False gharial. Gharial crocodile
Wind is one of the most unique natural phenomena. We cannot see or touch it, but we are able to observe the results of its manifestation, for example, how it slowly or quickly drives clouds across the sky, bends trees to the ground with its force, or slightly ruffles leaves.
Wind concept
What is wind? The definition from a meteorological point of view is: it is horizontal movement layers of air from a zone with high atmospheric pressure to a zone of low, accompanied by a certain speed. This movement occurs because during the day the sun penetrates the Earth's air layer. Some rays, reaching the surface, heat the oceans, seas, rivers, mountains, soil, rocks and stones, which release heat into the air, thereby heating it. For same amount time dark objects absorb more heat and warm up more.
But what does it matter how the heat is given off and how quickly? And how does this help us figure out what wind is? The definition is as follows: land heats up faster than water, which means that the air accumulated above it receives heat from it and rises upward, therefore atmospheric pressure falls over this area. With water, everything is exactly the opposite: above it, the air masses are colder and the pressure is higher. In the end cold air moves out of the area high pressure into a low area, creating wind. The greater the difference between these pressures, the stronger it is.
Types of winds
Having figured out what wind is, you need to find out how many types there are and how they differ from each other. There are three main groups of winds:
- local;
- permanent;
- regional.
Local winds live up to their name and blow only on certain territories of our planet. Their appearance is associated with the specifics of local reliefs and temperature changes in relatively short periods of time. These winds are characterized by short duration and daily periodicity.
What is wind of local origin is now clear, but it is also divided into its subspecies:
- A breeze is a light wind that changes direction twice a day. During the day it blows from sea to land, and at night it blows vice versa.
- Bora is a high-speed cold air current blowing from mountain tops to valleys or coasts. He is fickle.
- Föhn is a warm and light spring wind.
- Sukhovei is a dry wind that prevails in steppe regions in warm period time under anticyclone conditions. It foretells drought.
- Sirocco - rapid southern, southwestern air currents, which are formed in the Sahara.
- What is the khamsin wind? These are dusty, dry and hot air masses that predominate in northeastern Africa and the eastern Mediterranean.
TO constant winds These include those that depend on the total air circulation. They are stable, uniform, constant and strong. These include:
- trade winds - winds from the east, characterized by constancy, unchanging direction and strength of 3-4 points;
- anti-trade winds are winds from the west that carry huge air masses.
Regional wind appears as a result of pressure differences, a little similar to local wind, but more stable and powerful. A bright representative This species is considered to be the monsoon, which originates in the tropics, at the border with the ocean. It blows periodically, but in large streams, changing its direction a couple of times a year: during the summer season - from water to land, during winter - vice versa. The monsoon brings a lot of moisture in the form of rain.
Strong wind is...
What is a strong wind and how does it differ from other currents? Its most important feature is high speed, which ranges from 14-32 m/s. It produces devastating effects or causes damage and destruction. In addition to speed, temperature, direction, location and duration also matter.
Types of strong winds
- A typhoon (hurricane) is accompanied by intense precipitation and a drop in temperature, great strength, speed (177 km/h or more), blows at a distance of 20-200 m for several days.
- What is the wind called a squall? This is a sharp, sudden flow with a speed of 72-108 km/h, formed in hot period as a result of the powerful penetration of cold air into warm zones. It blows for a couple of seconds or tens of minutes, changing direction, and brings a decrease in temperature.
- Storm: its speed is 103-120 km/h. Characterized by high duration and strength. It is the source of strong sea vibrations and destruction on land.
- Tornado (tornado) - air vortex, visually similar to a dark pillar along which a curved axis runs. At the bottom and top of the pillar there are extensions similar to a funnel. The air in the vortex spins counterclockwise at a speed of 300 km/h and draws all nearby objects and objects into its funnel. The pressure inside the tornado is reduced. The height of the pillar reaches 1500 m, and its diameter ranges from tens (above water) to hundreds of meters (above the ground). A tornado can travel from a couple of hundred meters to tens of kilometers at a speed of 60 km/h.
- Storm - air mass, the speed of which is in the range of 62-100 km/h. Storms abundantly cover areas with sand, dust, snow, and earth, causing harm to people and households.
Description of wind force
Answering the question about what wind force is, it would be appropriate to note that here the concept of force is interconnected with speed: the higher it is, the stronger the wind. This indicator is measured on the 13-point Beaufort scale. A zero value characterizes calm, 3 points - light, weak wind, 7 - powerful, 9 - the appearance of a storm, over nine - merciless storms, hurricanes. Strong winds often blow over the sea and ocean, because nothing bothers them here, unlike rocky mountains, hills, forests.
Definition of solar wind
What is solar wind? This amazing phenomenon. Ionized plasma particles stream out from the solar corona (outer layer) into space with a speed range of 300-1200 km/s, which depends on the activity of the Sun.
