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In the visualization video it looks like the 70 degree latitude is much more uniform in approximately the eastern half of the country than the western half. In the east it basically just marches northward in a line from winter to summer, but in the west it's all over the place. (And not just on the coast.) Does this have something to do with prevailing winds? Elevation?

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It's all about the elevation. You can drive for hours on the east coast and be in the same relative eco-system. Here in the west, you drive an hour and can move through several. Start in a scorching red-rock desert and move in elevation to an alpine meadow in a short drive. And the temps drop 3°F for every 1k feet you gain in elevation.

Elevation explains temperatures staying cool in the mid-west. The California Current probably explains cool summer weather on the west coast: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/California_Current

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