ABSTRACT

Weather starts with the energy of the sunlight, which heats the Earth and drives the process of photosynthesis. The quantity of sunlight that falls on an area varies each day because the Earth rotates. Florida faces the sun in daytime and is in the Earth's shadow at night. The most common weather regime in winter in Florida has rains from passing cold fronts, which are a part of the polar front. Strong winds that can cause damage are usually found in severe storms. Most of the thunderstorms that form within summer tropical air flows in Florida are large and full of clouds but are of only moderate intensity. Very severe thunderstorms that form in air that already has a spin may form tornadoes. For example, tornadoes form on the edge of hurricanes. Florida occupies the zone of climate that supports deciduous forest in northern counties and subtropical evergreen forest elsewhere.