Transcript 16-3 - Laconia School District

Collin McCarn,
Kristian Brown
Tyler Smith
Chapter 16 Section 3
Winds
What causes Winds?

Differences of air pressure caused by
unequal heating of the atmosphere are
what cause winds.
Measuring

Measuring winds. An Anemometer is used
to measure winds. The anemometer has
three or four cups mounted at the ends of
spokes that spin on an axle.
Local Winds

Local winds are winds that blow over short
distances. They are caused by unequal
heating of the Earth’s surface within a small
area.
Monsoons

Monsoons are sea and land breezes over
a large region that change direction with
the seasons.
Global Winds

Global winds are winds that blow steadily
from specific directions over long distances.
Global Convection Currents

The movement of air between the equator
and the poles produces global convection
currents.
The Coriolis Effect

The way in which Earth’s rotation makes
winds curve is called the Coriolis Effect.
Global Wind Belt

Wind that blows steadily from a specific
direction over long distances is called the
Global Wind Belt.
Doldrums

Doldrums are regions near the equator
with either little or no wind.
Horse Latitudes


The Horse Latitudes are located 30
degrees north and south of the equator.
The air stops moving toward the poles and
sinks here.
. Hundreds of years ago, sailors ran out of
food and had to throw their horses
overboard. That is why the latitudes north
and south of the equator are called horse
latitudes.
Trade Winds

High pressure causes surface winds to blow toward
the equator and away from it.
Prevailing Westerlies

In the mid-latitudes, winds that blow toward
the poles are tuned toward the east.
Because they blow from the west to the
east, they are called Prevailing Westerlies.
Polar Easterlies

Cold air near the poles sinks and flows
back toward lower latitudes.The Coriolis
effect shifts these polar winds to the west,
producing winds called the polar easterlies.
Jet Streams

Jet Streams are bands of high speed wind about
10 kilometers above earth’s surface. These bands
of high speed wind are hundreds of kilometers
wide and a few kilometers deep. The winds blow
from west to east at speeds of 200 to 400
kilometers per hour. When these winds travel
easterly, the movement they take is in a wavy
manner north to south. Airplanes use the jet
stream when traveling to save time and fuel.