Why do the winds blow? Why does wind arise? The meaning of wind in nature. Wind speed, strength and direction Why strong winds appeared

First you need to understand for yourself what wind is. The scientific definition is quite lengthy, in a minimized form it sounds something like this: “The movement of air masses between zones of different pressure.” But such a formulation will tell a child little. Visualization is the most effective way to explain something. So, let's look at several ways to visually explain the nature of wind.

Method No. 1: Cold weather and a candle

The main condition is cold weather outside. In summer or spring you will have to use other methods. If a child suddenly asks, “Maaam, why is the wind blowing?”, then we don’t get lost, but take a candle and go to the door. We light the flame and bring it to the top crack of the slightly open doorway. We see that the flame tends outward, carried away by the flow of warm air. This is the wind that comes from the air heated in the house. Therefore fact one: heated air rises.

Then we lower the candle to the lower slit and see that the flame has changed its inclination and is now directed inward. This happens because cold air tends to take the place of heated air. Hence, fact two: cold air tends to take the place of warm air. This concludes the practical part. And move on to the theoretical explanation that there are warm places on the globe (like in the house) and cold places (like on the street). The movement of air between them leads to the appearance of wind.

Method number 2: Balloon, hair dryer and refrigerator

For the next method of visually explaining the nature of the wind, you will need to prepare a balloon. We do not inflate it completely. Take a hairdryer and blow it thoroughly. The ball increases in volume and begins to float. Using this example, we explain to the child that heated air tends to rise as high as possible.

Then place the ball in the refrigerator. While it is cooling there, we talk about how the globe is so large that when it is warm in one place, it is cold in another. Then we open the refrigerator and see that the cold ball has shrunk and is quickly falling down.

After the practical part, we begin to explain that cold air tends to take the place of warm air, which is why wind occurs. That is, wind is nothing more than the movement of air between cold and warm places.

Method number 3: Metaphorical

Instead of visualization, you can use metaphors from the environment. Let’s imagine that dad, who borrowed the computer for work and doesn’t let me watch cartoons, is just a mass of air. And the child who crawls impatiently in anticipation of the next episode is different.

Here the mass-dad sits, works and slowly warms up. And when it gets completely warm, he gets up from his chair and goes, say, to the kitchen. Now he is warm air that has risen high and flown away. In this case, the air is cold, which instantly rushes to the chair in front of the monitor. This movement of it is the wind.

Method No. 4: Physiological

Another explanation is based on the functioning of the lungs. When a child is interested in the nature of the wind, we ask him to take in more air and then slowly blow it out. This will be the wind. The air in the collapsing lungs is pressurized and expelled. Same with the wind.

A small theoretical digression about the fact that warm air is lighter than cold air will simplify the explanation. Heavy cold air creates the same pressure as the walls of the lungs. This causes cold air to move to where the warm air was. This is where the wind comes from.

Surprises and surprises

In the mind of a growing child, such a lesson will give rise to a million more questions: “What kind of wind is there?”, “Why is it needed?”, “What if it is strong, strong?” In fact, to answer these questions you will need to sift through volumes of meteorological reference books and get five or two higher education degrees. But everything can be explained to a child in a nutshell.

Why is wind needed? To keep it cool and to blow away the dandelions. What kind of wind is there? Strong, weak, blowing in different directions, and whole air rivers flow high above the ground. And in that spirit. There is no need to spread it, it is enough not to leave gaps in the baby’s mind, which may later be filled with the wrong thing.

Note to moms!

Hello girls) I didn’t think that the problem of stretch marks would affect me too, and I’ll also write about it))) But there’s nowhere to go, so I’m writing here: How did I get rid of stretch marks after childbirth? I will be very glad if my method helps you too...

