The climate of Ewlah is dominated by a number of factors: latitude, elevation, rainfall, ocean currents and seasonal variations. All areas of the continent recieve some rainfall, though some areas are substantially wetter than others - a much drier band crosses the continent at around lattitude 30°N, separating the southern tropics from the northern temperate regions.
The diversity of climates across the continent has led to the development of a number of different habitats, as shown on the map and table below. Note that even the driest of habitats receive some moisture, averaging around 150mm of rainfall in an orbit:
Mountainous habitats
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Northern mountains - North of latitude 33°N, the mountains become influenced by the turbulent temperate cyclonic weather systems. These mountains are cold, with wide annual temperature variations. Most of the water they receive falls during the northern hemisphere winter when the 30° latitude high pressures move south, drawing the cyclonic systems further inland. Summers are much drier, and there is significant water runoff from the mountains during spring. |
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Northern foothills - found both north and south of the dry belt, these habitats hug the mountains - generally on their drier sides. Clouds often pass over these areas without releasing much moisture, leaving these areas to gain most of their moisture from mountain runoff - particularly during the northern hemisphere spring melt. Temperatures tend to fall between those of the surrounding mountain and lowland habitats |
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North central mountains - located in the dry belt, these mountains are largely dry and cold, with wide daily temperature variations. Very little biological diversity has been discovered in these mountains. |
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Central mountains - these mountains include some of the highest mountains on the planet. They are largely dry and cold, with a reasonable temperature variation across the seasons. Permanent snowfields cover many of the mountain slopes, though the tops of the tallest mountains are bare. Glaciers have been discovered a number of the higher valleys. Rain and snow falls regularly on the mountain slopes throughout the year, with most water being released during the northern hemisphere spring melt. |
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South west mountains - cool temperatures with little variation in daily temperatures across the seasons. The annual monsoons affect these mountains, which receive much of their annual rainfall during the northern summer. |
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South east mountains - cool and wet climate, with little variation in daily temperatures across the seasons. There is a rich biodiversity of life at all altitudes across the mountains up to - and including - the snowfields at the mountain peaks. |
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Southern foothills - set firmly in the tropical zone, this habitat is confined mainly to the interior facing slopes of mountain ranges. Typically cool to warm, with a moderate amount of rainfall augmented by mountain runoff during the summer monsoon and typhoon seasons. |
Temperate belt habitats
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West coastal - sea temperatures off the west coast are generally cooler than off the north coast, which has an effect on land temperatures - which, even so, vary quite widely as cyclones pass over the area. The cyclones supply a steady amount of rain, making the west coast wetter than the north coast - northern hemisphere winters are generally wetter and colder than summers. |
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North coastal - mountains protect the northern coast from the worst of the cyclonic storms, and the waters off the entire northern coast are warmed by the great western oceanic current, which cools as it is shifted north by the shape of the coastline. The warm waters generate summer storms which regularly travel inland, meaning that the northern coast effectively receives as much rainfall as the western coast. |
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East coastal - the east coast habitat, confined to the far north-east of the continent, shares many similarities with the north coastal habitat (though it is warmer and wetter), but has a very different biological profile. |
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Northern valleys - the valleys and scrublands are intimately joined together as a habitat, the difference between them that the scrublands are higher and drier than the valleys. Both are warmer and drier than the northern coastal habitat as fewer storms penetrate this far inland - leading to hot, dry summers and cold, wet winters. The mountain runoff in the spring is a key part of the ecology of both. |
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Northern scrublands - similar to the northern valleys, but higher and generally windier. The scrublands retain less water after storms than the valleys. |
Dry belt habitats
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Western seasonal plains - along with the western constant plains, the seasonal plains make up one of the major biotypes of the continent. They are generally warm and dry, with seasonal variations. Most water comes from summer storms and mountain runoff to supplement the frequent fogs and mists which rise from the cold sea and move inland - meaning the interior portions are much drier than the coastal areas. The seas are cold due to the rising of cold, deep water along this portion of the western coast. |
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Western constant plains - the constant plains separate the northern and southern portions of the seasonal plains. Unlike the seasonal plains, the constant plains recieve almost no water from mountain runoff |
