Geography

Climate of Pakistan

Course Facilitator:
Inayat Magsi
 Climate of Pakistan
Climate: Climate is generalization
of the day to day weather
conditions over a long period of
time usually thirty years.
Weather: Weather refers to the
atmospheric conditions of any
place for a short period of time
(temporary changes in the
climate).
 Difference between
weather and climate
WEATHER: CLIMATE:
Weather is what Climate is how
conditions of the the atmosphere
atmosphere are "behaves" over
over a short relatively long
period of time. periods of time.
 Seasons of Pakistan

Pakistan has four seasons

Winter (Mid December to March)
Early summer (April to June)
Late summer (July to September)
Post monsoon (October to mid
December)
Seasons of Pakistan
 Rainfall
 The quantity of water, expressed in inches,
precipitated as rain, snow or storm in a
specified area and time interval.
 Only in a few northern areas humid
conditions are found. The rainfall in Pakistan
is highest in northern areas decreases
towards south.
 Sources of rainfall in Pakistan:
 Monsoon winds
 The Western Depression
 Convectional Currents
 Relief rainfall
 Tropical cyclones
 Monsoon winds
 Monsoon winds are seasonal winds which
blow during summer and winter. The summer
winds are called South-west monsoons and
the winter winds are called North-east
monsoons.
 South-west monsoon are giant sea breezes
which bring rainfall. the rains began when
the ocean are less heated and land is more
heated. The air from the land rises
developing a low pressure and it attracts the
cool air causing heavy rainfall.
 North-east monsoons blow from the land
towards the sea.
Monsoon winds
Monsoon winds
Monsoon winds
 The Western Depression

Western Depression are the

cyclones which originate in
Mediterranean Sea, they travel
across Afghanistan and Iran and
then reach the western part of
Pakistan. The moisture in the air
is evaporated causing rainfall.
The Western Depression
 Convectional Currents
Hot air rises during summer and when it
reaches the high layer of atmosphere,
condensation takes place causing
rainfall. Strong winds accompanying the
storms may pick up dust with them.
Only northern and north western areas
of Pakistan receive rainfall from
Convectional currents.
Southern Pakistan despite being more
hot then the northern areas experience
less rainfall because of temperature
inversion layer.
Convectional Currents
 Relief rainfall

Relief rainfall is related to the

height of land. It occurs where
moist unstable air moves up a
mountain edge and it is chilled,
heavy condensation takes place
and rainfall occurs.
Relief rainfall
Relief rainfall
 Tropical cyclones

Tropical cyclones bring heavy

rainfall for few hours and can
cause a lot of destruction. They
originate in Arabian Sea quite
often but rarely reach the coast
of Pakistan. Therefore, this
source of rainfall is totally
unreliable.
Tropical cyclones
 Climatic Division
of Pakistan
Pakistan's topographical features
range from lofty mountains in the
north to the coastal plains in the
south.
Climatic divisions of Pakistan are:
oHighland zone
oArid Zone
oLowland Zone - Semi arid to arid
oCoastal Zone
Climatic Division of Pakistan
 Climatic Division of
Pakistan
o Zone A indicates highland climate
prevailing over northern, north-western
and western mountains.
o Zone B has lowland climate, which prevails
over the whole of the Indus Plain.
o Zone C has coastal climate experienced by
the Makran Coast, Karachi Coast and Indus
Delta till the Rann of Kutch.
o Zone D has arid climate and includes the
south-eastern desert and south-western
part of Balochistan.
 Highland zone
 Region: Northern, north western and
western highlands.
 Areas: Chitral, Murree, Muzzafarabad,
Drosh, Quetta, Kalat, Parachinar,
Waziristan
 Climate: the winters are long, cold and
snowy and summers remain short and
mild
 Rainfall is normally associated with
altitude. Rainfall in Northern Mountain is
highest in the highland zone. Rainfall in
the western mountain is less
 The temperature conditions also vary
from north to west depending on the
altitude.
Highland zone
Highland zone
 Highland zone

Sources of rainfall
Relief rainfall
Monsoon rainfall
Thunderstorms
Western Depression
 Lowland Zone - Semi arid to
arid
 Region: Indus plain except the Coastal areas.
 Areas: Islamabad, Sialkot, Sarghoda, Multan,
Jacobabad, and Sukkur
 Climate: It has arid and extreme climate with
hot summers, cool winters and summer
monsoon rainfall.
 Thunderstorms are also common in north and
north-west of the Indus plain. The upper
Indus plain and Lower Indus plain there’s less
rainfall and spells of very high temperature.
 Winters are cool-mild because of low angle of
sun and continental effect and summers are
hot due to high angle of sun and continental
effect.
 Lowland Zone - Semi arid to
arid
 Life and Economic activities
 The plain is drained through four tributaries
of Indus River, economically; it is the most
productive region of Pakistan. There is a well
developed canal system and many crops are
grown there such as millet, wheat, cotton
and sugarcane
 Population is high and there’s moderate
rainfall and tolerable temperature.
 Sources of rainfall:
 Convectional rainfall in northern Punjab
 Western depression in northern Punjab
 Monsoon rainfall
 Coastal zone
Region: Indus Delta, Karachi and
Makran coast
Areas: Karachi, Jiwani, Pasni, Ormara
and Gwadar
Climate: The climate is dominated by
sea breezes throughout the year.
The temperature on land and sea is
different. In summer the land heats
up, while ocean remains cool.
In winter the land loses heat quickly
and becomes cold while ocean
remains hot.
The humidity level is usually high.
 Coastal zone
Life and Economic activities
 The rainfall takes place during monsoon
season, many tourist visit Karachi in
November and February and most of the
social events are held in these months.
 The development of Gwadar port had
made is a major district of Pakistan and
had contributed in the economic
development of Balochistan.
 However, during summer months, tropical
cyclones sometimes cause coastal
flooding in low-lying areas causing
damage to infrastructure. Fishing is
nearly impossible when the sea is wild
and fishing communities face losses.
 Coastal zone