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Trackstone:There are places on our planet where it is warmer, and there are places where it is colder. The sun heated the desert, and the air warmed up with it. When heated, objects expand, air is no exception. The air heated up and expanded. And now a hump of heated air swells over the desert (the pressure has increased); clouds from the middle of such a hump flow down to the edges, and in the center it is always clear; such humps (areas of high pressure) are called anticyclones.
And in another place the clouds covered the Sun, it became colder, the air compressed. And this created a hole (low pressure area). Clouds flow into this place and it usually rains there. An area of ​​low pressure is called a cyclone.
What happens if a cyclone and an anticyclone meet? A desert next to the sea, for example?
If they meet, the air from the “hump” begins to flow into the “depression”, and a strong wind blows. This meeting point is called an atmospheric front.
But the wind also blows within the “humps and troughs.” Remember how water swirls in a bathtub when it flows into a hole? That's right, it spins into a funnel. In exactly the same way, the air flowing from the hump swirls, and the air flowing into the center of the pit also swirls, only in the other direction. This twisting also causes wind inside the cyclone and anticyclone.
Tell us about the breezes yourself. In the morning the earth warms up; in the afternoon the wind blows from the sea. In the evening, the sea releases its accumulated heat, and the land cools down - the wind blows from the shore.

DmHaritonov:On one side, the sun warms the Earth more strongly, the air there expands, and climbs from there to other regions. Here comes the wind.

Open this book and you will understand where clouds come from and why there is a rainbow in the sky, why the leaves turn yellow and why birds fly south in the fall. You will learn to distinguish trees by their leaves and learn how plants “drink”. This book will answer dozens of “whys” and help connect different natural phenomena together. Entertaining experiments and experiences will help you “see” sound, “make a cloud” in a jar, grow crystals from salt and a tulip by March 8, find out how much water comes out of a glass of snow and how an earthworm mixes the soil.

In the arsenal of weather vagaries, one of the main places is, of course, given to the wind. It can be warm and gentle, or it can blow with such force that the flow of air tears off the roofs of houses and carries away household utensils.


It brings rain with it or, on the contrary, disperses the clouds hanging over the city, returning the blue sky and. For all peoples, the wind symbolizes a free nature, not subject to attachments and obligations.

He obeys only his own desires, is unpredictable and can turn out to be both a friend and an enemy. But what is wind really, how does it arise and can it be controlled?

What is wind?

From a scientific point of view, wind is the movement of air mass from an area of ​​high pressure to an area of ​​low pressure. As a rule, these movements are directed horizontally.

Although there are ascending and descending air currents that form atmospheric pressure differences in different parts of the planet, they are not usually called winds. In addition to pressure differences, the speed and direction of winds are also influenced to some extent by ocean currents, the rotation of the Earth, terrain, and other factors.


Until now, meteorologists have not learned to predict with sufficiently high reliability the behavior of atmospheric air masses, the origin of winds and their further behavior. Satellite imaging is of great help in this, but it only records ongoing processes.

People still have not learned to accurately guess the origin and direction, much less control the “behavior” of winds and hurricanes, but the general patterns of movement of air masses have already been sufficiently studied.

How do winds appear?

During daylight hours, the Sun gives the Earth's surface a huge amount of thermal energy, heating the land and the thickness of the World Ocean. But this heating is extremely uneven and depends on many factors.

The most important of them is the distance to the Sun: the equatorial regions, due to the fact that the Earth’s axis of rotation is located vertically to its orbit, are slightly closer to the star, and they receive more energy than the poles.

Land warms up during the day better than water, but water retains thermal energy better.

All this leads to the fact that the atmospheric air, which is heated mainly from the surface of the planet, is warmer in some places than in others. The heated air rushes upward, creating a rarefied space, and cooler air from the neighboring zone rushes in its place.


Colliding with each other, warm and cold air currents sometimes form squalls, whirlwinds and even tornadoes. These processes occur over the entire surface of the planet, which, when viewed from above, resembles a seething cauldron, where air currents collide and swirl in different directions, dragging the white foam of clouds with them.

Direction of the wind

If the surface of the Earth heated equally everywhere, we would not have the vagaries of weather. Air currents would move only in the vertical direction: cold ones would move downwards, and warm ones would move upwards. However, heating occurs in different ways: in the region of the equator, the air is always well heated and rises, and cold masses from colder regions rush to replace it.

