Lab Report: Lets Talk About Temperature!

Marissa DiCarlo | 2/17/16 | ENVL 2015 Spring 2016

Contents
List of Tables....................................................................................................................1
List of Figures..................................................................................................................1
Introduction......................................................................................................................2
Methods............................................................................................................................3
Results and Discussion..................................................................................................5
Conclusion.....................................................................................................................14
References......................................................................................................................15

List of Tables
Table 1: Summary data on the 5 locations used for this analysis. Climate data from the National
Center for Environmental Information (https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/). Long term average based
on 1981-2010 climate analysis

List of Figures
Figure 1: Map showing the five locations used in this climate analysis. Locations were chosen to
represent differences in latitude, coastal/interior location, atmospheric/oceanic currents and
altitude................................................................................................................... 5
Figure 2: Mean Monthly Day Length of 5 locations used for this analysis. Data from U.S Naval
Observatory 1981-2010 (http://aa.usno.navy.mil/data/docs/Dur_OneYear.php).
Figure 3: Long term average temperature for 5 locations used for this analysis. Data from the
National Centers for Environmental Information (https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/)
Figure 4: Average insolation at 12 noon for 5 locations used for this analysis. Data from the
National Centers for Environmental Information (https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/)
Figure 5: Figure 5: Comparing average temperature and insolation at 12 noon for Atlantic City
Airport, New Jersey in the United States. Data from the National Centers for Environmental
Information (https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/)
Figure 6: Figure 6: Comparing long term average monthly temperature for 2 locations was used
for this analysis. Data from the National Centers for Environmental Information
(https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/)
Figure 7: Comparing average long term temperature and average monthly day length for
Valdosta, Georgia was used in this analysis. Long term data from the National Centers for

Environmental Information (https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/). Day length data from the U.S Naval
Observatory (http://aa.usno.navy.mil/data/docs/Dur_OneYear.php)9

Introduction
Air temperature, like many aspects of life, is based upon certain processes.
Processes that allow something to occur in the first place. In the case of air
temperature, there are five main factors that influence its behavior. The latitude of a
location is extremely important because it dictates how much sun and intensity of solar
radiation an area gets. For example, the equator receives the most solar radiation yearround, meaning that at the equator and places relatively close to the equator, they
experience less seasonal variation. As you get further away from the equator and
increase with latitude, seasonal variation increases (Pidwirny, 2013). Another factor that
influences air temperature is altitude. With increasing altitude, the air temperature cools
at a steady pace (Pidwirny, 2013). Also, with an increase in altitude, there is less
atmosphere, meaning greenhouse gases are less effective (Strahler, 2013). The type of
surface a place is or the surrounding areas it has creates an effect on air temperature.
When comparing urban and rural places, usually an urban environment has higher air
temperature. That is because in cities most of the ground is paved over and a small
amount of vegetation resides, making it so the rate of transpiration decreases. In
addition, the building materials in cities are darker in color, making the absorption of sun
radiation higher than that of a rural area. With the help of all the vertical buildings, the
radiation is able to reflect off of one another (Boston University, 2005). If an area is
located near the coast or an interior state/part of the country, the air temperature will be

vastly different. Near the ocean, there is a small variation in temperature due to the fact
that it takes longer for water to warm up and cool down in comparison to land, which
heats up and cools fairly quickly (Strahler, 2013). Lastly, atmospheric and oceanic
circulation can affect the magnitude in the range of the air temperature. Air is brought in
from one place to another and can increase or decrease depending on the temperature
of the air coming into an area. If land or the atmosphere is unevenly heated, then the
temperature can increase/decrease and that change causes the density and pressure to
be altered (Concord). To conclude the factors influencing air temperature, oceanic
currents is the closer. The ocean transports warm water and rain from the equator
towards the poles and vice versa, where the cold water from the poles circulates to the
tropical regions. This phenomenon helps balance out the effect of the diversity in solar
radiation around the world. (NOAA, 2013).

