tropical and subtropical steppe climate

tropical and subtropical steppe climate, major climate type of the Köppen classification that occurs primarily on the periphery of the true deserts in low-latitude semiarid steppe regions. Such regions are denoted by the abbreviation BSh in the Köppen-Geiger-Pohl system.

The major climatic groups are based on patterns of average precipitation, average temperature, and the natural vegetation found on Earth. This map depicts the world distribution of climate types based on the classification originally invented by Wladimir Köppen in 1900.Adapted from Arthur N. Strahler, Physical Geography, third edition; John Wiley & Sons, Inc.It is transitional to the tropical wet-dry climate on the equatorward side (showing a summer rainfall maximum associated with the intertropical convergence zone and a small annual temperature range) and to the mediterranean climate on its poleward margin (with a cooler, wetter winter resulting from the higher latitude and mid-latitude frontal cyclone activity). Annual precipitation totals are greater than in tropical and subtropical desert climates (38–63 cm [15–25 inches]). Yearly variations in amount are not as extreme as in the true deserts but are nevertheless large.