Collisions of these masses occur in different parts of the planet, but they always lead to the formation. Air flows choose different directions, depending on the accompanying circumstances.

The main factors influencing wind directions are the rotation of the planet and the difference in atmospheric pressure. It has been established that in the regions of the poles the dominant wind direction is eastern, and in the temperate zone of the Northern and Southern Hemispheres predominantly westerly winds blow.

The tropical zone is dominated by easterly winds. Between these main zones of wind formation there are four belts of relative calm - two each subpolar and subtropical, where air moves predominantly vertically: heated air goes up, and cold air sinks to the surface of the earth.


Winds play an important role in maintaining the planet's climate balance. They transfer moisture evaporated by the oceans to land, irrigating its surface and ensuring the existence of the Earth's numerous flora and fauna.

Elementary questions often lead to dead ends. It seems that you understand and know where the wind comes from, but how to formulate it correctly and beautifully express the thought? And if a child asks, the situation becomes much more complicated. After all, he still doesn’t have a proper understanding of the world around him or knowledge of physics.

Where does the wind come from?

To explain something to someone else, you need to understand the issue yourself. At least in a simplified version:

• The air on our planet does not warm up evenly.
• Different temperatures can be caused by terrain features and changeable weather.
• From the physics course, you can remember that lighter heated air rushes upward.
• Nature will not tolerate emptiness; it needs urgent replacement.
• The warm air that has “gone upward” is replaced by cold masses from a less heated region.
• Cold air moves horizontally along the ground.

So it turns out that if we do not feel the upward movement of warm air, then it is difficult not to notice the flow of cold air above the ground.

Of course, everything is a little more complicated; the zone plays its role high and low blood pressure, even the solar wind influences the formation of wind and air masses. But if you go into such details, you won’t be able to understand anything on your own. But for someone else " in simple language“This needs to be explained.

How should a child answer a question about the wind?

Of course, you can take the simple route and use some kind of replacement for the real description:

• This is how the earth and the sea breathe, they also need to breathe.
• The wind appears because God begins to breathe angrily.
• This is how trees rustle their leaves and move the air to communicate.

But all this does not even come close to reflecting the real state of affairs, and in some places even replaces cause and effect.

Probably the best explanation: “ Cold air comes to visit warm air, which is why it blows».

This is easy to believe, it has no religious connotations, if the child remembers, then when he grows up, he will understand that his parents really knew, how correct and tried to explain to him to the extent of his development.

You can show it with a simple example - open the door to the entrance and show that cold air “pulls” from there. Then explain that it’s warm in the apartment, but it’s cold on the landing. That’s why wind and drafts form, because cold air goes to where it’s warmer.

An inquisitive child may wonder where the warm air goes? Here, either be completely honest and try to explain that he is rising higher, or come up with some convincing excuse. Like, he stays there, but freezes because of such a neighbor.

Wind - friend and enemy of humanity

Wind affects human life in a variety of ways:

Man has largely been able to “tame” the primeval elements and learned to use many natural phenomena for his own benefit. But there are no effective methods or even theoretical developments that would allow one to defeat the wind. He always blows wherever he wants. Even in this regard, it turned out to be much more pliable, but maybe in a couple of decades, we will see the first air dams.

It remains only to understand what the meaning of such structures will be. Can be given as an argument hurricane protection, but this option of rough impact on the atmosphere can lead to even more disastrous consequences.

How to explain to a child what wind is?

By the way, it’s even difficult to explain to a child what wind is and where it comes from. It’s better to move step by step, starting with the simplest:

1. Wind is moving air.
2. Air moves because it is heated differently and always tends to where it is warmer.
3. It can rustle leaves and even bend trees because it has weight.
4. If someone is walking and they have weight, as they move they will move whatever they hit.
5. Air has too little weight, but there is a lot of it and it moves in large quantities at once.
6. We just don't see it, so it's hard to believe that it's all about mass.

Due to far-fetched explanations, children may form the idea that the wind is some kind of animate creature, cruel or fair, endowed with its own will.

