Definition of wind - What it is, Meaning and Concept

Wind (from Latin ventus ) is the air current that occurs in the atmosphere due to natural causes.Wind, therefore therefore, it is a meteorological phenomenon originated in the movements of rotation and translation of the Earth.

Solar radiation generates differences of temperature in the atmosphere, which gives rise to the differences of pressure and air movement.Wind speed can be used to produce energy (known as wind ), although it is also dangerous, since it can demolish buildings of great size.The displacement of seeds and the erosion are other consequences of the action of the winds.

For example: “There is a lot of wind; it is not convenient to go sailing ”, “ The day is beautiful: lots of sun and no wind ”.

The first instrument created to detect the direction in which the wind blows was the weather vane .It is a rotating device with a cross that indicates the cardinal points and which is usually located in high places.A more advanced tool is the anemometer , which also measures the speed of the wind and helps predict the weather.

According to its intensity, the wind can receive different names.The softest winds are known as breezes , while among the strongest ones the tornadoes can be mentioned.All of these terms, however, have a more specific scientific meaning that is often neglected by everyday language.

It is known as solar wind, finally, to the flow of particles emitted by the atmosphere of a star .Most of these particles are high energy protons.

Air movement

The displacement of air in the troposphere (lower area of ​​the atmosphere) is the most significant for people and has two components: the vertical, 10 or more kilometers and whose upward or downward movement compensates the horizontal, and the horizontal, which reaches thousands of kilometers and is the most important of both.The observation of a tornado is very suitable to understand these concepts, since while its eddy begins spinning at a considerable speed, with the known destructive consequences, and it decreases as the wind rises, since the dimensions of the cone increase in width.

It is worth mentioning that these statements, obtained from the study of tornadoes, are also true for all types of wind, since they are part of the various processes they are going through.The same transition that occurs in this case, from a linear movement to a rotating one that ascends vertically, it can be seen in both eddies and hurricanes and cumulonimbus, with certain differences in size and extent.

On the other hand, there are the winds that cover important distances, which also go through this process.A clear example is the trade winds, which travel between the equator and the tropics, going from the northwest to the southwest and vice versa, crossing the northern and southern hemispheres.When they are in the equator, they suffer a forced rise, mainly due to the great concentration of matter, and generate clouds and heavy rains, which results in a great decrease in speed.

When the rising air cools and loses the moisture that it carried, due to condensation and rains, the result is a dry and cold air.At a lower temperature, more weight; consequently, it tends to descend towards the surface in an inclined movement that begins at the equator and goes towards the tropics, deviating to the right to complete, finally, the trade winds cycle.This way, the principle is fulfilled of conservation of matter, according to studies conducted by Antoine-Laurent de Lavoisier, a French chemist and biologist of the eighteenth century.