There are slow (400 km/s), fast (700 km/s), high-speed (up to 1200 km/s) solar winds. They form an area with space around the central celestial body that protects solar system from interstellar gas entering it. In addition, thanks to them, phenomena such as the radiation belt and aurora occur on our planet. This is what solar wind is.
Where is the rainiest region on Earth, who declared their territory the “lightning capital of the world” and which region in Russia is considered the most hail-dangerous?
Wind
The windiest place in the world is considered to be the Antarctic coast of the Commonwealth Sea, where winds blow at a speed of 15 m/s or more almost every day.
Record gusts of wind at the surface of the Earth were recorded by an automatic weather station in Australia. Barrow Island April 10, 1996 - they reached 113 m/s (408 km/h).
The speeds of tornadoes and tornadoes have been higher, but their measurement is extremely dangerous for life and 100% data does not exist. However, according to the Guinness Book of Records, the most powerful tornado is considered to be the one that rushed through the Texas city of Wichita Falls at a speed of 450 km/h on April 2, 1958. The speed was estimated based on the colossal destruction caused. By the way, it is in the United States that a record number of tornadoes is observed - 65% of the global number. So, in April 2011, 758 of them were counted, and during the day, April 27-28, 211 vortices flew by. Almost all of them are formed in a kind of corridor that stretches through the valleys of the Mississippi, Ohio and Missouri rivers. Locals They call it “tornado alley.” Waterspouts and tornadoes occur where it is warm and humid sea air comes into contact with the dry and cold continental.
The record in Russia belongs to the island of Kharlov in the Barents Sea. On February 8, 1986, wind gusts reached 52 m/s (187 km/h). Most often strong winds(starting from 15 m/s) are observed in the coastal zones of the Kamchatka, Arkhangelsk, Magadan regions, in the area of Dikson and Novorossiysk.
The wind noticeably “lowers” the air temperature felt by a person and worsens the comfort of the weather. We will feel a temperature of 0 °C with a wind of 10 m/s as -7 °C, and with gusts of 20 m/s as -10 °C.
Reference
Wind speed at weather stations in most countries of the world is measured at a height of 10 m and averaged over 10 minutes. Instantaneous gusts of wind are examined separately. Both observations are important: you need to know the wind conditions of the area and extreme manifestations of the elements. Speed is measured with a variety of instruments: anemometers, probes, radars.
Precipitation
Cherrapunji, a city in the Indian state of Meghalaya, is considered one of the rainiest and wet places on Earth. Average annual quantity precipitation here is 11,777 mm.
The longest rain recorded in the Guinness Book of World Records is that it rained for 247 days without a break on the island of Kauai in Hawaii from August 27, 1993 to April 30, 1994. The average rainfall on the island is up to 11,684 mm per year.
The driest place on Earth is in Antarctica - the McMurdo Dry Valleys: there has been no snow or rain here for millions of years. There is also virtually no rainfall in the Atacama Desert in Chile. The only time an anomaly occurred here was on May 19, 2010, when short-term snow fell.
In Russia, the most precipitation is observed on the Achishkho mountain range near Sochi - about 3240 mm per year. The driest region is considered Caspian lowland- in some places less than 200 mm.
A comfortable norm for humans is a humidity of 30-60%. Air, relative humidity of which below 20% is assessed as dry, more than 86% - as very wet. When the air is dry, a person can tolerate the heat, but he or she becomes dehydrated.
Reference
The amount of precipitation is measured using a rain gauge bucket, which is mounted on a wooden pole inside a special cone-shaped protection. Precipitation falls from clouds in the form of rain, drizzle, snow, sleet and ice pellets, freezing rain and hail.
hail
Hail is a short-term phenomenon and is most often similar in size to small peas. But every year there are several cases of dangerous hail around the world. “Ice bombs” are falling from the sky in India, southern China, Bangladesh, western Kenya, the USA...
American meteorologists kept one of the hailstones that fell on July 23, 2010 in Viviana in the refrigerator and registered it as a record: its diameter was 20 cm and its weight was 880 g. Hailstones of the same size, but weighing 1002 g, caused the tragedy in Bangladesh 14 April 1986. According to eyewitnesses, in April 1981, hail weighing up to 7 kg was observed in Guangdong province (China).
In Russia, it is most often observed in the southern regions.
Hail is considered dangerous phenomenon, if its diameter reaches 2 cm or more. In the village of Voznesenskaya on July 25, 1957, the most large hail over the entire history of observations in Krasnodar region. Individual hailstones weighed 1.5 kg.
Advice
If you find yourself in a car during a hail storm, it is advisable to stop (but not get out) and turn your back to the windows, covering your head with your hands or clothes. If you are at home, you need to move away from the windows.
