Which climate region is typically found in high latitudes?

Which climate region is typically found in high latitudes?

• A. Icecap
• B. Desert
• C. Subarctic
• D. Tropical

Answer: (C)

At high latitudes, sunlight is weaker and days are shorter, keeping temperatures cooler most of the year. The subarctic climate fits right into those northern regions, with long, very cold winters and short, cool summers. This pattern is typical of far-northern areas such as parts of Canada, Alaska, northern Europe, and Siberia, so it’s the climate most commonly associated with high latitudes outside the polar ice caps. Icecap climates also occur there, but they’re confined to extreme polar regions with year-round ice and very limited vegetation, so they’re less representative of the broad high-latitude zones. Tropical and desert climates occur at lower latitudes—near the equator or in dry subtropical zones—so they don’t describe the high-latitude climate pattern.

At high latitudes, sunlight is weaker and days are shorter, keeping temperatures cooler most of the year. The subarctic climate fits right into those northern regions, with long, very cold winters and short, cool summers. This pattern is typical of far-northern areas such as parts of Canada, Alaska, northern Europe, and Siberia, so it’s the climate most commonly associated with high latitudes outside the polar ice caps. Icecap climates also occur there, but they’re confined to extreme polar regions with year-round ice and very limited vegetation, so they’re less representative of the broad high-latitude zones. Tropical and desert climates occur at lower latitudes—near the equator or in dry subtropical zones—so they don’t describe the high-latitude climate pattern.