Month: August 2015

The temperature difference between land and sea powers the monsoon, the largest, single weather event on the planet.

The Lake Palace on Lake Pichola is a must-see attraction on every visitor’s itinerary.

The spring equinox at Chichen Itza is a special time when Kukulcan the snake appears to the Mayan people.

So, more than 1,000 years ago the Maya recognise equinox as a pivotal moment in the year and they were able to align this pyramid with the sun’s annual progress, causing the snake, Kukulcan, to appear each equinox.

Ice Road Truckers in Yellowknife rely on the seasonal paradox of winter being delayed to maintain their frozen lake roads.

So why is the worst of winter delayed so long after the solstice on December 21st? It’s all about the balance between the heat coming in and the heating going out.

Ice Ages occur cyclically in Earth’s life time. Three main circumstance must occur simultaneously for this to be possible.

Perihelion, Angle of Earth’s tilt and the elliptical shape of the planetary orbit.

The Humboldt Current is one of the plant’s ocean gyres and it brings rich nutrients from Antarctica to create vast fishing.

This circular flow of water is a phenomenon repeated around the world. There are similar ocean gyres in the North and South Atlantic, and in the Indian Ocean.

In southwest Egypt is The Great Barrier, or Gilf Kebir. A Sandstone plateau over 7,000 kilometres in length.

Isn’t it astonishing that the Earth’s tilt has such a dramatic impact? It’s that tilt that drives our seasons and powers our weather. It’s had a profound influence on our human history, and even today it dictates how and where we live on this extraordinary, unique planet of ours.

Kate Humble goes for a drive in a very ordinary car, on a very special road, the fatest road in the world.

The Earth moves fastest at the equator, because this is where it’s circumference is greatest, so it has the longest distance to travel in a single day.

Kate Humble visits the Ecuador highlands on the autumn equinox to consider the root of our weather. This area is the engine room of the planet

The heat from the sun drives the winds that power the global climate, and it all starts here on the equator.

Dr Helen Czerski uses a child’s roundabout to demonstrate the phenomenon known as the Coriolis effect. And how this is instrumental in causing hurricanes.

It’s now early September. Although the summer is almost at an end, in the northern hemisphere it has a sting in its tail. Because this is hurricane season. The development of a hurricane is a wonderful example of how the Earth’s spin controls our weather.

Circulating air currents from the equator create eddy-like climate cells within the atmosphere.

The spin of the Earth makes the weather here in the UK unusually changeable, and particularly hard to predict. The fact that you wake up every morning and the atmosphere surprises you, just adds to the spice of life.