Subtropics

The subtropics (also known as semitropics) are the geographic regions of the Earth immediately north and south, respectively, of the two tropics: the Tropic of Cancer and the Tropic of Capricorn - i.e. above 23.5° N latitude and below 23.5° S latitude.

Related Topics:
Earth - Tropics - Tropic of Cancer - Tropic of Capricorn

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The term is not well-defined but it implies a range of latitudes between 23.5 and approximately 35 degrees. A subtropical climate implies that the screen temperature normally does not dip below 0?C. This is a threshold temperature for a wide gamut of plants. This applies to coastal California, southern Florida, coastal Australia, and coastal South Africa, for instance. The poleward limit is higher on the west coast of the northern continents and less on the east, because occasional cold snaps in winter reach further south in the east.

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Beyond that the climate is called ?temperate?, i.e. annual mean temperatures are less than 20?C whilst the warmest month averages over 10?C. E. Linacre 12/98

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