Tropical rainforest climate

A tropical rainforest climate or equatorial climate is a tropical climate sub-type usually found within 10 to 15 degrees latitude of the equator. There are some other areas at higher latitudes, such as the coast of southeast Florida, United States, and Okinawa, Japan that fall into the tropical rainforest climate category. They experience high mean annual temperatures, small temperature ranges, and rain that falls throughout the year. Regions with this climate are typically designated Af by the Köppen climate classification. A tropical rainforest climate is typically hot, very humid, and wet with no dry season.

Worldwide zones of tropical rainforest climate (Af).

Description

Borneo, with the typical vegetation of tropical forests.

Amazon rainforest, Manaus, Brazil.

Tropical rainforests have a type of tropical climate (with an average temperature of at least 18 C or 64.4 F in their coldest month) in which there is no dry season—all months have an average precipitation value of at least 60 mm (2.4 in). There are no distinct wet or dry seasons as rainfall is high throughout the months. One day in a tropical rainforest climate can be very similar to the next, while the change in temperature between day and night may be larger than the average change in temperature during the year.

Equatorial climates and tropical trade-wind climates

When tropical rainforest climates are more dominated by the Intertropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ) than the trade winds (and with no or rare cyclones), so usually located near the equator, they are also called equatorial climates. Otherwise, when they are more dominated by the trade winds than the ITCZ, they are called tropical trade-wind climates. In pure equatorial climates, the atmospheric pressure is almost constantly low so the horizontal pressure gradient is low. Consequently, the winds are rare and usually weak (except sea and land breezes in coastal areas) while in tropical trade-wind climates, often located at higher latitudes than the equatorial climates, the wind is almost permanent which incidentally explains why rainforest formations are impoverished compared to those of equatorial climates due to their necessary resistance to strong winds accompanying tropical disturbances.

Cities with tropical rainforest climates

Asia Malacca - Car Nicobar, India Balikpapan, Indonesia Medan, Indonesia Palembang, Indonesia Ishigaki, Japan Kuching, Malaysia Johor Bahru, Malaysia Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia Davao City, Philippines Polomolok, Philippines Tacloban, Leyte, Philippines Singapore Colombo, Sri Lanka Ratnapura, Sri Lanka Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte, Sri Lanka Orchid Island, Taiwan Nakhon Si Thammarat, Thailand Oceania Pago Pago, American Samoa Tubuai, Austral Islands Innisfail, Queensland, Australia Palikir, Federated States of Micronesia Suva, Fiji Hanga Roa, Easter Island, Chile Hagåtña, Guam Atuona, French Polynesia Mata Utu, French Polynesia Papeete, French Polynesia Tarawa, Kiribati Majuro, Marshall Islands Alofi, Niue, New Zealand Koror, Palau Tabubil, Papua New Guinea Lae, Papua New Guinea Pitcairn Island Apia, Samoa Honiara, Solomon Islands Nuku’alofa, Tonga Funafuti, Tuvalu Hilo, Hawaii, United States Port Vila, Vanuatu

Africa Moroni, Comoros Kisumu, Kenya Harper, Liberia Antalaha, Madagascar Manakara, Madagascar Toamasina, Madagascar Victoria, Seychelles Kampala, Uganda Americas Punta Gorda, Belize Hamilton, Bermuda Villa Tunari, Bolivia Belém, Brazil Macaé, Brazil Salvador, Brazil Buenaventura, Valle del Cauca, Colombia Florencia, Colombia Leticia, Colombia Cocos Island, Costa Rica Limón, Costa Rica Higüey, Dominican Republic Puyo, Ecuador Saint-Laurent-du-Maroni, French Guiana Pointe-à-Pitre, Guadeloupe Puerto Barrios, Guatemala Georgetown, Guyana La Ceiba, Honduras Port Antonio, Jamaica Bluefields, Nicaragua Changuinola, Panama Iquitos, Peru Lelydorp, Suriname Paramaribo, Suriname Scarborough, Trinidad and Tobago West Palm Beach, Florida, United States Fort Lauderdale, Florida, United States

Paramaribo, Suriname
Climate chart (explanation)
J F M A M J J A S O N D     200     30 22     140     30 22     150     30 22     210     31 22     290     30 23     290     31 22     230     31 22     170     32 23     90     32 23     90     33 23     120     32 23     180     30 22 █ Average max. and min. temperatures in °C █ Precipitation totals in mm Source: [1]
Imperial conversion J F M A M J J A S O N D     7.9     86 72     5.5     86 72     5.9     86 72     8.3     88 72     11     86 73     11     88 72     9.1     88 72     6.7     90 73     3.5     90 73     3.5     91 73     4.7     90 73     7.1     86 72 █ Average max. and min. temperatures in °F █ Precipitation totals in inches

