| A | B |
|---|
| hurricanes | violent tropical storm systems in the Atlantic Ocean and Caribbean Sea |
| climate | an area's usual weather pattern over a long period of time |
| weather | changes in an area's air over a short period of time |
| currents | moving streams of warm or cool water in the world's oceans |
| typhoons | violent tropical storm systems in the Pacific Ocean that rip through Asia |
| monsoons | tremendous seasonal winds that blow over some continents for months at a time. They often bring flooding rains. |
| tropics | area near the Equator that lies between the Tropic of cancer and the Tropic of Capricorn |
| rain shadow | dry area on the side of a mountain facing away from the wind |
| windward | moist and foggy weather is on the coastal or _______ side of a mountain range |
| Tropic of Cancer | northern boundary of the tropics at 23.5 degrees N latitude |
| Tropic of Capricorn | southern boundary of the tropics at 23.5 degrees S latitude |
| windward | coastal or ocean side of a mountain/mountain range |
| leeward | inland side of a mountain/mountain range |
| Gulf Stream | warm ocean current that comes out of the Caribbean Sea/Gulf of Mexico and runs along the eastern coast of the U.S. |
| drought | long period of extreme dryness |
| tornadoes | funnel-shaped windstorms that sometimes form during severe thunderstorms |
| El Nino | a combination of temperature, wind, and water effect in the Pacific Ocean that occurs about every three years |
| greenhouse effect | buildup of certain gases in the atmosphere that, like a greenhouse, hold more of the sun's warmth |
| local wind | patterns of wind caused by landforms in a particular area |
| North Atlantic Current | warm ocean current that extends from the Gulf Stream to Northwestern Europe |
| La Nina | the opposite kind of unusual weather patterns than El Nino |
| rain forests | dense forests that receive unusually high amounts of rain each year |
