Climatology of Temperature and Precipitation Variability in the United States

摘要

The paper examines the seasonal and annual variance and standardized range for temperature and the seasonal and annual coefficient of variation and normalized standardized range for precipitation, on a climatic division level for the contiguous United States for the period 1895 to 1985. Examination of the temperature variance reveals a continentality phenomenon in which the largest variances occur in the upper midwest section of the country, while the smallest variances are generally found in coastal regions along the west coast, the Gulf coast and southeastern states. Examination of the coefficient of variation for precipitation depicts a propensity for the largest seasonal and annual variation to occur over the southwestern states from Texas to California.