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Dry foothills - cutting across the constant plains are a series of low mountain chains - the continuation of the northern foothills into the dry belt. Temperatures and precipitation levels are generally lower than for the surrounding plains. |
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High desert - the Gromana high plateau and hills, found in the centre of the continent, form their own climate system. Very little water is found in this area, which is in the shadow of mountains on almost all sides, and the altitude of the plateau leads to generally cold temperatures - though the daily temperature range can be quite large. Even so, the high desert is host to a very intricate and quite diverse biology. |
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High desert valleys - what water there is across the Gromana high plateau tends to accumulate in the valleys formed by rivers that cut deeply through the surrounding area. These host wetter microclimates, though the temperatures remain similar to those experienced on the high desert. |
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Eastern plains - unlike the western plains, the eastern plains are much wetter - due mainly to the arrival of several typhoons each year which deposit large volumes of water on the land in a very short space of time. The eastern plains share a similar temperature range to the western seasonal plains, with the dryest periods occuring in the winter of the northern hemisphere. |
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Eastern hills - the eastern hills are effectively a continuation northwards of the eastern plains. Fewer typhoons manage to penetrate into this area, meaning it is generally drier and cooler than the plains, though it follows a similar pattern of seasonal variations. |
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Eastern interior - similar to the eastern hills, the eastern interior is a continuation of the eastern plains. This area is, however, considerably drier as it receives on average only two or three typhoon precipitations each orbit, leading to warm, dry summers and cool, drier winters. There is little mountain runoff to supplement the water available in the area. |
Tropical and sub-tropical habitats
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Western steppes - a seemingly dry, mountainous strip of western coastline that receives rain in the form of an occasional stray typhoon. Generally hot and dry summers are followed by cooler, dry winters. |
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Central lakelands - while this area recieves little in the way of direct rainfall, and is cool to cold for much of the orbit thanks to its elevation, it is a damp place thanks to the large lake surrounded by high mountains which supply it with an awful lot of water every spring. |
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High valleys - similar to the central lakelands, the high valleys receive little in the way of direct rainfall - apart from locally generated storms; most water in these areas comes from mountain runoff in the northernr hemisphere spring. Even so, they are warm and damp for much of the spring and summer, becoming hot and dry by autumn and cooler and dry in the winter. |
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East central valleys - these valleys have a similar climate to the high valleys though, being further south, they tend to be warmer throughout the orbit. The ecology of the area is unique. |
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Eastern uplands - geologically speaking, some of the oldest rocks on the planet have been found in the eastern uplands. The terrain is rugged and slightly cooler than the adjoining eastern plains, despite being further south, but equally as wet as this area receives as many typhoons as the plains in any given orbit. |
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Southern subtropical - slightly cooler than the southern tropical habitat, with slightly less rain and more seasonal variation - more rain falls during the summer and autumn months. |
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Southern tropical - hot and humid, with afternoon rain most days. Little temperature variation, though the variation does increase the further you move away from the coast and into the hills. |
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Southern coastal - a constantly wet and hot coastal strip that occupies much of the southern and southwestern coast of the continent. Rain is a daily affair, and temperature variations are minimal throughout the orbit. |
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South eastern hill lands - a similar, though wetter, climate to that of the southern foothills, this habitat around the Laoma mountains is unique, due mainly to the heavy predation by goats on the local ecology which has led to a range of distinctive adaptions. |
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South western monsoon lands - each summer in the northern hemisphere an area of low pressure builds over the south central part of the continent which leads in later months to heavy monsoons. For most of the rest of the orbit the climate is hot and dry, with only a few storms breaking the heat. |
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South central monsoon lands - the central low pressure that builds over the central part of the continent draws in a heavy, but intermittent, monsoon during the late summer and autumn. This monsoon weather is unique in being funnelled into the interior between high mountain ranges, capturing the water - which after the end of the monsoon season remains to form a regional climate of afternoon rains. Thus three distinct seasons can be found in this region: hot monsoon; followed by a slightly cooler rainy season; followed by an increasingly hot dry season. |