Climate in Indonesia – Climate is the average weather condition over a long period of time in an area or zone. Climate is measured by humidity, rainfall, temperature, atmospheric pressure and wind direction.
However, not only that, you need to know that the climate is affected by latitude, altitude, region or area, and the waters that are nearby. The science that studies the climate of a region is called climatology.
The definition of climate itself can also be used as a determinant of aspects of life, such as what types of plants and animals can grow and live in the area.
Overall, the climate in Indonesia is a tropical climate. This means that the climate in Indonesia is classified as warm, tends to be hot and humid throughout the year. With this tropical climate, Indonesia only has two seasons, namely the dry season and the rainy season.
In some countries, the main factor that determines climate is air pressure or temperature. However, climate change in Indonesia is determined by the rainfall factor. This can be proven by the average humidity in Indonesia of around 65% – 90%.
Indonesia has several types of climate, most of which have a tropical rainforest climate with the highest rainfall, followed by a tropical monsoon climate , and a tropical savanna climate with the lowest rainfall.
In addition to the climates mentioned above, Indonesia also has a marine climate and a subtropical highland climate in several highland areas in Indonesia, namely at an altitude of approximately 1,500 to 3,500 meters above sea level (masl). Then, in the mountainous region, precisely in Papua, it has a tundra climate.
However, in essence, Indonesia is a country that has 3 types of climate, namely seasonal climate (monsoon climate), tropical or tropical climate (hot climate), and marine climate. Based on these three climates, it is the tropical climate or hot climate that is very attached to Indonesia and is known by many people, as explained in the first paragraph.
The tropical climate itself is the climate that belongs to an area or country that is around the equator. Thus, not many countries have this tropical climate where the sun will shine brightly in that area.
So don’t be surprised if many foreign tourists, especially from countries with subtropical to moderate climates, are very happy to come to Indonesia to simply bask in the hot sun.
So, what and how is the climate in Indonesia? So, for more details, see the explanation below, come on!
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3 Types of Climate in Indonesia
The following will briefly describe the 3 types of climate in Indonesia.
1. Seasonal Climate (Monsoon Climate)
Seasonal climate or commonly referred to as the monsoon climate is one type of climate that is owned by Indonesia. The monsoon climate or season occurs due to the influence of the monsoon winds which blow in Indonesia and change direction every six months.
The monsoon wind that blows changing directions will have a different climate effect or impact on the country of Indonesia every half year. Then, monsoon winds in every direction will have an impact, both positive and negative.
Monsoons are divided into two, namely southwest monsoons and northeast monsoons. In fact, because of this monsoon, Indonesia has two distinct seasons, namely the dry season and the rainy season
For more details, try to see the discussion below regarding the southwest monsoon and northeast monsoon.
Southwest Monsoon
The southwest monsoon is a monsoon wind that blows and blows from the southwest or the Asian continent. Because it blows from the southwest, this monsoon wind passes through a very wide ocean causing Indonesia to experience the rainy season because the wind carries quite a lot of water vapor from the various oceans it crosses. The southwest monsoon blows from October to April.
Then, because of this southwest monsoon wind, Indonesia experiences a rainy season, which has several impacts on living things and the natural environment. There are positive impacts and negative impacts.
The positive impacts of the west monsoon wind include enriching the soil, helping farmers harvest, abundant availability of water, more fertile and green plants, and all living things, both humans, animals and plants, benefit because they will have no trouble finding water.
Behind the positive impacts, there are also negative impacts from the southwest monsoon, including continuous rain which will cause major flooding, some farmers experience crop failure because the rain often falls to inundate the fields, the environment becomes muddy, there are many seeds of disease, and the process of breeding insects will increase.
Northeast Monsoon
Contrary to the southwest monsoon, the northeast monsoon blows from the northeast. In other words, this wind will carry many elements or particles from the desert (because it crosses the desert) so that Indonesia experiences a drought where rain does not always come and fall.
