Tropical climate facts for kids

Locations where tropical climates occur, with subtypes listed, abbreviations in the Köppen climate classification in parentheses, and the equator highlighted:      Tropical rainforest climate (Af),      Tropical monsoon climate (Am),      Tropical savanna climate (Dry summer: As, dry winter: Aw).

Tropical climate is the first of the five major climate groups. In tropical climates, monthly average temperature are 18 °C (64.4 °F) or higher in the coolest month, with hot temperatures all year-round. There are normally only two seasons in tropical climates, a wet (rainy / monsoon) season and a dry season. Sunlight is intense in these climates.

There are three basic types of tropical climates within the tropical climate group:

• tropical rainforest climate,
• tropical monsoon climate
• tropical wet and dry climate or tropical savannah

These are distinguished by the precipitation and the precipitation levels of the driest month in those regions.

Tropical climate vegetation

Amazon rainforest nearby Iquitos, Perú.

Tropical climates normally have only two seasons, a wet season and a dry season. Depending on the location of the region, the wet and dry seasons can have varying duration. Annual temperature changes in the tropics are small. Due to the high temperatures and abundant rainfall, much of the plant life grows throughout the year.

High temperature and humidity is the most suitable environment for plants. In many tropical climates, vegetation grows in layers: shrubs under tall trees, bushes under shrubs and grasses under bushes. Tropical plants are rich in resources, including coffee, cocoa and oil palm.

Some types of vegetation are unique to each of the three tropical climates.

• Tropical rainforest vegetation: Bengal bamboo, bougainvillea, curare, coconut tree, durian and banana.

• Tropical monsoon vegetation: teak, deodar, rosewood, sandalwood and bamboo.

• Tropical wet and dry or savanna vegetation: acacia senegal, elephant grass, jarrah tree, gum tree eucalyptus and whistling thorn.

Tropical rainforest climate

The Köppen classification identifies tropical rainforest climates as usually having north and south latitudinal ranges of just 5-10 degrees from the equator.

Tropical rainforest climates have high temperatures: the yearly average temperature is normally between 21 °C to 30 °C ( 70 °F to 85 °F ). The precipitation can reach over 100 inches a year. The seasons are evenly distributed throughout the year, and there is almost no drought period here. Regions that contain tropical rainforest climate mainly include the upper Amazon basin of South America, the Northern Zaire (Congo) basin of Africa, and the islands of the East Indies.

The tropical rainforest climate differs from other subtypes of tropical climates as it has more kinds of trees due to its precipitation. The large number of trees contribute back to the humidity of the climate because of the transpiration, which is the process of water evaporated from the surface of living plants to the atmosphere. The warmth and abundant precipitation heavily contributes to the diversity and characteristics of vegetations under the tropical rainforest climate. The vegetations develop a vertical stratification and various growth forms to receive enough sunlight, which is unusual under other types of climate.

Tropical monsoon climate

The Köppen classification tool identifies tropical monsoon climate as having small annual temperature ranges, high temperatures, and plentiful precipitation. This climate also has a short dry season which almost always occurs in the winter. The tropical monsoon climate is often found in the south and southeast Asia region between the latitude of 10 degrees north and the Tropic of Cancer. It can also be found in West Africa and South America. The annual temperature of regions under tropical monsoon climate is also stable.

The tropical monsoon climate has the following main characteristic.

• The average annual temperature is around 27.05 °C (80.69 °F) and has an average annual temperature range of about 3.6 °C (2 °F).
• The precipitation is heavy in the summer, and a short-drought season occurs in the winter. This climate has an annual total precipitation of on average 3409.2mm, and a 3115.9mm summer precipitation and 293.3mm winter precipitation.
• There are three main seasons of tropical monsoon climate: the cool dry season is from fall to late winter, the hot dry season is in the spring and the rainy or monsoon season is near or during the summer months.

The tropical monsoon forest mainly consists of three layered structures. The first layer is the surface layer which is a very dense layer of shrubs and grasses. The second layer is the understory layer with trees about 15 meters tall. The top layer is called the canopy tree layer which has trees from 25 to 40 meters tall.

Tropical wet and dry or forest climate

Tropical savanna climates are mainly located between the 10° and 25° north-south latitudes, and often occur at the outer margins of the tropics.

Typical regions include central Africa, parts of South America, as well as northern and eastern Australia. The temperature range of savanna climate is between 20 °C to 30 °C (68 °F - 86 °F). In summer, the temperature is between 25 °C - 30 °C, while in winter the temperature is between 20 °C - 30 °C, but still stays above an 18 °C mean. The annual precipitation is between 700 to 1000 mm. The driest months are generally in the winter and they have less than 60 mm of rainfall (often much less).

Regions under the savanna climate usually have lands covered with flat grassland vegetation with areas of woodlands. Those grassland covers almost 20% of the Earth's surface. The grassland vegetation types include Rhodes grass, red oats grass, star grass and lemongrass.

What Countries are in the Tropics?

Many countries around the world have land that falls within the tropical zone. Some countries are located entirely within the tropics, while others only have a part of their territory in this region. Listing every country with any land in the tropics would be a very long list!

Here are some examples of countries that are either entirely or largely located within 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 subtropical or even temperate zones, but a significant portion 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