Search results
Results from the WOW.Com Content Network
The westerlies, anti-trades, [2] or prevailing westerlies, are prevailing winds from the west toward the east in the middle latitudes between 30 and 60 degrees latitude. They originate from the high-pressure areas in the horse latitudes (about 30 degrees) and trend towards the poles and steer extratropical cyclones in this general manner. [ 3 ]
The westerlies play an important role in carrying the warm, equatorial waters and winds to the western coasts of continents, [13] [14] especially in the southern hemisphere because of its vast oceanic expanse. The westerlies explain why coastal Western North America tends to be wet, especially from Northern Washington to Alaska, during the winter.
The term originally derives from the early fourteenth century sense of trade (in late Middle English) still often meaning "path" or "track". [2] The Portuguese recognized the importance of the trade winds (then the volta do mar, meaning in Portuguese "turn of the sea" but also "return from the sea") in navigation in both the north and south Atlantic Ocean as early as the 15th century. [3]
The weaker Westerlies of the Ferrel cell, however, can be disrupted. The local passage of a cold front may change that in a matter of minutes, and frequently does. As a result, at the surface, winds can vary abruptly in direction. But the winds above the surface, where they are less disrupted by terrain, are essentially westerly.
Though it’s looking less likely that 2024 will be one for the record books, experts still expect the season to be busier than normal. The season typically peaks around Sept. 10, but that leaves ...
For premium support please call: 800-290-4726 more ways to reach us
The westerlies and trade winds Winds are part of Earth's atmospheric circulation Easterly winds, on average, dominate the flow pattern across the poles, westerly winds blow across the mid-latitudes of the Earth, polewards of the subtropical ridge , while easterlies again dominate the tropics .
Where are they coming from? 'Drone sightings' prompt worries, but these theories could explain what's happening. Timeline: Mysterious drones start appearing in east. Nov 18: