Global Winds Quick Check

Master global wind patterns! Identify Trade Winds, Westerlies, and more.

Use the Dropdowns to complete the paragraph. What is wind?Wind is air in motion. It is produced by the uneven heating of the earth’s surface by the sun. Since the earth’s surface is made of various land and water formations, it absorbs the sun’s radiation unevenly. Two factors are necessary to specify wind: speed and direction. Global Winds Use the following LETTERS to label the image.A. EquatorB. Polar EasterliesC. WesterliesD. Tradewinds A D B C D C B Use the Dropdowns to complete the paragraph. What are the global wind patterns?The equator receives the Sun's direct rays. Here, air is heated and rises, leaving low-pressure areas behind. Moving to about thirty degrees north and south of the equator, the warm air from the equator begins to cool and sink. Between thirty degrees latitude and the equator, most of the cooling sinking air moves back to the equator. The rest of the air flows toward the poles. Matching Polar Easterlies Above 60 degrees latitude. Westerlies Between 30 and 60 degrees latitude. Trade Winds Between 30 degrees latitude and the equator. Doldrums Area near the equator with little to no surface winds. Use the Dropdowns to complete the paragraph. What are the trade winds?The trade winds are just air movements toward the equator. They are warm, steady breezes that blow almost continuously. The Coriolis Effect makes the trade winds appear to be curving to the west, whether they are traveling to the equator from the south or north. Use the Dropdowns to complete the paragraph. What are the doldrums?The doldrums is an area of calm weather. The trade winds coming from the south and the north meet near the equator. These converging trade winds produce general upward winds as they are heated, so there are no steady surface winds. Use the Dropdowns to complete the paragraph. What are the prevailing westerlies?Between thirty and sixty degrees latitude, the winds that move toward the poles appear to curve to the east. Because winds are named from the direction in which they originate, these winds are called prevailing westerlies. Prevailing westerlies in the Northern Hemisphere are responsible for many of the weather movements across the United States and Canada. Use the Dropdowns to complete the paragraph. What are the polar easterlies?At about sixty degrees latitude in both hemispheres, the prevailing westerlies join with the polar easterlies to reduce upward motion. The polar easterlies form when the atmosphere over the poles cools. This cool air then sinks and spreads over the surface. As the air flows away from the poles, it is turned to the west by the Coriolis effect. Again, because these winds begin in the east, they are called easterlies. Sort the following winds by the direction they move. Blow East to West Polar Easterlies Trade Winds Blow West to East Westerlies