Weather

Basics

Unit 2
The basics about the main circulation systems and El Niño

Wind power plants, or 'Wind Farms', are, for good reasons, often located close to the sea. When at the seaside we have all felt the seabreeze blowing around our nose and disheveling our hair. But why is the wind at the seaside always so strong? And why there are so often thunderstorms in the mountains on summer afternoons?

Local air circulation and pressure systems define the weather depending on the landscape. However, prevailing wind systems, such as the trade winds around the equator, affect the weather over a much larger area. The El Niño effect has an impact on many continents and recurs every few years but irregularly. In this unit we read about air circulation and where and why it occurs on our planet.

About this page:

Author: Elmar Uherek
English language review: Sally Taylor, University of Leeds
last update: 2005-07-07