Like the west monsoon, the east monsoon also has an impact on Indonesia. The positive impact of the northeast monsoon is that the sun will shine hotly so that it will be beneficial for living things, such as for sunbathing, and so on. Then, accelerating the rice drying stage for farmers and there are no obstacles when doing activities outside.
Meanwhile, the negative impact of the northeast monsoon, among others, is that many plants dry up, even die due to lack of water, then water sources will become scarce if rain does not fall. Not only that, all living things, both humans, animals and plants or plants will be bothered to find and get water sources.
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2. Tropical or Tropical Climate (Hot Climate)
Next is the hot climate or what is known as the tropical climate. Unlike the monsoon climate or monsoon climate caused by southwest and northeast winds, this tropical climate is caused by Indonesia’s astronomical position.
As previously explained, regions, regions or countries that are on the equator only have a tropical climate, and this is also experienced by Indonesia. Indonesia is a country whose territory is traversed by the equator so that it has a hot or tropical/tropical climate.
Tropical or tropical climates or hot climates are climates that are between 23.5 degrees north latitude to 23.5 south latitudes and cover almost 40% of the earth’s surface.
The tropical climate or tropical climate makes Indonesia a country that is rich in sunshine and has a high level of rain. This will bring a lot of not only profit, but also loss.
The benefits that can be obtained from this tropical or tropical climate, among others.
- Indonesia gets enough light from the sun so that plants or plants can grow and develop very fertile.
- With the hot sun, many foreign tourists visit Indonesia just to sunbathe.
- Indonesia has a fairly high level of rainfall so that the soil in Indonesia is very fertile and many plants are suitable for planting in Indonesia.
3. Marine Climate
Next there is the marine climate. Maybe some of you ask, why does Indonesia have a sea climate? This is because the region or territory of the Indonesian state is dominated by the sea. That is what causes Indonesia to be a country that has a marine climate.
What is meant by marine climate? Marine climate is a climate that brings a lot of rainfall that is humid. That way, Indonesia will experience a long-term rainy season.
Then the sea climate will bring a lot of comfort to the Indonesian people. Why is that? This is because the marine climate has many advantages that can be said to help the Indonesian people. This marine climate includes tropical, subtropical, and temperate climates.
That was the discussion about the three types of climate in Indonesia. Due to Indonesia’s geographic and astronomical location, Indonesia has three different climates, as explained above. Thus, the three climates are very dynamic in Indonesia and also result in several benefits that can be felt by the Indonesian people themselves.
Natural Events that Affect the Climate in Indonesia
The climate in a country is also influenced by the surrounding area of the country. Apart from the surrounding area, sometimes there are several world events that will affect the climate in a country. It is the same with the climate in Indonesia which can be affected by several natural events. The following are natural events that affect the climate in Indonesia.
1. El Nino and La Nina
It’s no stranger to hearing the terms El Nino and La Nina. In short, El Nino is one of the most influential natural events for Indonesia, where it can reduce the level of rain in most parts of Indonesia. Meanwhile, La Nina can cause the level or rainfall in most parts of Indonesia to decrease the temperature at sea level.
2. Intertropical Wind Meeting Areas
What is meant by an intertropical wind meeting area? The intertropical wind meeting area means a hot area that tends to always rise so that there is rarely wind in that area. This area or area has a meeting between the southeast trade winds and the northeast trade winds which have an impact on the lifting of the air and can give rise to convective storms. This will greatly affect the climate in Indonesia.
3.Dipole Mode
Dipole Mode is an event characterized by an anomalous difference in sea surface temperature, namely between the tropical Indian Ocean in the western hemisphere and the Indian Ocean in the eastern hemisphere. The anomaly itself has conditions that tend to be colder, even colder than normal conditions or conditions in general.
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Impact of Climate Change in Indonesia
The following are some of the impacts of climate change in Indonesia based on reports from the Bright Indonesia Foundation, among others.
