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aridity

 
(ə′rid·əd·ē)

(climatology) The degree to which a climate lacks effective, life-promoting moisture.


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Geography Dictionary: aridity
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The degree to which a climate lacks moisture; in meteorology, the reverse of humidity. C. W. Thornthwaite's aridity index is based on the relationship between precipitation and potential evapotranspiration, and indicates the degree of water deficiency:

aridity index = 100dn
where d is the sum of monthly differences between precipitation and potential evapotranspiration when the former is less than the latter, and n is the sum of monthly values of evapotranspiration for the deficient months.

 
 
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Sci-Tech Dictionary. McGraw-Hill Dictionary of Scientific and Technical Terms. Copyright © 2003, 1994, 1989, 1984, 1978, 1976, 1974 by McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.  Read more
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