy rain and strong winds. The hurricane tracks in the Atlantic are very similar to the typhoon tracks in the South Pacific

5. Asia Winter Weather Patterns Winters in Asia vary from cool to extremely cold with the exception of the southern areas. The interior areas are dry, while the coastal areas are humid.

6. Links More information on Asian biomes Japan Meteorological Agency Southeast Asian Rainforests China Meteorological Administration Northeast Asian Deciduous Forests India Meteorological Department Himalayan Alpine Range Brunei Meteorological Service Get Daily Updates on the Countries of Asia’s Weather Indonesia Meteorological and Geophysical Agency Islamic Republic Of Iran Meteorological Organization Bangladesh Department of Meteorology Israel Meteorological Service Jordan Meteorological Department Korea Meteorological Administration Hydro meteorological Centre of Russia Malaysian Meteorological Service Maldives Department of Meteorology Oman Meteorological Services UAE Meteorology Department Pakistan Meteorological Department Qatar Department of Meteorology Philippines: PAGASA Laos Department of Meteorology Saudi Arabia: MEPA Myanmar Department of Meteorology Meteorological Service Singapore Nepal Dept. of Hydrology and Meteorology Sri Lanka Department of Meteorology Azerbaijan Hydro-meteorological Dept. Central Weather Bureau of Taiwan Thai Meteorology Department Mongolia Inst. of Meteorology and Hydrology