All this can frighten the child or lay a shaky foundation for acquiring new knowledge in the future. That is why it is better to teach your child to read at the age of 5-6 and buy him a couple of encyclopedias that will be able to answer most of the questions. But this still does not guarantee parents at least a minute of peace.

In fact, It’s better to appreciate that short period when the child constantly asks “why?” , because it will pass and will never happen again. And the opportunity to be an all-knowing sage for a child, capable of answering any question, may no longer present itself.

How is wind formed?

1. Wind formation occurs due to the movement of huge air masses.
2. The movement of air layers is explained by different levels of atmospheric heating, movement along the pressure gradient and the influence of the solar wind.
3. The cold air we feel in the form of wind always moves as close to the ground as possible.
4. Most often, there is a strong wind near a body of water, because the air above the water is always colder.
5. Soil and even asphalt heat up faster than water. This is due to chemical and physical characteristics. Therefore, coolness constantly blows from the sea and river.

The wind is dangerous in some northern and coastal regions. In the same tundra, there are no natural barriers in the way of cold air, so it can develop colossal speeds.

Those who live near the sea know what it is a storm warning and they understand perfectly well that in such weather it is better not to show themselves outside.

Try not to get confused trying to explain to your child where the wind comes from. After all, it is very easy to lose the trust of children; a child may become dissuaded of the omnipotence of his parents.

Video about the source of the winds

General atmospheric circulation- a system of air currents on the globe that promotes the transfer of heat and moisture from one area to another. Air moves from areas of high pressure to areas of low . Areas of high and low pressure are formed as a result of uneven heating of the earth's surface. Under the influence of the Earth's rotation, air flows are deflected to the right in the Northern Hemisphere and to the left in the Southern Hemisphere.

IN equatorial in latitudes, due to high temperatures, there is a constantly existing belt low pressure with weak winds. Heated air rises and spreads at altitude to the north and south. At high temperatures and upward air movement, with high humidity, large clouds form. There is a large amount of rainfall here.

Approximately between 25 and 30° N. and Yu. w. air descends to the surface of the Earth, where, as a result, belts are formed high pressure. Near the Earth, this air is directed towards the equator (where there is low pressure), deviating to the right in the Northern Hemisphere and to the left in the Southern Hemisphere. This is how they are formed trade winds. In the central part of the high pressure belts there is a calm zone: the winds are weak. Thanks to downward air currents, the air dries out and warms up. The hot and dry regions of the Earth are located in these belts.

IN moderate latitudes with centers around 60° N. and Yu. w. pressure low. The air rises and then rushes to the polar regions. In temperate latitudes, westerly air transport predominates (the deflecting force of the Earth's rotation acts).

Polar latitudes are characterized by low air temperatures and high pressure. Air coming from temperate latitudes descends to the Earth and is again directed to temperate latitudes with northeastern (in the Northern Hemisphere) and southeastern (in the Southern Hemisphere) winds. There is little precipitation.

Winds

Wind- horizontal movement of air relative to the earth's surface. It arises as a result of uneven distribution of atmospheric pressure and its movement is directed from areas with higher pressure to areas where the pressure is lower. The reason for the occurrence of wind is the difference in pressure between territories, and the reason for the difference is heterogeneity in heating. The direction of the wind is determined by the part of the horizon from which it blows (the north wind blows from north to south). The direction of the winds is affected by the deflecting force of the Earth's rotation.

The winds vary origin, character, meaning . The general circulation of winds, caused by the difference in atmospheric pressure, includes: monsoons, zonal transports, cyclones, anticyclones. Local atmospheric circulation is expressed in breezes.

Types of winds.

TO local winds include breezes, mountain-valley, fen, bora, sirocco, samum, etc. Low pressure prevails in the equatorial belt, and high pressure prevails in the subtropical zone, so the winds blow towards the equator. Under the influence of the Coriolis force, they deviate in the northern hemisphere to the right and have a northeastern direction, in the southern hemisphere - to the left and become southeastern.

