The stormy wind, sudden torrential rainfall, and sometimes the sunny, bright, and pleasant day! You may have sought the blossoming of the flowers in nature’s lap, the falling of the leaves, or the day with fog and the snow. Such ups and downs are known as seasons, the month of variations in the weather, and of course, the climate.
The blowing of your beautiful hair on the windy days, the lovely scene of the snow collection in your hands, and trekking during the lovely day often make you realize that our nature comprises various seasons throughout the year.
Season infers to the periods of the year that possess the changing weather patterns and the day lengths. The climate crisis, a pervasive issue all across the globe, is a negative consequence occurring in the season. Fundamentally, four seasons in our nature hail the spring, the summer, the fall, and finally, the winter.
Table of Contents
What comes about in the seasons?
All the seasons have their natural working mechanisms that change the weather for a short time and the climate for a prolonged period.
1. Spring
The spring season, no doubt, is the season of rebirth and the regrowth covering the months of March, April, and May. During spring, the seeds gradually develop roots, and the plants initiate to grow. The weather in the spring season does give pleasant and warmer weather.
The time during spring is suitable for most animals to give birth to their young ones and take care of the newborns. The hibernating animals do get out from the hibernation period.
Occasionally, there may be rainfall in the northern hemisphere during spring because the warmer air holds out more moisture; the air gets warmer instead of the colder air.
2. Summer
During summer, the heat becomes drier because of the excessive heat being absorbed. In such circumstances, the temperature may reach maximum and lead to the hottest day of the year. The regions closer to the equator suffer from warmer temperatures than those near the poles.
In the northern part of the equator, the summer entails the month of June, July, and August, while December, January, and February are in the case of the equator’s southern part. Increment in the temperature for a prolonged period may result in drought and undoubtedly create a cascade that hampers the thriving living creatures. In the summer, there are frequent massive forest fires throughout the globe.
3. Autumn (Fall)
Autumn is a season that possesses shorter days and longer nights with frequent thunderstorms and windy, cloudy, and rainy days. The temperature in the autumn season cools again. During this season, the plants initiate to remain in the dormant stage, and the leaves fall from the plants. It kicks off in September and ends in December in the northern hemisphere.
The animals prepare for the incoming colder season for their future adaptation, storing food or migrating to the warmer areas. The fall season changes constantly. There may be heavy rainfall in the autumn because the temperature layers from the warm to cool, causing the water droplets to form.
4. Winter
The winter season, as compared to other seasons, is a bit varied. It is the coldest season of the year, between autumn and spring. The people may experience heavy snowfall in some regions, while some could experience colder rainfall.
Intending to adapt to the animals, they warm themselves and find an alternative to change their appearance to adapt. It covers the months of December, January, and February. The winter season comprises the lowest temperatures and the shortest days.
You could seek the cascade hampers during the winter season. For instance, hypothermia is when a human’s body temperature drops below 35 degrees Centigrade.
Besides, it may result in frostbite, freezing tissue and skin. Thus, covering and drying your skin throughout the winter is highly recommended. The best option for the frostbite and hypothermia victim is to rewarm uttermost.
Seasonal variation
Do you wonder how the season changes throughout the year? The crucial cause behind it is its dependency on the Earth’s location. Because of it, both the features and the timing of the season do vary. It might make us think about why someone feels colder while someone hotter at the same time all across the globe.
Notably, the people closest to the poles experience more frigid winters while the pope is closer to the equator with hotter summers. These are the consequences of the seasonal variation resulting from the northern or southern hemisphere weather.
Those who experience summer in the northern hemisphere may encounter winter in the southern hemisphere. Each season possesses its weather patterns and the sunlight hours.
You may be evident by this example. When there is winter in the northern part of Europe, there is summer in Australia in the southern part. All these differences cause the nearest position of the Earth towards the sun in a particular period of the year. The Earth’s middle regions either do have one hot season throughout the year or only two of the seasons, viz. drier and the rainy season.
Causes of the seasonal cycling
The Earth’s spin axis tilts according to its orbital plane. It makes the seasons occur. Noteworthy, the seasonal cycling occurs by the Earth tilting towards the sun. Throughout the year, at various times, both the northern and the southern axis remain closer to the sun.
In such a situation, the hemisphere tilts towards the star, resulting in the summer season, while the tilting of the hemisphere away from the sun does experience the winter season. In this way, tilting the hemisphere determines which season to occur.
In the northern hemisphere, the month from December to February marks the winter, while March, April, and May are the spring or the autumn season, depending on the location. For the north, June through August experience the summer months and the winter in the southern regions.
Apart from these, the seasonal cycle is concluded massively by September, October, and November, indicating spring in the southern hemisphere and fall in the northern parts.
