Abstract
MR. KENDREW strikes new ground by giving a description of the actual climates of the regions of the world. The scope of the treatment must naturally vary with the nature of the original sources which are available, but no detailed local descriptions are attempted. A general knowledge of meteorology is assumed. There is no explanation of the omission of polar climates, north and south. Quite enough is now known of these climates to enable useful accounts to be included in a book of this sort. The oversight mars the usefulness of the volume. We notice that Mr. Kendrew adheres to the idea that the heating of north-west India furnishes an explanation of the south-west monsoon. The comparatively poor rainfall in the north-west he attributes to the previous course of the winds reaching that region, which has deprived them of much of their moisture. According to Dr. G. C. Simpson, the explanation is far more complex, and depends on several factors, of which one of importance is the dry upper-air current from the west, which prevents cloud formation in the ascending air. These and other recent theories regarding the monsoon are not discussed by Mr. Kendrew. There are many clear diagrams and maps, and numerous meteorological data. All students of geography will be grateful for this well-arranged and lucidly written volume.
The Climates of the Continents.
W. G.
Kendrew
By. Pp. xvii + 387. (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1922.) 21s. net.
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The Climates of the Continents . Nature 110, 630 (1922). https://doi.org/10.1038/110630b0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/110630b0