European climate and the North Atlantic Drift
GeographyRegions & CountriesAges 12–13
Use it with your class: students open it from a link or a QR code, with no account needed.
Next in Regions & Countries
A hand-drawn map of Europe is shaded into four climate zones: polar and subpolar, oceanic in the west, continental in the east, and Mediterranean in the south. Click a weather station (Brest, Moscow, Rome, Murmansk) to see its 12-month temperature and rainfall chart; drag the month slider or press Run to watch temperatures across the continent change with the seasons. Turn on the North Atlantic Drift to see why western Europe is much warmer and wetter than places at the same latitude farther east.
Lesson: Physical geography of Europe: climate zones and types
What it shows
Europe's climate changes gradually from west to east and from north to south. The Atlantic coast has an oceanic climate with mild winters, cool summers and rain all year, because the prevailing westerlies carry air warmed over the North Atlantic Drift onto the land. Farther east, away from the ocean's moderating influence, the continental climate brings cold winters, warm summers and a much larger annual temperature range. Rome shows the Mediterranean pattern of hot, dry summers and mild, wet winters, and Murmansk the long, cold winters of the subpolar zone.
How to use
Choose Brest as the Weather station for chart, note its coldest month, warmest month and annual temperature range, then switch to Moscow, Rome and Murmansk and compare. Drag Month shown or press Run months to see temperatures across the map change with the seasons. Turn on Show North Atlantic Drift to trace the warm current and the westerlies, and relate them to the differences between the stations.
Parameters you can change
- Weather station for chart Brest (France) – oceanic climate, Moscow (Russia) – continental climate, Rome (Italy) – Mediterranean climate, Murmansk (Russia) – subpolar climate
- Month shown 1–12 month
- Show North Atlantic Drift
- Month playback speed 0.5–6 months/second
Questions to explore
- Why is Moscow's annual temperature range so much larger than that of Brest on the Atlantic coast?
- In which season does Rome receive most of its rain, and what does that tell you about the Mediterranean climate?
- How do the North Atlantic Drift and the westerlies explain Brest's mild winters?
