Although Mark Twain never actually said the "coldest winter I ever spent was a summer in San Francisco," he did say that "you can never go without a coat in the summer in the city of San Francisco."

Question

Using what you know about the general behavior of local wind patterns, explain why the summer in San Francisco is so cold compared to nearby places in California at the same latitude.
What will be an ideal response?

Answer 1

Summers in San Francisco are cold because water absorbs heat much more efficiently than rock or soil. The rising heat from the land east of San Francisco results in warm air being replaced by cold dense air from over the cold Pacific Ocean. This landward movement of cold marine air results in cold summer days in San Francisco.