Facts about Wind
Early mariners relied on these winds to propel their ships from Europe to North and South America.
Microscale winds take place over very short durations of time—seconds to minutes—and spatially over only tens to hundreds of meters.
The turbulence following the passage of an active front is composed of microscale winds, and it is microscale wind which produces convective events such as dust devils.
Winds at the next lowest level of magnitude typically arise and fade over time periods too short and over geographic regions too narrow to predict with any long-range accuracy.
Some local winds blow only under certain circumstances, that is, they require certain temperature distributions.
Synoptic winds are winds associated with large-scale events such as warm and cold fronts.
Such a wind is said to be cyclostrophic, and is characterized by rapid rotation over a relatively small area.
Synoptic-scale winds result from pressure differences in surface air masses in the mid-latitudes.
Synoptic winds occupy the higher boundary of what is considered "forecastable" wind.
Such winds may undergo a temperature increase of 20 °C (36 °F) or more, and many of the world's "named" winds (see list below) belong to this group.
Among the most well-known of these winds are the chinook of Western Canada and the American Northwest, the Swiss fцhn, California's infamous Santa Ana wind, and the French Mistral.
Most often, this is in the context of winds such as the chinook or the fцhn, which undergo lifting by mountain ranges before descending and warming on the lee side.
Differential heating is the motive force behind land breezes and sea breezes (or, in the case of larger lakes, lake breezes), also known as on-shore or off-shore winds.
A widely-used term, though one not formally recognised by meteorologists, is orographic wind.
In almost all circumstances, the horizontal component of the wind is much larger than the vertical — the exception being violent convection.
Early mariners relied on the "trade winds" (or "trades") to carry them across oceans.
Many of the 2004 presidential candidates attended Yale: Bush, John Kerry, Howard Dean, and Joe Lieberman.
In ancient Greek mythology, the four winds were personified as gods, called the Anemoi.
The ancient Greeks also observed the seasonal change of the winds, as evidenced by the Tower of the Winds in Athens.
Forces that drive the wind or affect its patterns include the pressure gradient force, the Coriolis force (based on the planet's rotation), buoyancy, and friction.
Other winds, such as sea breezes, are a consequence of geographic features.
On the smallest scale are microscale winds, which blow on a scale of only tens to hundreds of meters and are essentially unpredictable, such as dust devils and microbursts.
Mountain breezes are one example of what is known more generally as a katabatic wind.
At the same time, winds always flow from areas of high pressure to areas of low pressure.
Today, wind turbines are being built in some parts of the world to generate electricity.
Others harnessed the power of the wind to drive windmills used for grinding grain and pumping water.
Their name derives from the Middle High German trade, akin to Old English trod meaning "path" or "track," and thus the phrase "the trade wind blows," that is to say, on track.
Some are known as global winds, such as the wind belts that exist between the atmospheric circulation cells.
Prevailing winds are those that are a consequence of global circulation patterns.
Most often, this term refers to winds which form when air which has cooled over a high, cold plateau is set in motion and descends under the influence of gravity.
Others, known as eolian (or aeolian or жolian) winds, reshape landforms by processes such as large-scale erosion and dune formation.
The term жolian is derived from the name of the Greek god Жolus, the keeper of the winds.
The result is that the Trades feed into the Westerlies, and thus provide a continuous zone of wind for ships traveling between Europe and the Americas.
The Westerlies, which can be found at the mid-latitudes beneath the Ferrel circulation cell, likewise arise from the tendency of winds to move in a curved path on a rotating planet.
The opposite of a katabatic wind is an anabatic wind, or an upward-moving wind.
Winds of this type are common in regions of Mongolia and in glaciated locations.
Wind turbines operate on a simple principle. The energy in the wind turns two or three propeller-like blades around a rotor. The rotor is connected to the main shaft, which spins a generator to create electricity.
Wind power is the use of air flow through wind turbines to mechanically power generators for electric power. Wind power, as an alternative to burning fossil fuels, is plentiful, renewable, widely distributed, clean, produces no greenhouse gas emissions during operation, consumes no water, and uses little land.
It's a clean fuel source. Wind energy doesn't pollute the air like power plants that rely on combustion of fossil fuels, such as coal or natural gas, which emit particulate matter, nitrogen oxides, and sulfur dioxide—causing human health problems and economic damages.
Wind turbines convert the kinetic energy in the wind into mechanical power. This mechanical power can be used for specific tasks (such as grinding grain or pumping water) or a generator can convert this mechanical power into electricity.
Wind energy (or wind power) describes the process by which wind is used to generate electricity. Wind turbines convert the kinetic energy in the wind into mechanical power. A generator can convert mechanical power into electricity. Mechanical power can also be utilized directly for specific tasks such as pumping water.Dec 6, 2017
From old Holland to farms in the United States, windmills have been used for pumping water or grinding grain. Today, the windmill's modern equivalent - a wind turbine - can use the wind's energy to generate electricity. Wind turbines, like windmills, are mounted on a tower to capture the most energy.
Wind turbines convert the kinetic energy in the wind into mechanical power. This mechanical power can be used for specific tasks (such as grinding grain or pumping water) or a generator can convert this mechanical power into electricity to power homes, businesses, schools, and the like.
This is done by using a large wind turbine usually consisting of propellers; the turbine can be connected to a generator to generate electricity, or the wind used as mechanical power to perform tasks such as pumping water or grinding grain. As the wind passes the turbines it moves the blades, which spins the shaft.
It is affordable, clean and sustainable. One wind turbine can be sufficient to generate energy for a household. Because wind is a source of energy which is non-polluting and renewable, wind turbines create power without using fossil fuels, without producing greenhouse gases or radioactive or toxic waste.
Wind power, form of energy conversion in which turbines convert the kinetic energy of wind into mechanical or electrical energy that can be used for power. Wind power is considered a renewable energy source.
Wind Turbines are used to convert wind, a renewable source of energy to electricity. They are thus a better choice than conventional power plants that use non-renewable sources, emit air-pollutants and greenhouse gases.May 27, 2014
The GE 1.5-MW turbine, with a 70.5-m rotor span, therefore requires at least 38 acres per tower in a single line perpendicular to the wind (25 acres/MW) or 96 acres per tower in an array (64 acres/MW). Each Vestas V90 1.8-MW turbine, with a 90-m rotor diameter, requires 61-157 acres (34-87 acres/MW).