Methods
The beginning of this lab started with picking out five locations. The first, Atlantic
City Airport, New Jersey was a required location. Crested Butte, Colorado was another
location because the elevation was over 1,500 meters. Hutchinson Municipal Airport,
Kansas because it was closest in latitude to the Atlantic City airport. Thermopolis,
Wyoming, because it was more than 500 miles from the ocean. Finally, the last location
was the Valdosta Regional Airport, Georgia because it had a 10 latitudinal difference
with the Atlantic City Airport (Figure 1).
To commence the data collection process, the National Centers for
Environmental Information (NCEI), was used to collect the five locations latitude,
longitude, and elevation and a table was created (Table 1). Next, daily temperature and

precipitation data from January 1st, 2015 to December 31st, 2015 was required. Using
the NCEI website, requests had to be put through for each of the locations. The data
that was received was transferred to an Excel spreadsheet, made into a pivot table and
represented graphically in figure 5.
Then, from the extremely valuable NCEI website, a thirty-year (1981 to 2010)
span of climate data for all five locations was collected. That data was shifted over to
an Excel spreadsheet where it was transformed and constructed into a pivot table and
graph (figure 3).
The U.S. Naval Observatory website contained day length data needed for the
five locations of this lab. The data that was needed was daylight hours for the selected
locations for 2015. In Excel, the data from the U.S. Naval Observatory was manipulated
and put into a pivot table which was then created into a graph (figure 2).
Finally, the amount of insolation each of the five locations was calculated. There
was an Excel spreadsheet already created to calculate insolation, all that needed to be
done was to input location names and latitudes. Once that was completed, the Excel
spreadsheet produced insolation values for the given dates and a graph was created
along with the values (figure 4).

Results

Figure 1: Map showing the five locations used in this climate analysis. Locations were
chosen to represent differences in latitude, coastal/interior location, atmospheric/oceanic
currents and altitude.

Atlantic City, New Jersey

Crested Butte, Colorado
Hutchinson,Kansas
Thermopolis, Wyoming
Valdosta, Georgia

Figure 2: Mean Monthly Day Length for five locations in the United States. Thermopolis,
Wyoming is the highest northern location and because of that it has the greatest range in day
lengths from December (9 hours) to June (15.5 hours). Data from U.S Naval Observatory,
year 2015 (http://aa.usno.navy.mil/data/docs/Dur_OneYear.php).

Figure 3: Long-term (1981-2010) average temperature for 5 locations in the United States.
Looking at Crested Butte, Colorado, this location appeared to have greater variation long
term temperature. This could be due to the fact that this region has the highest elevation.
Atlantic City is fairly close to the ocean, which plays a role in the magnitude in temperature
variation. You can see the long term temperature for Atlantic City stays pretty steady. In
Valdosta, Georgia, the average long term temperature follows a positive trend. This could be
because of the warm ocean currents water near here receives from circulation (Gulf Stream
Current) and the fact that this area is near the ocean and not landlocked. Data from the
National Centers for Environmental Information (https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/).

Atlantic City, New Jersey

Hutchinson, Kansas
Valdosta, Georgia
Thermopolis, Wyoming
Crested Butte, Colorado

Figure 4: Average insolation at 12 noon for 5 locations in the United States. For the most
part, insolation rates were close, except for Valdosta, Georgia from January 1st- May 1st
where insolation increased. This could be because of the warm ocean current this area
receives. Data from the National Centers for Environmental Information
(https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/).

Temperature (C)

Noon Insolation (W/m2)

Figure 5: Comparing average temperature and insolation at 12 noon for Atlantic City Airport,
New Jersey in the United States. Data from the National Centers for Environmental
Information (https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/).

Atlantic City, New Jersey

Thermopolis, Wyoming

States. Data from the National Centers for Environmental Information

Figure 7: Comparing average long term temperature and average monthly day length for
(https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/).
Valdosta, Georgia in the United States. During the month of June, the highest average
temperature and the highest amount of day length hours match up. Long term data from the
National Centers for Environmental Information (https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/). Day length
data from the U.S Naval Observatory (http://aa.usno.navy.mil/data/docs/Dur_OneYear.php).

Average Temperature ( C )

Average Day Length (Hours)

Table 1: Summary data on the 5 locations used for this analysis. Climate data from the National
Center for Environmental Information (https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/). Long term average based
on 1981-2010 climate analysis.
Location

Latitude

Longitude

Elevation(m)
18.3

Annual Avg.
Day
Length(Hours)
12.20

Annual Avg. 30
year
temperature ( C)
12.41

Avg.
Temperature
2015 ( C)
13.11

Atlantic City
Airport, New
Jersey
Hutchinson
Municipal Airport,
Kansas
Valdosta
Regional Airport,
Georgia

