Planetary Winds-Principle Of Cyclones

Cyclones are an extensive system of wind gusts that circulate a low-pressure center counterclockwise north of the Equator and clockwise in a southerly direction. Except for the equatorial belt, cyclonic winds move all over nearly all regions of the Earth and are typically associated with rain or snow. Anticyclones, which are wind processes that rotate around a high-pressure center, also occur in similar areas. Anticyclones are so named because their flow is the polar opposite of cyclones, i.e., outward-spiraling, with winds spinning clockwise in the Northern Hemisphere and counterclockwise direction in the Southern. 

Planetary Winds

Planetary winds move between latitudes throughout the year due to latitudinal air pressure differences. They are regarded as winds that are prevailing. These winds are blowing in a specific manner along a particular portion of the Earth in a single direction.

Convergence zone areas where the planetary winds encounter. They end up blowing east to west instead of north to south. It is generally due to the Coriolis effect, which the rotation of the Earth would induce. Due to the Coriolis effect, wind systems spin counterclockwise in the regions of the Northern Hemisphere and clockwise in the sections of the Southern Hemisphere. 

Planetary winds identified as permanent wind gusts are managed by pressure belts found in the lower environment and strike in a single direction across the year. 

The planetary wind is classified into trade winds, westerlies, and polar winds.

The Trade Winds 

The sun’s rays drop in a vertical position on the Equator, increasing the temperature of the air and starting to cause it to rise upwards. Because of the reduced uptrend pressure, air rises have much more space to expand, subsequently in the more relaxed and thick air. The cold air couldn’t go directly down because of the warm moist air. As a result, air flows through the Earth’s atmosphere north and south. The trade winds are the term given to this segment of the air. Trade winds blow from the northeast as in the regions of the northern hemisphere and from the southeast as in the sections of the southern hemisphere, according to Ferrell’s Law. 

Westerly winds

Most of the air from latitude 30 ° tends to blow towards the poles present on the Earth’s crust, trying to reach latitude 60 ° before even being subjected to the cooler, dense air from the poles. On the other hand, westerly wind occurs when hot, gentle air from the tropical regions rises above the thick layer, deep cold air, and keeps blowing partly towards the polar low-pressure belt. It tends to blow from the southwest to the northwest in the northern latitudes and from the southwest to the northwest in the southern latitudes. Because of the Northern Hemisphere’s large land area, there are a few limited changes in air circulation. 

The Easterlies, also known as Polar Easterlies

Polar easterlies are the chilly prevalent dry winds that flow from high-density areas in the polar regions and south poles to low-pressure regions of the Westerlies at higher elevations. Cold air starts to sink to the poles, leading to high pressures which enable air to pass south towards the Equator. Easterlies are frozen winds with no rainfall. As the overflow is shifted west by the Coriolis effect, the predominant winds blow from east to west. Because the wind is blowing from the east, it is referred to as the easterlies. In contrast to mid-latitude westerlies, Polar easterlies mostly are frequently weak and infrequent. 

Cyclone’s Wind Pattern & Principle Of Cyclones

A cyclone is any huge system of winds that circulates a low-pressure center in a counterclockwise direction in the northern hemisphere and clockwise in a southerly direction. Cyclones are most common in the middle-high latitude belts of both hemispheres. Cyclones are distributed in a comparatively uniform way through various longitudes in the Southern Hemisphere, in which the oceans cover the majority of the surface of the planet. They form in latitudes 30° to 40° S and migrate south-easterly, maturing in latitudes around 60°.

4 Stages Of A Cyclone

• Tropical Disturbance – A tropical disturbance is a group of downpours that form over the tropics.

• Tropical Depression- A tropical depression is a tropical cyclone with sustained winds surface at its maximum levels above surface winds of 38 mph, which is 33 knots or less on a one-minute average.

• Tropical Storm – When the maximum extended speed of wind exceeds 63 km/h, it is considered a tropical storm. Depending on the basin, other names include hurricanes, typhoons, tropical cyclones, and very intense cyclonic storms.

• Full-fledged tropical cyclones are large systems of winds that circulate about a center of low atmospheric pressure in a counterclockwise direction north of the Equator and in a clockwise direction to the south. 

Conclusion 

We discussed Planetary Winds & Principle of Cyclones and other related topics through the study material notes on Planetary Winds-Principle of Cyclones. 

Planetary winds are found all over the world. They are regarded as planetary winds since they are connected with thermally and adaptively influenced pressure systems and the rotation of the Earth. These winds move and blow across ocean basins and continents.