Föhn- warm, dry and gusty wind from the mountains. It blows when there is lower pressure on one side of the ridge than on the other. Bora- a strong, cold, gusty wind, formed when cold air passes over low ridges to the warm sea.

Trade winds– constant winds in the tropical regions of the Northern and Southern Hemispheres, blowing from high pressure zones (25-35° N and S) to the equator (into the low pressure zone). Under the influence of the Earth's rotation around its axis, the trade winds deviate from their original direction. In the Northern Hemisphere they blow from northeast to southwest, in the Southern Hemisphere they blow from southeast to northwest. Trade winds are characterized by great stability of direction and speed.

In temperate latitudes of both hemispheres, westerly transports dominate ( westerly winds). Temperate westerlies are the predominant winds blowing in the temperate zone between approximately 35 and 65 degrees north and south latitude. These winds blow predominantly from west to east, more precisely from the southwest in the Northern Hemisphere and from the northwest in the Southern Hemisphere.

During the day, the land heats up faster than the sea, and the air above it is warmer than above the water. An area of ​​low pressure forms above the land, and high pressure above the water, and the wind blows from the sea to the land. This afternoon breeze. At night, the land cools faster than the sea, above which an area of ​​low pressure forms, and the wind blows in the opposite direction - night breeze.

The formation mechanism is similar monsoon- seasonal winds that change their direction twice a year: in summer they blow on land, in winter - on the sea. In winter, the air over land is colder, over the ocean it is warmer. Consequently, the pressure is higher over the continent, lower over the ocean. Therefore, in winter, air moves from the mainland (an area of ​​higher pressure) to the ocean (over which the pressure is lower). In the warm season, it’s the other way around: the monsoons blow from the ocean to the mainland. Therefore, in monsoon areas, precipitation usually occurs in summer. Due to the rotation of the Earth around its axis, the monsoons deviate to the right in the Northern Hemisphere, and to the left in the Southern Hemisphere from their original direction.

Special wind systems.

As a result of the uneven heating of the earth's surface and the deflecting force of the earth's rotation, huge (up to several thousand kilometers in diameter) atmospheric vortices are formed: cyclones and anticyclones. Cyclone- atmospheric vortex with low blood pressure in the center. Anticyclone- atmospheric vortex with high blood pressure in the center.

Cyclone – an ascending vortex in the atmosphere with a closed region of low pressure, in which winds blow from the periphery to the center (counterclockwise in the Northern Hemisphere, clockwise in the Southern Hemisphere). The average speed of a cyclone is 35-50 km/h, and sometimes up to 100 km/h. In a cyclone, air rises, which affects the weather. With the emergence of a cyclone, the weather changes quite dramatically: winds become stronger, water vapor quickly condenses, generating heavy cloudiness, and precipitation falls.

Anticyclone - a downward atmospheric vortex with a closed area of ​​​​high pressure, in which winds blow from the center to the periphery (in the Northern Hemisphere - clockwise, in the Southern - counterclockwise). The speed of anticyclones is 30-40 km/h, but they can linger in one place for a long time, especially on continents. In an anticyclone, the air sinks down, becoming drier as it warms up, since the vapors contained in it move away from saturation. This, as a rule, excludes the formation of clouds in the central part of the anticyclone. Therefore, during an anticyclone the weather is clear, sunny, without precipitation. In winter it is frosty, in summer it is hot.

Wind speed scale (Beaufort scale)

Lesson summary " Wind. Wind systems". Next topic:

It's something mysterious. We never see it, but we always feel it. So why does the wind blow? Find out in the article!

Wind is the movement of air masses. Although we cannot see air, we know that it is made up of molecules of various types of gases, mainly nitrogen and oxygen. Wind is a phenomenon in which many molecules move in the same direction.

Where does it come from? Wind is caused by pressure differences in the Earth's atmosphere: air from an area of ​​high pressure will move towards an area of ​​low pressure. Strong winds occur when air moves between areas with huge differences in pressure levels. Actually, this fact largely explains why the wind blows from the sea to the land.

