The “local winds of the world” is a vital topic in the subject of World Geography. The local winds of the world are formed through differences in the heating of the land. There are several local winds all around the Globe. The local winds are generally formed on a rather small scale. All the local winds have the common feature of being briefly enduring and generally last for a few hours within a day. There are several local winds throughout the world. Some of these winds are warm whereas some are cool. Some of these winds are again dry whereas some are wet.
Wind and its classification
Winds can be defined as nothing but a particular flow of gases in the atmosphere on a rather huge scale. On the surface of the Earth, winds comprise the massive movement of gases or air. Normally winds are classified based on their speed, spatial scale, and the varying forces due to which they occur. In addition to these, winds are also classified based on their effects and the particular regions in which they are flowing. Winds that are particularly long duration have several names according to their effect. These include gale, hurricane, breeze, and storm.
Local wind names
In the following section, several local wind names and their characteristics will be outlined.
- Foehn: The Foehn winds normally blow around the Alps Mountain. These winds are hot as well as dry in nature.
- Siroco: These winds blow from the Sahara desert up to the Mediterranean Sea. These winds are hot as well as moist in nature.
- Harmattan: The Harmattan winds are also known as the Guinea Doctor. They usually blow around different parts of Western Africa. These winds are hot as well as dry in nature.
- Mistral: These winds are very cold. The Mistral winds generally blow from the Alps up to France.
- Blizzard: These winds are generally characterized as cold winds. They particularly flow around the tundra region.
- Levantar: These winds are again characterized as cold winds. They specifically blow in and around regions of Spain.
- Santa Ana: The Santa Ana winds are hot. The winds are found to blow in and around southern California.
- Calima: They are characterized as dry winds. However, contrary to some other winds, they are dust-laden. The blow around the Layers of Saharan air around the Canary island.
- Chinook: They are also known as slow eaters. The Chinook winds blow around the Rockies Mountains. These winds are hot as well as dry in nature.
- Khamsin: The Khamsin winds blow around the regions of Egypt. These winds are hot as well as dry in nature.
- Solano: The Solano winds are seen to blow from the Iberian Peninsula to the Sahara. The Solano winds are moist as well as hot in nature.
- Bora: The Bora winds start blowing from Hungary up to Northern Italy. The Bora winds are dry as well as cold in nature.
- Punas: The Punas winds blow throughout the western region of Andes Mountain. The Punas winds are dry as well as cold in nature.
- Purga: The Purga winds blow in and around regions of Russia. The Purga winds are very cold.
- Norwester: The Norwester winds blow in and around New Zealand. The Norwester winds are normally characterized as hot winds.
- Karaburun: The Karaburun winds are also known as the black storm. The Karaburun winds are found to blow around parts of Central Asia. The winds are particularly characterized as dusty and hot.
- Elephanta: The Elephanta winds blow in and around regions of the Malabar Coast. These winds are moist and blow mostly during Monsoon.
Conclusion
The overall article has been carried out on the core topic of Major local winds around the globe. Studying the different types of local winds is important in the subject of Geography. These major local winds around the globe have been further discussed through analyzing their characters and some important facts about them.