Temperate rainy climate

From Glossary of Meteorology



temperate rainy climate

One of the major categories (the C climate) in W. Köppen's 1936 climatic classification. These climates have a coldest-month mean temperature of less than 18°C (64.4°F) and greater than -3°C (26.6°F), with a warmest-month mean temperature of more than 10°C (50°F).

These limits distinguish it, respectively, from tropical rainy climates, snow forest climates, and tundra climates. It is separated from the dry climates by a function of annual temperature and precipitation. In C. W. Thornthwaite's 1931 classifications, the humid or moist subhumid and mesothermal climates would very closely correspond to the above.
See formulas under steppe climate.

Köppen, W. P., and R. Geiger 1930–1939. Handbuch der Klimatologie. Berlin: Gebruder Borntraeger, 6 vols.

Thornthwaite, C. W. 1931. The climates of North America according to a new classification. Geogr. Rev.. 21. 633–655.


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