Homeroom Drop everything and read!

Warm-up  Read the article “Early Europeans and the trade winds”.  Answer theses questions in your notebook: 1. What was the Age of Discovery? 2. Which winds did early Europeans often use? 3. How did the trade winds get their name? 4. Which winds did sailors use in the Indian Ocean? 5. Explain why winds were important for life during this time.

Wind  Air that moves horizontally, or parallel to the ground.

What causes wind?  Uneven heating of the earth causes air pressure differences  This sets air in motion!

 Wind moves from an area of high pressure to an area of low pressure.

Global Winds  Travel thousands of kilometers in steady patterns

What causes global winds?  Uneven heating (pressure differences!) between the north and south pole

Coriolis Effect  Try to straw a straight line up and down the balloon as your partner spins it. What happens? Coriolis Effect: The earth’s rotation causes winds to curve  Northern hemisphere-curve to the right  Southern hemisphere-curve to the left

Doldrums  Very calm!  Low pressure zone near the equator  Warm air rises to the troposphere  This produces clouds and rain

Horse Latitudes  Very calm!  High pressure zone  Located 30 degrees north and south of equator  Weather is clear and dry  Called the horse latitudes because sailors would get stuck here and have to through their horses overboard!

Trade winds  Blow from the east  From the horse latitudes to the equator  Strong and steady but die at the equator

Westerlies  Blow from the west  From the horse latitudes to the poles  Bring stories across the USA

Easterlies  Blow from east  From the poles to mid-latitudes  Stormy weather when cold air from easterlies meet warmer air from the westerlies!

Sailing around the world using global winds  My Content | Discovery Education My Content | Discovery Education