Brazil experiences wide range of climatic variations due to its vast latitudinal extent, proximity to the Equator, presence of the Atlantic Ocean and the Great Escarpment. The northern part of Brazil near the Equator is hot, while temperate type of climate is found near the Tropic of Capricorn. Brazil gets rainfall from the South-East Trade Winds and the North-East Trade Winds blowing from the Atlantic Ocean. Convectional rainfall occurs in places near the equator. Whereas, the Escarpment act as an obstruction to the winds blowing from the sea and cause orographic type of rainfall in the coastal region. Beyond the Highlands the effects of these winds gets reduced, as a result the rainfall is minimal. This region is a rain-shadow region and is called ‘The Drought Quadrilateral.’ The Equator passes through the northern part of Brazil so the temperature here is high. Average temperature of Amazon valley is 25°-28°C. Climate is cooler in the highlands. While the temperatures in the southern part are comparatively lower. In the coastal regions near the Equator in Brazil, differences in temperatures are negligible. Because of the proximity to the sea, the coast experiences mild and humid climate. The winds move in the vertical direction in this region. Similarly, the convergence zone of the trade winds is weak here. So the tropical cyclones are a rare phenomena here.
