The climate of the United States varies due to differences in latitude, and a range of geographic features, including mountains and deserts. The continental United States lies in the temperate zone, north of the Tropic of Cancer, although far southern Florida has a tropical climate. West of the 100th meridian, much of the US is semi-arid to arid, even desert in the far southwestern US. East of the 100th meridian, the climate is humid continental in the northern areas (locations above 40 north latitude), to humid temperate in the central and middle Atlantic coast regions, to humid subtropical in the Gulf and south Atlantic regions.