Wind formation

Wind is the movement of air near the Earth's surface. It can be a gentle breeze or a strong storm. The strongest winds occur during events called tornadoes, cyclones and hurricanes. It is caused by changes in air, land and water temperatures. When air moves parallel to a warm surface, it heats up and rises—this leaves room for cooler masses to move in. The air “flowing” into these empty spaces is the wind. It is named by the direction it comes from, not the direction it blows.

Breezes: coastal and sea

Coastal and sea breezes are wind and weather phenomena characteristic of coastal areas. A shore breeze is a breeze that blows from land to a body of water. A sea breeze is a wind that blows from water to land. Why does the wind blow from the sea and vice versa? Coastal and sea breezes arise due to a significant difference in temperature between land and water surfaces. They can extend to depths of up to 160 km or appear as local phenomena that quickly weaken within the first few kilometers along the coastline.

From a scientific point of view...

Land and sea breeze patterns can greatly influence fog distribution and cause pollution to accumulate or disperse across inland areas. Current research into the principles of land and sea breeze circulation also includes efforts to model wind patterns as they affect energy needs (such as heating and cooling requirements) in affected areas. Wind also has an impact on weather-dependent operations (eg aircraft).

Since water has a much higher heat capacity than sand or other materials in the earth's crust, given a certain amount of solar irradiation (insolation), its temperature will rise more slowly than on land. Regardless of the temperature scale, during the daytime the temperature of land can fluctuate by tens of degrees, while that of water varies by less than half a degree. Conversely, high heat capacity prevents rapid changes in liquid temperature at night, and thus, while land temperatures can drop by tens of degrees, water temperatures remain relatively stable. In addition, the lower heat capacity of crustal materials often allows them to cool faster than the sea.

Physics of sea and land

So why is there strong wind blowing? The air above the respective surfaces of land and water is heated or cooled depending on the conductivity of these surfaces. During the day, higher ground temperatures result in warmer and therefore less dense and lighter air masses over the coast compared to those adjacent to the water surface. As warm air rises (the phenomenon of convection), cooler air moves towards the voids. This is why the wind blows from the sea, and during the day there is usually a cool sea breeze flowing from the ocean to the shore.

Depending on the temperature difference and the amount of air lifted, the sea breeze can gust at speeds ranging from 17 to 25 km per hour. The greater the temperature difference between land and sea, the stronger the land wind and sea breeze.

Why does the wind blow from the sea

After sunset, the air mass over coastal land quickly loses heat, while over water it usually does not differ much from its daytime temperature. When the air mass over the land becomes cooler than the air mass over the water, the land wind begins to blow from the land to the sea.

The stirring of warm, moist air from the ocean often results in daytime clouds over the coastline. In addition, the movement of air masses and sea breezes are often used by tourists for hang gliding. Although land and sea breezes predominate along the sea coast, they are also often recorded near large bodies of water. Coastal and sea breezes lead to increased humidity levels, precipitation and moderate temperatures in coastal areas.

Explanation for children: why the wind blows

Sea breezes are most common on hot summer days due to the unequal heating rates of land and water. During the day, the land surface warms faster than the sea surface. Therefore, part of the atmosphere above the land is warmer than above the ocean.

Now remember that warm air is lighter than colder air. As a result, he rises. This process causes cooler air over the ocean to take up space at the earth's surface to replace the rising warm mass.

However, it is worth knowing that wind is formed not only as a result of differences in temperature. Global atmospheric movements arise as a result of the rotation of the Earth. These winds group the trade winds and monsoons. Trade winds occur near the equator and move either from the north or south towards the equator. In the Earth's mid-latitudes, between 35 and 65 degrees, westerly winds predominate. They blow from west to east, and also towards the poles. Polar winds blow near the north and south poles. They move from the poles to the east or west, respectively.

Our world is full of mysteries and interesting things. Unraveling them is the task of humanity. Even greater discoveries await us, but for now we already know exactly the answer to the question of how and why the wind blows, as well as what factors determine its formation. This makes it possible to predict changes in weather conditions.