1. Rising Sea Level: Rob Floods
It has been calculated that from 2000 until later in 2030, rising sea levels will cause tidal flooding with a percentage of 19% to 37%. Java Island is considered quite vulnerable to tidal flooding and will be even more vulnerable in 2030, followed by half of northern Sumatra. In fact, South Sulawesi, which has not experienced tidal flooding, will experience an increased risk in 2030.
Rising sea levels coupled with uncontrolled development expansion could result in damage of US$400 million or the equivalent of Rp.5.8 trillion for Indonesia’s territory in 2030.
2. Extreme Forest Fire
Eastern Sumatra and East Kalimantan are predicted to experience a temperature increase of up to almost 4 degrees Celsius and rainfall will decrease by 12 percent in 2070 to 2100. This will certainly result in 55 days of extreme forest fires per year in the East Kalimantan region in the.
Then, on the island of Sumatra in the eastern hemisphere, the total days of danger from extreme fires tend to increase each year, from 17 to 64 days (under a high emission scenario).
3. Risk of Drought Increases
The risk of drought will increase together with the potential risk of extreme forest fires. The areas of southern Kalimantan and northern Sumatra in 2071 to 2100 will experience a drought of around 20 to 30 percent. Meanwhile, the Java region and the southern part of Sumatra will become drier by around 30 to 40 percent in that year.
4. Extreme Heat Wave
Indonesia is expected to experience more than three extreme heat waves, namely between 2020 and 2025. Then, extreme heat waves every two years between 2068 and 2100.
This extreme heat wave has the same intense size or could be bigger when compared to the extreme heat wave in Russia in 2010 which killed approximately 55 thousand people, destroyed approximately 9 million hectares of plants, caused forest fires, and killed all the birds that is in the city of Moscow.
5. Increased Flood Risk
Floods from overflowing river water resulted in a loss of US$5.5 billion or the equivalent of 79 trillion rupiah. Climate change in Indonesia can increase the damage in the economic sector as a result of overflowing river floods by up to 91 percent in 2030.
High levels or rainfall will result in more severe flooding in several areas in Sumatra, Sulawesi, Kalimantan, Papua and Maluku Island.
6. The Disappearance of Coral Reefs and Marine Tourism
In Indonesia, 29 percent of tourism is outside urban areas, to be precise on the coasts of islands. Globally, coral reefs are predicted to experience a fairly drastic decline, even if global warming is limited to 1.5 degrees Celsius, the remaining corals still have the potential to generate tourism revenue.
Then, at 2 degrees Celsius, most of the coral reefs will be invisible or disappear. This could result in marine tourism disappearing from Indonesia.
7. Delayed Growth in the Economic Sector
Indonesia has experienced an average annual loss of approximately US$45 million between 2000 and 2019 due to climate change-related natural disasters and is likely to increase substantially.
Economists also predict that in the scenario of very high emissions and climate change, Indonesia’s GDP growth or Gross Domestic Product could reach US$8,800 per capita in 2100. This of course intersects with the scenario of no climate change. That way, per capita income in Indonesia will jump to 38,500 US dollars in that year.
In addition to the impacts above, of course the impact of climate change in Indonesia has also resulted in a decrease in rice and coffee production, as well as an increase in damage from hurricanes.
That’s information about the climate in Indonesia. If Sinaumed’s is interested and wants to broaden his knowledge regarding climate in Indonesia or climate in the world, of course you can find, buy, and read his books at sinaumedia.com and sinaumedia Digital because sinaumedia is always #Friends Without Borders for those of you who want to gain knowledge.
Hopefully this article can add to your insight, okay!
Author: Tasya Talitha Nur Aurellia
Source: from various sources
Do you know how many seasons there are in Indonesia? and what are the names of those seasons?
Come on, find out while working on fun activities about the seasons and the weather in this book. You can also draw, count, and do other activities while learning more about the seasons and weather. Must be fun, right ?