Summary - There are many controls on climate distribution. Primary among these are:
 

1. latitudinal variation in insolation
2. positions of high- (anticyclones) and low-pressure (cyclones) cells
3. nature of coastal currents (cold vs. warm, shore parallel vs. onshore-offshore)
4. prevailing winds
1. windward vs. leeward maritime position
2. windward vs. leeward montane position
5. maritime vs. continental position (land vs. water distribution)
6. mountains
7. altitude

1. Temperature (and more indirectly: precipitation, winds, currents, etc.) is primarily controlled by latitude; temperatures are highest in low latitudes, and vice-versa.
   
   
2. Each of the "world pressure belts" is associated with specific moisture characteristics (e.g. equatorial low = high precipitation amounts; polar highs = low precipitation.)
   
   
3. Seasonal variation in insolation (and associated variation in pressure) cause some areas to experience predictable seasonal variations in moisture.
   
   
4. The greater the distance from a large body of water (an ocean or very large lake), the more severe the seasonal conditions (i.e. continentality); the wider the continent, the greater the effects of continentality. The closer to large body of water, the greater the maritime influence. Upper air westerlies direct movement of most weather systems. As a result, maritime influence is greatest on the western margin of continents, and continentality increases toward the center of continents.
   
   
5. West coasts of continents tend to have more moderate temperatures and are drier; east coasts have more extreme temperatures and higher precipitation. This is due to a combination of ocean currents and pressure effects.
1. the trade winds blow westward at low latitudes and move warm, moist air toward, and create warm water currents off of, east coasts
2. the trade winds blow equatorward and parallel to the west coasts of most continents, this drives surface water offshore, resulting in upwelling of cold water
3. anticyclones are generally stronger on the eastern side of ocean basins (west coasts) than on the western side (east coasts)
   
   
6. Aridity is generally associated with areas of sustained high pressure, leeward sides of mountain ranges, or cold ocean currents.
1. High latitude (35-50 degrees) or "cold-winter" deserts tend to occur within, or on the western margins of, continents with western coastal mountain ranges.
2. Low latitude (15-35 degrees) deserts are centered around the subtropical high pressure zones, and are largest along, and inland of, their western margins.
   
   
7. Equatorial regions generally receive the highest amounts of precipitation and extend farther poleward in the middle and on the eastern margin of continents.
   
   
8. Precipitation is not evenly distributed throughout the year in many regions. This is most pronounced in the low to middle latitudes. At low latitudes this is due to migration of the ITCZ (intertropical convergence zone) and subtropical highs. At mid-latitudes migration of the polar front and subtropical highs vary precipitation. These migrations are a response to seasonal variations in insolation.
   
   
9. Mid-latitude regions (30-50 degrees), especially those far inland, generally have the greatest seasonal change in conditions (seasonality).
   
   
10. An increase (or decrease) in altitude is analogous to an increase (or decrease) in latitude.
    
    
11. The southern hemisphere has no microthermal (subpolar) climates due to the limited area of its land masses at the appropriate latitude.