39.4494

-74.5672

38.06528

-97.86056

470.3

12.19

1.18

8.95

30.7825

-83.27667

60.4

12.17

13.25

21.14

Thermopolis,
Wyoming
Crested Butte,
Colorado

43.6483

-108.2036

1314.6

12.22

9.73

8.65

38.8738

-106.9772

2702.7

12.20

19.51

2.22

Discussion
The five factors that influence air temperature are; latitude, altitude, surface type,
atmospheric/oceanic circulation and coastal/interior location. What the latitude of a
location on Earth dictates how much daily insolation it receives. The equator, which is
at 0 degrees, is hit with the most amount of solar radiation. As latitude increases, the
less solar radiation a region receives annually. Also, at the equator, there is very little
change in season. Whereas, the further you travel from the equator, the degree of
seasonal variation escalades. This all means that at the equator and relatively close to
the equator, experience warm to hot weather year-round, while as you increase in
latitude, air temperature becomes cooler.
Altitude has an inverse relationship with air temperature, so as altitude increases,
temperature normally decreases. This relationship is possible because as altitude

becomes higher, the air becomes thinner, expanding the airs potential volume. When
the air expands it requires energy, which is borrowed from the airs heat energy,
lowering the temperature of the air (Science Focus, 2001).
The type of surface or surrounding surface a place on Earth has, is relative to
how the temperature behaves. In rural regions, transpiration, from the leaves of plants,
trees e.g. is able to occur. In addition, most of the time in rural parts of the world, the
soil is moist, allowing evaporation and transpiration to occur, which together creates
evapotranspiration. Evapotranspiration is where water is transferred from land to the
atmosphere via evaporation from the soil and by transpiration from plants (Fan, 2016).
In an urban environment, an effect called urban heat island is extremely
common. Urban heat island is where the city is warmer than its surrounding area. This
occurs because of the large magnitude of people and buildings that are close together
and tall, so heat is kept in between buildings. What also lends a hand in this effect is air
pollution. Air pollution is usually more abundant in cities and pollution traps heat. Also,
since there is very little vegetation in cities, there are not any plants to help relieve some
of the heat (National Geographic). Where a place is located on the globe is plays a role
in determining temperature because the ocean takes longer to cool and warm up.
Meaning that areas near the ocean will experience less seasonal variation. Whereas air
over land, cools down and warms up quickly, creating a wider range of temperature.
Atmospheric/oceanic circulation is the final factor that concerns us with this lab.
When Earths surface and atmosphere are heated unevenly, the temperature changes
which causes density and pressure to also change. This air then follows one of natures
laws and moves from a high-pressure region to a low-pressure region. At the equator,

the air is lighter and warmer. At the poles, the air is cold and dry (Concord). The ocean
currents are a great avenue for heat to be distributed around the world. When the
ocean is warmed, the water molecules are transferred into the air via evaporation, which
causes the temperature and humidity rise. Without the currents distributed the heat all
over, there would be more extreme seasonality (NOAA, 2013).
At the Atlantic City Airport, New Jersey the longest day length average was 14.89
hours on June 2015 and the 3rd annual highest temperature was 22.19 C. In Crested
Butte, Colorado the longest day length average occurred on June 2015** at 14.85
hours. The average temperature was the 3rd highest figure out of the year measuring at
12.45C, similar to the Atlantic City Airport. In Hutchinson, Kansas the average day
length was in June at 14.76 hours. The temperature was 26.03 C and was the 2 nd
highest value out of the year. In Thermopolis, Wyoming, June also had the longest
average day length, weighting in at 15.38 hours. The annual temperature for June at
this location was 21.41C, which was the 3rd highest temperature average. Lastly in
Valdosta, Georgia, the longest average day length occurred in June at 14.11 hours. The
average temperature in June 27.46C. What was interesting for all five locations, was
that the day with the most sunlight was in June. This makes perfect sense because on
June 22nd the summer solstice occurs and these regions all of about mid-latitude.
(Figure 2) and 2015 average monthly temperature. For Atlantic City Airport in New
Jersey in June of 2015, the highest average day length was 14.89 hours. Also in June,
the temperature was at the yearly 3rd high at 22.19 C. In Crested Butte, Colorado, the
longest day average day length was in June at 14.85 hours. The average temperature
as well was the 3rd highest figure out of the year measuring at 12.45C. In Hutchinson,

