Which Climate Zone Has Cold, Snowy Weather Through the Year?

Ice Cap Climates

• Both the North Pole and South Pole have an ice cap climate, and even in the summer months the temperature barely rises above zero degrees Celsius (32 degrees Fahrenheit). Greenland and Antarctica are both prime examples of an ice cap climate where winters are long and dark due to the Earth's angle of rotation on its axis. Antarctica is in fact a continent covered by a gigantic sheet of ice that remains throughout the changing seasons.

Ice and Precipitation

• The large expanse of ice found at the poles actually helps to maintain the frigid temperatures by reflecting the sun's energy back into the atmosphere. Yet despite the constant ice, ice cap climates are actually dry regions that experience very little annual precipitation. When precipitation does occur, cold temperatures ensure that it will be snow no matter what month of the year.

High Elevation Climates

• Polar and even ice cap climate conditions are also found at high elevations in mountain ranges. On Tanzania's Mount Kilimanjaro, for example, the base has a tropical climate, while the summit experiences snow and polar conditions throughout the year. Glaciers cover 10 percent to 11 percent of the Earth's land area at any point in time, and according to the American Meteorological Society are found above the "snow line" on mountain ranges even in summer months.

Climate Change

• Ice cap climates are actually quite fragile environments, and satellite data from NASA clearly demonstrates that the ice cap at the North Pole is melting at a rate of almost 10 percent per decade. Record high temperatures cause the ice cap to melt, decreasing the area of reflective ice and contributing to even warmer temperatures as the Earth absorbs more heat. NASA scientists predict that under these conditions the Arctic could lose all of its summer ice in less than a century, effectively changing its climate.