Geoscience Reference
In-Depth Information
Figure 4.6
Mean evaporation (mm) for January and July.
Source
: After M.I. Budyko,
Heat Budget Atlas of the Earth
(1958).
the wind is generally associated with the advection
of unsaturated air, which will absorb the available
moisture.
Water loss from plant surfaces, chiefly leaves, is a
complex process termed
transpiration
. It occurs when
the vapour pressure in the leaf cells is greater than the
atmospheric vapour pressure. It is vital as a life function
in that it causes a rise of plant nutrients from the soil
and cools the leaves. The cells of the plant roots can
exert an osmotic tension of up to about 15 atmospheres