Sources of rainfall:
 Monsoon rainfall
 Western depression
 Tropical cyclones
 Arid zone
 Regions: south-eastern desert, and south-
western Balochistan
 Areas: Kharran Desert south-western
Balochistan, south-eastern desert.
 Climate: It is markedly dry and hot. Hot dusty
winds prevail continuously from mid –May to
mid-September.
 rainfall takes place during winter season in
south-western Balochistan, in south eastern
desert monsoons bring little rainfall.
 Extreme heat, dust storms are the main
features of this arid climate.
 Winters are cool-mild because of low angle of
sun, summers are hot because of high angle
of sun. Summers are very hot during the day.
 Arid zone
Life and Economic activities
 The region is deficient of moisture.
 the temperature is so extreme that it isn’t
suitable for habitation or cultivation.
 The majority of people are nomadic, they move
from one place to another with their animals.
 Because rainfall is very low that’s why unique
system of karez is established.
 People there wear thick and rough clothes in
order to protect them from extreme heat.
 They move from one place to another in search of
water.
Source of rainfall
 Little rainfall from Western Depression and monsoon
winds.
 Factors affecting
temperature of Pakistan
 Latitudinal effect:
 The areas that lie near the equator encounter
more amounts of sun rays than the areas that
don’t lie near the equator. Southern Pakistan
receives more amounts of sun rays as
compared to Northern Pakistan.
 Continental effect:
 The areas that are away from the sea are
unaffected by maritime influence,
consequently; they are more hot as compared
to areas near sea. Winters are extreme and
summer temperatures are quite severe
 Factors affecting
temperature of Pakistan
 Altitude and temperature
 Cloud cover and temperature
 In daytime cloud cover reduces the amount of heat by
reflecting the heat back to the space but in night time it
traps the out going heat and because of this the cloudy
nights are warm.
 Latitude and angle of sun
 The sun rays don’t fall at the same angle everywhere.
 During summer, the northern hemisphere is tilted
towards the sun and the northern areas of Pakistan
absorb more heat because of high angle of sun, during
winter the northern hemisphere is tilted away from the
sun and the northern areas experience sun for shorter
duration.
 Storms
A storm is any disturbed state of an
astronomical body's atmosphere
especially affecting its surface, and
strongly implying severe. It may be
marked by strong wind, hail, thunder
and/or lightning (a thunderstorm),
heavy precipitation (snowstorm,
rainstorm), heavy freezing rain (ice
storm), strong winds (tropical cyclone,
windstorm), or wind transporting
some substance through
the atmosphere.
Storms
Storms
 River flood
Overflow of large amount of water
beyond its normal limit, especially
over what is normally dry land.
Rivers are considered by many
people around the country as the
best place for economic
development. Water is tentatively
an imperative resource for human
beings but its excess may lead to
disaster. Excessive water in rivers
bring flood.
 Reasons of floods
 The current flooding in Pakistan is mainly due to
climate change. It is the unusual climate-change-
led seasonal cycle of land temperature in
Pakistan that has exacerbated the monsoon
rainfall and produced the hugest volume of water
in the northern mountainous region of the
country ever recorded in the history, causing
floods in the Indus river basin.
 The wood is in demand and because of this
there’s excessive cutting of tress which increases
surface run off, the trees mangroves act as a wall
and they can protect the settlements from floods
but because of increasing industrialization and
urbanization the water pollution is increasing
threatening mangroves.
 The dams don’t have much capacity to store
water and because of this extra water is not
store causing flood.
 Effects of flood
 The farmers aren’t able to use the land
until the water drains; they face
destruction of crops and loss of food
supplies. The load of river improve the
fertility of land
 the houses will cut off from the shops and
services, mud houses are damaged and
water-borne diseases are spread
 The transport system is severely affected,
roads and railway tracks are damaged and
old routes are arduous to follow because
they are drained with water.
 Droughts
Drought is an extended period when a region
notes a deficiency in its water supply. A drought
can last for months or years, or may be declared
after as few as 15 days. Generally, this occurs
when a region receives consistently below
average precipitation
 There are four ways of categorizing drought
 Permanent drought:
 Exist where crop cultivation isn’t possible
 Seasonal drought:
 Occurs in areas with well-defined rainy and dry
season
 Invisible drought:
 It is the result of a water deficiency that reduces
crop yields
 Unpredictable drought:
 It is the result of abnormally low rainfall
 Causes of Drought
ooNatural
Unreliability of monsoon winds may lead to
seasonal drought
o The dry and hot winds can reduce the
moisture contents of sandy soil
o Global climate is constantly changing
leading to changes in Pakistan’s climate
ooHuman
Deforestation on foothills increase soil
erosion and reduces rainfall
o
o
Mismanagement of water resources
The disputed and unfair distribution of
water
o
o
Over grazing of land
Global warming
 Effects of Drought
o The effects of drought on physical environment
are sever, the land is turned into a desert and
because of this the soil is exposed leading to soil
erosion, many species are extinct because of
lack of food. There’s rise in temperature and
loss of vegetation, because of low precipitation
there’s extension of desert areas.
o Drought not only effect physical environment
but also human environment, drought affect
o Loss of life because of widespread famines,
malnutrition and health problems.
o Nomadic lifestyle because people migrate from
the areas that are affected by drought and
because of this urbanization is increased causing
an increase in domestic waste leading to water
pollution.
Droughts
Droughts
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