ECUADOR |
country information
general information on the country and climate overview
Ecuador is a republic in northwestern South America between Colombia and Peru and has 14 million inhabitants. The capital located in the Andean highlands (Sierra) at 2850 m is called Quito; the largest city of Guayaquil is located in the Pacific Coast Plain (called Costa). The country is named after the equatorial line that runs through the state territory, with the majority of it in the southern hemisphere. The Galápagos Islands belong to Ecuador and are located about 1000 km west of the coast.
climate
The climate of Ecuador is very diverse. The climate is characterized on the one hand by strong regional temperature differences due to different altitudes (0 to over 6000 m). On the other hand, the precipitation amounts are very different, due to differences in the topography and the Humboldt Current. Due to the proximity of the equator, the temperature distribution over the year is relatively even. Especially in the Sierra, there are pronounced day-night temperature fluctuations. The climatic differences are clear even within short distances. So the north of Quito is much warmer and drier than the south. Also, the summit of Illiniza Sur is glaciated, while the neighboring and practically equally high Illiniza Norte is mostly snow-free. Along the elevation profile, Ecuador distinguishes between Tierra Caliente (up to 1000 m), Tierra Templada (up to 2000 m), Tierra Fría (up to 3000 m), Tierra Helada (up to 4800 m) and Tierra Nevada (above). Within the first three of these elevation sectors (up to 3000 m), the climate differs due to very different amounts of precipitation, above which all regions are rich in precipitation.In der nördlichen Küstenregion mit tropischem Monsunklima gibt es eine ausgeprägte Regenzeit von Januar bis Mai. Im Andenhochland gibt es keine ausgeprägte Regenzeit, allerdings gelten die Monate von November bis Mai als die regenreicheren. Die Regenzeiten werden, trotz im Mittel leicht überdurchschnittlicher Temperatur, „Winter“ und die Trockenzeiten „Sommer“ genannt.
In the southern coastal strip rainfall of less than 250 mm per year can be found. On the Andeswesthängen the Costa come up to 5000 mm, on the western slopes of the Oriente even over 6000 mm of precipitation. In the Sierra, the valleys get only 250-500 mm of precipitation a year, while high altitudes often reach over 2000 mm. Except at extreme altitudes above 4800 m, rainfall is almost always as rain or hail.