why do coastline areas tend to have more moderate temperatures than inland areas?

Question

(only change 10-15 degees overnight where as inland changes 15-30 overnight?)
this is a chemistry ? and has to deal with specific heat of water?

Answer 1

Because it takes longer for the water to change tempature than the surface of the land.

Try starting at this link
http://www.srh.noaa.gov/srh/jetstream/ocean/seabreezes.htm

The ability for the ocean to absorb and store energy from the sun is huge. This is due to...

The transparency of the water that allows the sun's rays to penetrate deep into the ocean. In clear, tropical water, light can reach a depth of 500-650 feet (150-200 meters) meaning that is takes a great amount of heat to raise the temperature over such a large volume of water, and


The constant turbulence from wind and weather continually mix the water distributing heat over large volumes requiring even more heat to raise the temperature.
In contrast to the ocean, the sun's rays do not to penetrate deep into dry ground but are confined typically to just a few inches at the top. Consequently, the land on a daily basis, while it heats up many times more rapidly than the ocean also can loose that heat just as rapidly at night.

Answer 2

The coastal areas have a moderate temperature than inland areas due to the following reasons:-
(1)The specific heat of water is more than that of the soil.Therefore a sea surface gets less heated than a land surface.
(2) Soil is a poor conductor of heat.Hence the solar insolation heats a very thin layer of air immediately above the ground by conduction.On the other hand,the heating effect of the solar radiation penetrates to a considerable depth in the sea water.Therefore the air above the sea surface does not get that much oppertunity to be heated by solar radiation.Moreover, the solar radiation is utilised in evaporating the water from the surface only and therefore not in rising the temperature.
(3)Land, being a good absorber of heat is also a good radiator of heat.Therefore, the diurnal range of temperature is larger over the land surface than on a sea surface.
(4)During night, the abundance of water vapour on a sea surface exercises a blanketing influence by absorbing the out-going radiation and re-radiating some of it back to the sea surface keeping it warm.
In the case of coastal stations ,they are influenced by the above mentioned temperature and humidity condtions over the adjacent sea areas.
(5)Further the sea-breeze and land-breeze along the coastal stations bring a thorough mixing of the air over the sea and the adjacent land, making the coastal stations experience a moderate climate.

Answer 3

Jeewhiz, do you think the adjcent body of water might have something to do with it?