Tropical climate facts for kids

Places with tropical climates, showing different types and where the equator is.

A tropical climate is one of the five main climate types on Earth. In these places, the average temperature never drops below 18 °C (64.4 °F), even in the coolest month. This means it's warm all year round! Tropical climates usually have just two main seasons: a wet (rainy) season and a dry season. The sunlight is very strong in these areas.

There are three main kinds of tropical climates:

• Tropical rainforest climate
• Tropical monsoon climate
• Tropical wet and dry climate

These types are different based on how much rain they get, especially in their driest months.

Tropical Climate Plants

The Amazon rainforest near Iquitos, Peru.

Tropical climates usually have a wet season and a dry season. How long each season lasts can change depending on where you are. Temperatures in the tropics don't change much throughout the year. Because it's always warm and rainy, lots of plants grow all the time.

Warm temperatures and high humidity are perfect for plants. In many tropical areas, plants grow in layers. You might see shrubs under tall trees, smaller bushes under the shrubs, and grasses on the ground. Tropical plants give us many important things like coffee, cocoa, and oil palm.

Some types of plants are special to each tropical climate:

• Tropical rainforest plants: Bengal bamboo, bougainvillea, curare, coconut trees, durian, and banana trees.
• Tropical monsoon plants: Teak, deodar, rosewood, sandalwood, and bamboo.
• Tropical wet and dry (savanna) plants: Acacia senegal, elephant grass, jarrah trees, gum tree eucalyptus, and whistling thorn.

Tropical Rainforest Climate

The Köppen climate classification system shows that tropical rainforest climates are usually found very close to the equator, about 5 to 10 degrees north or south.

These places are always hot. The average yearly temperature is usually between 21 °C and 30 °C (70 °F to 85 °F). They get a lot of rain, sometimes over 250 centimeters (100 inches) a year! The rain is spread out evenly all year, so there's almost no dry period. You can find tropical rainforest climates in places like the Amazon basin in South America, the Congo basin in Africa, and islands in Southeast Asia.

Tropical rainforests have more kinds of trees than other tropical climates because of all the rain. These many trees help keep the air moist through a process called transpiration. This is when water evaporates from the leaves of plants into the air. The warmth and lots of rain help many different plants and animals live here. Plants in rainforests grow in different layers and shapes to get enough sunlight, which is special to this climate.

Tropical Monsoon Climate

The Köppen climate classification also describes tropical monsoon climates. These areas have small changes in temperature throughout the year, high temperatures, and lots of rain. They also have a short dry season, which almost always happens in winter. You often find tropical monsoon climates in South and Southeast Asia, between 10 degrees north latitude and the Tropic of Cancer. They are also in parts of West Africa and South America. The temperature stays pretty steady all year in these regions.

Here are some main things about tropical monsoon climates:

• The average yearly temperature is about 27 °C (80.7 °F). The temperature usually only changes by about 3.6 °C (2 °F) during the year.
• It rains a lot in the summer, and there's a short dry period in winter. On average, these places get about 3409.2 mm of rain each year. Most of this rain (3115.9 mm) falls in summer, and only about 293.3 mm in winter.
• There are three main seasons: a cool dry season (fall to late winter), a hot dry season (spring), and a rainy or monsoon season (around summer).

Tropical monsoon forests usually have three layers of plants. The bottom layer is very thick with shrubs and grasses. The middle layer, called the understory, has trees about 15 meters (49 feet) tall. The top layer, called the canopy, has trees that are 25 to 40 meters (82 to 131 feet) tall.

Tropical Wet and Dry or Savanna Climate

Tropical savanna climates are mostly found between 10° and 25° north or south of the equator. They are often on the edges of the main tropical zones.

Good examples of these regions include central Africa, parts of South America, and northern and eastern Australia. Temperatures in savanna climates usually range from 20 °C to 30 °C (68 °F to 86 °F). In summer, it's typically 25 °C to 30 °C, and in winter, it's still warm, staying above 18 °C. These areas get between 700 to 1000 mm of rain each year. The driest months are usually in winter, with less than 60 mm of rainfall.

Savanna regions are mostly covered with flat grasslands, but they also have some areas with trees. These grasslands cover almost 20% of the Earth's surface! Common types of grasses include Rhodes grass, red oats grass, star grass, and lemongrass.

What Countries are in the Tropics?

Many countries around the world have land within the tropical zone. Some countries are completely tropical, while others only have a part of their land in this warm region. Listing every single country would be a very long list!

Here are some examples of countries that are mostly or entirely in the tropical zone:

In Africa

Nigeria, Ethiopia, Democratic Republic of Congo, Tanzania, Kenya, Uganda, Ghana, Ivory Coast, Cameroon, Angola, Mozambique, Madagascar, Sudan, Chad, Niger, Mali, Burkina Faso, Somalia, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Sierra Leone, Liberia, Togo, Benin, Eritrea, Djibouti, Rwanda, Burundi, Equatorial Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Gambia, São Tomé and Príncipe, Comoros, Seychelles, Mauritius. (Note: Some of these countries also have land in other climate zones, but a big part is tropical).

In Asia

Indonesia, Philippines, Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar (Burma), Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Maldives, Brunei, Singapore, Timor-Leste. (Note: Parts of India and China are also in the tropics).

In the Americas

Brazil, Colombia, Peru, Venezuela, Ecuador, Bolivia, Guyana, Suriname, French Guiana, Panama, Costa Rica, Nicaragua, Honduras, El Salvador, Guatemala, Belize, Mexico (southern part), Cuba, Dominican Republic, Haiti, Jamaica, Puerto Rico (a US territory), Trinidad and Tobago, and many other Caribbean island nations.

In Oceania

Australia (northern part), Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands, Fiji, Vanuatu, Samoa, Kiribati, Tuvalu, Nauru, Palau, Federated States of Micronesia, Marshall Islands.

See also

In Spanish: Clima tropical para niños

• Tropics
• Subtropics
• Humid subtropical
• Tropical rainforest climate
• Köppen climate classification