Factors influencing the seasons
The season is highly associated with climate. Influence on the climate has a positive correlation with that of the season. Numerous factors influence the seasonal cycle throughout the year. Check out the significant factors that affect the natural phenomena of the seasonal cycle as listed below in brief:
1. Sunlight
The season is highly influenced by the sun’s position and the Earth’s surface. During summer, the amount of heat is transferred to the ground at maximum. Reversely, the ground absorbs less heat, thereby causing a colder climate. There is a vital contribution of the Earth’s surface in determining whether to absorb or lose the heat.
Concerning the sunlight, darker regions with dense vegetation absorb excessive heat in summer compared to regions with snow and ice. The ice regions can undoubtedly lose heat, thereby experiencing the winter season.
2. Wind Patterns
Because of the less sunlight intensity, the cold air collection in the Northern hemisphere is initiated during winter. Reversely, excessive heating of the sunlight and the warm air in the northern hemisphere during the summer remain. It indicates that change in the season could dramatically alter the wind patterns.
3. Atmospheric circulation
The atmospheric circulation dramatically affects the seasons. The more regions exposed to the sunlight, the more heated the region is, like intensive heating in tropical regions. Such phenomena experience less seasonal variation in the incident sunlight.
Upon moving the polar regions, the warm air from the Earth’s surface pushes the air mass from the equator, and the precipitation occurs. After pushing away from the equator, the released moisture as precipitation contributes to the rainy season.
4. Global Warming
Earth goes through cooling and warming over the passing time throughout the year. There is no certainty that the Earth remains only on cooling or heating. The tremendous recent global warming scenarios have made the globe realize that global warming is the sole cause of anthropogenic interventions.
The alarming rate of deforestation and the excessive burning of fossil fuels has caused global warming, affecting the season’s natural working phenomena.
5. Elevation
The elevation is always inferred as one of the vital components in influencing the season. It is one of the crucial reasons behind the colder season despite the summer.
With the increase in the latitude, the regions get colder, and as a result, most of the living creatures could not sustain thriving over there. The continual storms occur in higher latitudes. Thus, the elevation determines the seasonal effects so far.
6. Earth’s Axis
The titling of the Earth severely influences the seasons. With a tilt of 23.5 degrees, the Earth determines where to point. Let me share one instance: When the Earth points out an exactly 90-degree angle towards or away from the spring and fall seasons in the northern hemisphere.
The phenomenon is exactly reversed in the seasons in the southern hemisphere. It causes the June month as the initiation of the winter month while December is the summer season.
Significance of the seasons in nature
As aforementioned, the seasons do vary according to climatic conditions. You may have pondered on how the seasons do impact our environment. We will take you to the significance of the various seasons throughout the year.
1. Vegetation growth
How do the seasons determine a plant’s growth and development? During the autumn season, the climate could not support the proper development of the vegetation as it goes into the dormant stage.
In spring, the favorable temperature does contribute to the plant’s sprout, blossoming of the cherries, and the lushness of the wildflowers in a wilderness, thereby supporting the growth massively. The sun-loving plants could thrive ideally upon gaining the heat at its peak during the summer and contribute to the rapid plant growth.
2. Animals adaptation
There are several ways by which animals adapt to the changing environment. The standard adapting techniques are hibernation (the winter sleep) and the aestivation (the summer sleep).
During the hibernation, they do rely upon the day temperature. When you consider the hibernating animal such as ground squirrels, bats, snakes, bumblebees, and much more, their body temperature, heartbeat, metabolic activities, and even breathing lowers down gradually in winter, intended to either conserve the energy for the future or sustain in the adverse weather and food scarcity.
When they undergo hibernation, they almost spare their time by resting or remaining in the inactive stage. The season prevents the internal body structure of animals from damaging because of the low temperatures.
During the aestivation stage, the reptiles and the amphibians entail salamanders, crocodiles, frogs, snails, earthworms, and more reach the dormancy state in the summer to save the energy; instead the winter. Remaining in the aestivation state does prevent the animals from losing energy at maximum.
3. Body metabolism
Every living creature requires body metabolism. Upon the seasonal change, your liver can boost fat production. The adipose and the non-adipose tissues store fat, aiming to prepare for the winter season.
4. Daily activities
Our daily activities often depend on the season. For instance, you prefer to be very relaxed during summer, and your clothes will be the summer outfit. Isn’t it? During winter, you try to cover yourselves with thick attires. The celebration and the recreation you carry dramatically rely on a seasonal basis.
To wrap up
Have you read the whole article? Did you find the article interesting to grab the ideas on the various seasons so far? It is very gripping to enjoy several seasons which occur throughout the year. The mood of your work relies upon the season that we go. Do you think you could add any information to enlighten the article? Come on. Keep your thoughts in the comment section below. We appreciate your valuable ideas and thoughts.
(Last Updated on June 24, 2022 by Sadrish Dabadi)
