This type of climate has very big changes in temperature throughout the year. In winter, temperatures can drop to -40 °C (also -40 °F) and in summer, the temperature may go above 30 °C (86 °F). But the summers are short, as there are no more than three months of the year with an average temperature of at least 10 °C (50 °F). However, at least one must have an average temperature of at least 10 °C (50 °F) . In addition, the coldest month must be below 0°C (32°F) The subarctic climate is in between the humid continental climate and the polar climate. The subarctic climate is found in the these places:
With 5–7 months in a row where the average temperature is below freezing, all water in the soil and subsoil freezes several feet deep. In the colder parts of this climate, summer warmth is not enough to "thaw" (unfreeze) more than a few feet on the top of the soil, so there can be "permafrost"(soil that is frozen forever). When the ice melts in the summer, 2 to 14 ft (0.6 to 4 m) of soil can thaw, depending on the latitude and the type of soil. Some subarctic climates near oceans (such as southern Alaska and the northern edge of Europe), have milder winters and no permafrost, so it is easier to farm there.
Summer is very short; it has about 45 to 100 days at most, and in a lot of places, the temperatures can go below freezing (32 °F or 0 °C) at any time of the year, even in the summer. Vegetation (plants) in a subarctic climate usually has low diversity (only a few different types of plants grow), because only "hardy" (very tough) species can survive the long winters and make use of the short summers. Trees are mostly evergreen conifers, because few "broadleaved" (big leaves) trees can survive the very low temperatures in winter. This type of forest is also known as taiga. The word "taiga" can also be a name for the climate itself. A lot of plants grow in the taiga (even if there are only a few different kinds of plants), so the taiga (boreal) forest is the largest forest biome on the planet, with most of the forests in Russia and Canada.
Is it usually very hard to farm in subarctic climates, because the soil is "infertile" (it doesn't have the nutrients that many plants need to grow) and because of the many swamps and lakes that ice sheets make, and only very tough crops can survive the short growing seasons. On the plus side, the days last longer in the summer as you get closer to the poles. So the plants that can grow get a lot of sunlight. Potatoes, strawberries, blueberries and hay for animals grow well. Special varieties of other plants may grow as well.
There is very little precipitation (rain, snow, sleet, or hail); no more than 15 to 20 inches over an entire year. Rain and snow may stay above ground until the ground melts. This means that when the precipitation does soak into the ground, it can be very wet and muddy.
Close to the Earth's poles and the water around the poles, the warmest month has an average temperature of less than 10 °C (50 °F), and the subarctic climate turns into a tundra climate, which is even worse for trees.
Here are some places with subarctic climates:
Some places in the climate group "Dfd" (a very, very cold subarctic climate) are:
ONS coding system
The ONS coding system is a system used in the United Kingdom for dealing with census and other statistical data. It is used by the Office for National Statistics as a way to label each area of England and Wales. It is also used for parts of Northern Ireland. The system uses a code for the larger census areas, counties and districts. It then breaks those areas down into smaller areas within the larger areas. Each of the smaller areas get a code that is based on the larger area. Areas are divided in this way until they get to the smallest size used for census data. An area must have at least 40 households, but they try to not divide an area into a size smaller than 100 households.
Michael Tippett
Sir Michael Kemp Tippett OM CH CBE (2 January 1905 – 8 January 1998) was an English composer. He is one of the greatest and most original composers of the 20th century. He did not start to study music seriously until he was nearly grown up, and only become famous when he was about 40. The rhythms in his music and the tonality are very original. He is remembered for many kinds of music: opera, oratorio, orchestral music, chamber music and piano music. His oratorio "A Child of our Time" is especially well-known and often performed by choirs.
Tippett was born in Eastcote, Middlesex and spent his childhood in a small village in Suffolk. His father had retired and had bought a hotel in Cannes, France. Michael and his brother learned to speak French when they were very young. He was sent to school in Edinburgh when he was 13 but did not like it there so he went to the local Stamford Grammar School in Lincolnshire.
The only musical training he had as a child were his piano lessons. When he had finished his school years he decided he wanted to be a composer, but neither he nor his parents knew the best way to become a composer. He started having more piano lessons. Then someone said he should go to the Royal College of Music. He went there at the beginning of the summer term, 1923 and spent five years there studying music. He then moved to Oxted in Surrey and for six years he taught French at a school. He composed in his free time.
In Oxted there was a small choir. Tippett had sung with them while he was a student. Now he became their conductor and he learned a lot about music by getting the choir to sing English madrigals and other music including operatic music. He took some more lessons in composition from R.O.Morris at the RCM. He went to music camps where he learned more ideas about politics than about music. He agreed with a lot of the ideas of Trotsky. He became a pacifist and in 1940 he registered as a conscientious objector. In 1943 he spent three months in prison because he refused to help with the war effort.
Meanwhile, Tippett had become director of music at Morley College. He made the choir there into one of the best choirs in England. He played a lot of music by Henry Purcell whose music was not as well known then as it is now. He also worked with young musicians who later became famous: the tenor Peter Pears, the countertenor Alfred Deller and the Amadeus String Quartet.
In 1951 he became a broadcaster with the BBC. Some of the talks he gave on the radio were published in his book "Moving into Aquarius". He continued a brilliant career as composer, conductor and broadcaster. He was director of the Bath Festival which he helped to improve a lot. He became internationally famous, especially in America. His "Symphony no 4" and his oratorio "Mask of Time" were written for performances in America. His last opera "New Year" was written jointly for the Houston Grand Opera, Glyndebourne and the BBC. He was made a CBE in 1959, knighted in 1966, made a Companion of Honour in 1979 and received an Order of Merit in 1983. He received many honours from universities.
Tippett died from pneumonia in London in 1998 after travelling to Stockholm for a festival which included all his works except his stage works. Although he was able to return home he died shortly afterwards.
It is unusual for a great musician to begin studying music properly at the age of 18. However, he was old enough to realize that he had a lot to learn. He studied counterpoint and was influenced by the way Classical composers had shaped their music. Beethoven especially was an inspiration for him. One of his best-known works is the "Concerto for Double String Orchestra" (1938-1939). It shows his love of folk music as well as interest in English music of the Renaissance. This music is exciting because of its beats, which keep changing, and its dance-like character.