The Botany of Iceland - 01.12.1930, Page 20

10
H. M0LHOLM HANSEN
often remains on the ground for a long time in the north country,
while this is more rarely the case in the south-west. In the south
country it may often happen that the lowland tracts are destitute
of snow for months on end. Here the precipitation is in the form
of rain, whereas, in the adjacent highland tracts it falls as snow.
Fog. In the cahn and rainy regions to the east and south, fogs
often occur, wliereas the more storm-blown west coast is rarely
visited by fog. Thus Berufjörður has no less than 171 annual davs
of fog, while Stj'kkishólmur has only 9 days of fog. Fog occurs most
frequently in summer, still even the winter months show a number
of foggy days on the east coast, about 10.
If on the basis of the above statements, we attempt to make a
comprehensive survey of the climate of the separate parts, we must
distinguish between a lowland climate and a highland climate.
The lowland climate is of a pronounced oceanic character with
but slight difference between the summer and winter temperatures.
The climate of the east country is cold, foggy, and rainy, with slight
circulation of the air. That of the south country is warmer, espe-
cially in winter. In the west country, again, the temperature falls
somewhat, and the precipitation is considerably less. Fog is rare,
but on the other hand, the weather grows very stormy. The north
country is the coldest, but on the other hand the driest. Fog and
storm are not very common (the station here is Grímsey, which
does not, probably, give a perfectly valid picture of the climatic
conditions of the north country).
The main difference between the north and south countries is
that the north country is more continental in character than the
south country. The summer temperature is very much the same for
both parts, the average for all stations being about 9—10° C., but
the winter is considerably colder in the north than in the south,
4° C. below zero in the north, 1° C. below zero in the south. The
difference between the warmest and the coldest month is 13.2° in
the north, but only 11° in the south.
The highland climate. The climate of the highland tracts is
considerably more continental than that of the lowlands. The sum-
mer temperature is very much the same in both places, but the
winter temperature is considerably lower in the highland tracts and