University:
Winston-Salem Forsyth County Schools
Course:
AP Environmental Science
Academic year:

2015
Views:

155

Pages:

11
Author:

dumbbuttt354xd4v

Wind  The horizontal movement of air from an area of high pressure to an area of lower pressure.  All winds are caused by differences in air pressure  Differences of air pressure are caused by unequal heat ing of the earth’s surface. How are winds measured?  By their direction and speed  By an instrument called the anemometer.  Wind Chill Factor- The increased cooling that a wind can cause Local Winds  Local winds- winds that blow over short distances  Local winds are caused by unequal heating of the earth’s surface. Land Breeze  At night land cools more quickly than water , so air over land becomes cooler than air over water.  The cool air blows toward the water from the land and moves underneath the warm air  The flow of air from land to a body of water is called a land breeze Sea Breeze  The sun heats land quicker than water, so during the day air over land becomes warmer than air over water.  The flow of air from an ocean or lake to the land is called a sea breeze. Monsoon  Sea and land breezes over a large region that change direction with the seasons are called monsoons. Global Winds  Winds that blow steadily from specific directions over long distances are called global winds.  Warm air rises at the equator and sinks at the poles causing winds at the earth’s surface to blow from poles to the equator.  The movement of air between the equator and the poles produces global winds Coriolis Effect  Because the earth is rotating , global winds do not follow a straight path.  The way the earth’s rotation makes winds curve is called the Coriolis effect  In the northern hemisphere the winds curve to the right  In the southern hemisphere the winds curve to the left. Global Winds  The major global winds belts are the trade winds, the prevailing westerlies, and the polar easterlies.  Latitude is the measure of distance north or south of the equator. Jet Streams  High speed winds