Kansas the average day length was in June at 14.76 hours. The temperature was
26.03C and was the 2nd highest value out of the year. In Thermopolis, Wyoming, June
also had the longest average day length, weighting in at 15.38 hours. The annual
temperature for June at this location was 21.41C, which was the 3rd highest
temperature average. Lastly in Valdosta, Georgia, the longest average day length
occurred in June at 14.11 hours. The average temperature in June 27.46C. What was
interesting for all five locations, was that the day with the most sunlight was in June.
This makes perfect sense because on June 22nd the summer solstice occurs and these
regions all of about mid-latitude. (Figure 2) and 2015 average monthly temperature.
For Atlantic City Airport, the weakest insolation at 12 noon was on December 21 st
with a value of 621.6804 W/m2. The day with the lowest temperature of-13.2C was on
February 20th. It is interesting to see that on December 21st the lowest amount of
insolation was at 12 noon. Since on December 22 nd, the winter solstice occurs. At
around 40 latitude this area should receive less sunlight because the Earths tilt is
facing away from the Sun. This makes sense because the insolation level is fairly low. In
Crested Butte, Colorado the weakest insolation at 12 noon was 633.8795 W/m2 on
December 21st. The lowest temperature occurred on January 23rd, clocking in at -20.85
degrees Celsius. At Hutchinson Municipal Airport, Kansas, the lowest insolation at 12
noon was on December 21st, 650.9068 W/m2. On January 4th the temperature was
-12.4C, making it the lowest annual value. In Thermopolis, Wyoming on December 21 st,
the lowest insolation at 12 noon was observed at 530.8707 W/m2. The lowest
temperature was measured at -17.8C on January 1 st. lastly, in Valdosta Regional
Airport Georgia: December 21st brought about the lowest insolation at 12 noon,

798.0398 W/m2. On January 8th, the temperature was 0.05C, making it the lowest
average annual temperature. For each of the five locations, the lowest amount of
insolation was recorded on December 21st. In addition, the lowest average monthly
temperature for 2015, for all five locations were roughly in the same period, January 1 st,
5th, 8th and 23rd to February 20th. (Figure 3) and 2015 annual mean monthly
temperature.

Conclusion
Throughout all the research that was done for this lab there were many factors
that became clear as I organized and analyzed the data. All five locations I chose were
close in range latitude wise, which was why the hottest and longest day for all of them
was on June 21st, where the winter solstice occurs on January 22 nd. During the winter
solstice at about 40 latitude, receives the most insolation when compared to the rest of
the year. Thermopolis, Wyoming had the highest northern latitude at 43. This factor
became emphasized when I created the average annual day length for 2015. This
location displayed that in received the most variation in day length (figure 2). In the
graph for Long term average temperature for 5 locations in the United States, Atlantic
City kept a nice curve without much extreme deviation. This could be based on that
Atlantic City is close to the ocean, and land near the ocean usually reaps the benefits of
water taking the time to cool down and warm up. Looking at the same graph, Crested
Butte, Colorado this location seemed to have the greatest variation in long-term

temperature, which could be because of its high elevation. I believe that more research
would need to go into solidifying that statement (figure 3). Similarly, I think more
research could be of use for why the insolation for Valdosta, Georgia increases in
insolation from January 1st- May 1st.

References
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Web. 8 Feb. 2016. <http://cliveg.bu.edu/courses/gg101spring05/
Chapter-05-Lecture-Notes.pdf>

Pidwirny, Michael. "Factors Influencing Surface Air Temperature." The

Encyclopedia of the Earth. N.p., 15 June 2013. Web. 8 Feb. 2016.
<http://www.eoearth.org/view/article/162614/>.

"The ocean plays a fundamental role in shaping the climate zones we see on land.
Even areas hundreds of miles away from any coastline are still largely
influenced by the global ocean system." NOAA. N.p., 21 June 2013. Web. 16
Feb. 2016. <http://oceanexplorer.noaa.gov/facts/climate.html>.

"Urban Heat Island." National Geographic. N.p., n.d. Web. 10 Feb. 2016.
<http://education.nationalgeographic.org/encyclopedia/urban-heat-island/>.

Strahler, A. 2013. Introducing Physical Geography, 6th Ed., New York, NY: Wiley.

"Why Does Air Move? Atmospheric Circulation." Concord. N.p., n.d. Web. 10 Feb.
2016. <http://staff.concord.org/btinker/GL/web/air/motion/
atmospheric_circulation_t.htm>.

"Why does altitude affect air temperature?" Science Focus. N.p., 6 Apr. 2011.
Web. 13 Feb. 2016. <http://www.sciencefocus.com/qa/
why-does-altitude-affect-air-temperature>.