Mbandaka, DR Congo
Climate chart (explanation)
J F M A M J J A S O N D     80     31 19     100     32 20     150     32 20     140     31 20     130     31 20     110     30 19     100     30 17     100     29 17     200     30 19     210     30 19     190     30 19     120     30 19 █ Average max. and min. temperatures in °C █ Precipitation totals in mm Source: [2]
Imperial conversion J F M A M J J A S O N D     3.1     88 66     3.9     90 68     5.9     90 68     5.5     88 68     5.1     88 68     4.3     86 66     3.9     86 63     3.9     84 63     7.9     86 66     8.3     86 66     7.5     86 66     4.7     86 66 █ Average max. and min. temperatures in °F █ Precipitation totals in inches

Pontianak, Indonesia
Climate chart (explanation)
J F M A M J J A S O N D     260     32 23     215     33 23     254     33 23     292     33 23     256     33 23     212     33 23     201     33 22     180     33 23     295     33 23     329     33 23     400     32 23     302     32 22 █ Average max. and min. temperatures in °C █ Precipitation totals in mm Source: [3]
Imperial conversion J F M A M J J A S O N D     10     90 73     8.5     91 73     10     91 73     11     92 74     10     91 74     8.3     92 74     7.9     91 72     7.1     92 73     12     91 73     13     91 73     16     90 73     12     90 72 █ Average max. and min. temperatures in °F █ Precipitation totals in inches

Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Climate chart (explanation)
J F M A M J J A S O N D     227     33 24     193     33 24     270     34 25     302     34 25     230     34 25     146     33 25     165     33 24     174     33 25     220     33 24     284     33 24     356     32 24     281     32 24 █ Average max. and min. temperatures in °C █ Precipitation totals in mm Source: Monthly Statistical Bulletin Sarawak
Imperial conversion J F M A M J J A S O N D     8.9     91 75     7.6     92 75     11     93 76     12     93 76     9.1     92 77     5.7     92 77     6.5     91 76     6.9     91 76     8.7     91 76     11     91 76     14     90 75     11     90 75 █ Average max. and min. temperatures in °F █ Precipitation totals in inches

Davao, Philippines
Climate chart (explanation)
J F M A M J J A S O N D     140     31 23     109     31 23     108     32 24     125     33 24     159     33 25     187     32 24     165     32 24     170     32 24     170     32 24     175     32 24     138     32 24     113     31 24 █ Average max. and min. temperatures in °C █ Precipitation totals in mm Source: [4]
Imperial conversion J F M A M J J A S O N D     5.5     87 74     4.3     88 74     4.3     90 74     4.9     91 76     6.2     91 76     7.4     89 76     6.5     89 75     6.7     89 75     6.7     89 75     6.9     90 75     5.4     90 75     4.4     89 75 █ Average max. and min. temperatures in °F █ Precipitation totals in inches

Quibdó, Colombia
Climate chart (explanation)
J F M A M J J A S O N D     579     30 23     505     30 23     526     30 23     655     31 23     776     31 23     762     31 23     803     31 23     852     31 23     702     31 23     654     30 23     728     30 23     589     30 23 █ Average max. and min. temperatures in °C █ Precipitation totals in mm Source: [5]
Imperial conversion J F M A M J J A S O N D     23     86 73     20     86 74     21     87 74     26     87 74     31     88 74     30     88 73     32     88 73     34     88 73     28     87 73     26     87 73     29     86 73     23     85 73 █ Average max. and min. temperatures in °F █ Precipitation totals in inches

See also

• Tropics
• Monsoon climate
• Tropical savanna climate
• Köppen climate classification

References

1. McKnight, Tom L; Hess, Darrel (2000). "Climate Zones and Types". Physical Geography: A Landscape Appreciation. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall. pp. 205–8. ISBN 978-0-13-020263-5.
2. Climatologie Pierre Estienne Alain Godard, pages 309 and 316
3. Seidel, Dian J.; Fu, Qiang; Randel, William J.; Reichler, Thomas J. (January 2008). "Widening of the tropical belt in a changing climate". Nature Geoscience. 1 (1): 21–24. Bibcode:2008NatGe...1...21S. doi:10.1038/ngeo.2007.38. ISSN 1752-0908.
4. "Nicobar Islands rain forests". Terrestrial Ecoregions. World Wildlife Fund.