winds, although not truly monsoonal, involve differences in temperature
and in other climatic elements. The only well-developed monsoons on the
coast of the continents of higher latitudes are those of eastern Asia.
These are off-shore during the winter, giving dry, clear and cold
weather; while the on-shore movement in summer gives cool, damp and
cloudy weather.

_Mountain and Plateau Climate._--Both by reason of their actual height
and because of their obstructive effects, mountains influence climate
similarly in all the zones. Mountains as contrasted with lowlands are
characterized by a decrease in pressure, temperature and absolute
humidity; an increased intensity of insolation and radiation; usually a
greater frequency of, and up to a certain altitude more, precipitation.
At an altitude of 16,000 ft., more or less, pressure is reduced to about
one-half of its sea-level value. The highest human habitations are found
under these conditions. On high mountains and plateaus the pressure is
lower in winter than in summer, owing to the fact that the atmosphere is
compressed to lower levels in the winter and is expanded upwards in
summer.

The intensity of insolation and of radiation both increase aloft in the
cleaner, purer, drier and thinner air of mountain climates. The great
intensity of the sun's rays attracts the attention of mountain-climbers
at great altitudes. The vertical decrease of temperature, which is also
much affected by local conditions, is especially rapid during the warmer
months and hours; mountains are then cooler than lowlands. The
inversions of temperature characteristic of the colder months, and of
the night, give mountains the advantage of a higher temperature then--a
fact of importance in connexion with the use of mountains as winter
resorts. At such times the cold air flows down the mountain sides and
collects in the valleys below, being replaced by warmer air aloft.
Hence diurnal and annual ranges of temperature on the mountain tops of
middle and higher latitudes are lessened, and the climate in this
respect resembles a marine condition. The times of occurrence of the
maximum and minimum temperature are also much influenced by local
conditions. Elevated enclosed valleys, with strong sunshine, often
resemble continental conditions of large temperature range, and
plateaus, as compared with mountains at the same altitude, have
relatively higher temperatures and larger temperature ranges. Altitude