The word boreal, derived from the Latin boreas, means pertaining to the cold north wind, and boreal zone refers to the zone bordering the northern subpolar regions, especially comprising the evergreen forest stretching across North America and encompassing the northern cold winter climates. The boreal regions of the Earth are the Atlantic and Pacific North American areas, subarctic areas, Euro-Siberian areas, and other localized areas in Asia.
The macroclimate of the boreal zone resembles the climate of the Arctic tundra, which is marked by low precipitation, low temperatures, and a short growing season. The low angle of incidence of solar radiation keeps the summers short and cool, with only a few days in which summer afternoon temperatures rise to 30°C. Frosts are not uncommon in summer and winters are long and frigid. The short days of the winter months result in extremely low temperatures, often as low as −15°C to −20°C. Annual precipitation averages around 45–55 cms. Local boreal...
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Reference
Larsen, J. A., 1980. The Boreal Ecosystem. New York: Academic Press.
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© 1987 Van Nostrand Reinhold
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Lulla, K. (1987). Boreal zone . In: Climatology. Encyclopedia of Earth Science. Springer, Boston, MA. https://doi.org/10.1007/0-387-30749-4_28
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/0-387-30749-4_28
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