Storm
The world's centers of thunderstorms are located in certain areas of Central and South America, Southeast Asia, Central and East Africa, that is, where high humidity and warming air lead to the rapid formation of rain clouds. For example, in Singapore there are on average 170 thunderstorms a year, in the Amazon basin - more than 200, on the island of Java - up to 220. Maximum thunderstorm activity occurs in Uganda - from 250 to 270 days a year. A thunderstorm in the listed regions can last from three to ten hours, while in Russia average duration one thunderstorm - no more than two hours. The maximum number of days with thunderstorms - an average of 30-40 - occurs in the Sochi region and the foothills of the Caucasus.
Thunderstorms are always accompanied by lightning and thunder.
Lightning
The highest concentration of lightning was recorded in the Catatumbo River valley, which flows into Lake Maracaibo (Venezuela) - 250 strikes over every square kilometer per year. Total number lightning strikes during the year exceed 1 million. Continuous discharges illuminate Catatumbo from 365 nights 140-160 times. Reflections of light are visible at a distance of up to 400 km. The Venezuelan municipality declared this territory the “lightning capital of the world.”
Advice
A thunderstorm accompanied by lightning is one of the most dangerous natural phenomena to human life. It is important to know basic safety rules.
You should not be near power lines, under trees, especially those standing alone, on open area and hills. If you find yourself in an open place, it is best to squat down. It is not advisable to go into a thunderstorm under an umbrella with metal spokes. During a thunderstorm, do not allow contact with metal devices and mobile phones, including indoors. It is better to wait out the elements in shelter.
Air temperature
The absolute minimum temperature on Earth (-89.2 °C) was recorded in Antarctica at the Vostok station on July 21, 1983. But since the station is located at an altitude of 3488 m, its readings cannot be considered record-breaking. To compare different observations, they must be reduced to sea level. In this case, the most low temperatures end up in Yakutia. Officially, Verkhoyansk (137 m above sea level) is recognized as the planet’s pole of cold, where a temperature of -67.8 °C was observed on February 5-8, 1892. Unofficially, the village of Oymyakon (745 m), in which serial weather observations began to be carried out much later. A number of sources provide data that in January 1916 the temperature here dropped to -82 °C.
As for the heat, in the Libyan city of Al-Azizia on September 13, 1922, a planetary record was recorded in the shade: +57.7 °C. Death Valley in California was not far behind at +56.7 °C. Absolute maximum in Russia (+45.4 °C) was recorded at the Utta weather station in Kalmykia on July 12, 2010. By the way, many areas set their own regional records during that abnormally hot summer. For example, in Moscow on July 29, 2010, the air warmed up to +38.2 °C. By the way, the record minimum for the capital (-42.2 °C) was set in 1940.
Advice
A person’s acclimatization to a hot climate or arctic cold varies from person to person. But definitely the residents temperate latitudes are more susceptible to various disorders: heatstroke, impaired water metabolism, sunburn- which are fraught with consequences for the body. For them, air temperatures from +38 °C (which is close to blood temperature) are already dangerous. Additionally, people with non-pigmented skin are at risk of developing serious illness, especially with prolonged sun exposure.
Reference
According to international meteorological rules, air temperature is measured with a special thermometer, which is located at a height of 2 m from the soil surface in a well-ventilated booth, protected from direct sunlight. sun rays and located away from buildings.
Records in one line
- The most sunny place on the planet is considered the city of Yuma in the state of Arizona, in Russia - Borzya in the Trans-Baikal Territory.
- The most foggy city in Russia is Yuzhno-Kurilsk, where this phenomenon is observed on average 118 days a year (in Moscow - about ten days).
- Severe ice conditions affected southeastern Canada and the northeastern United States from January 4 to January 10, 1998. The diameter of the sediments in some places reached record values of 10-12 cm.
- The city of Loma in the state of Montana in the USA holds the record for temperature changes: during the day on January 15, 1972, the temperature jumped from -48 to +9 °C.
- The record snowflake was recorded in the town of Fort Keough, Montana in January 1887 - its diameter was 38 cm (usually about 5 mm).
- The most snowy place in Russia - the village of Pushchino on Kamchatka. The minimum number of days with snow is observed in Sochi, but only 10 km from Krasnaya Polyana - on the Achishkho ridge the snow height can be 10 m.
Tropical cyclones or hurricanes bring with them not only extreme winds, but also heavy rains, big waves, storm surges and tornadoes. It is interesting that in Northern and South America Tropical cyclones are called hurricanes, and in Asia they are called typhoons. Below is a list of the ten most destructive hurricanes over the entire history of observations.
Katrina is one of the most destructive Atlantic hurricanes in the history of the United States. It emerged on August 23, 2005, in the Bahamas, peaked on August 28, and dissipated at 31. On the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Scale, Katrina was rated as a Category 5 hurricane. The wind speed reached 280 km/h. The cyclone and subsequent floods killed at least 1,245 people. Total property damage was estimated at $108 billion (as of 2005). New Orleans in Louisiana was hit the hardest - about 80% of the city's area was under water.
Andrew is a Category 5 Atlantic hurricane (with wind speeds of 270 km/h), which formed on August 14, 1992 in Atlantic Ocean over west coast Africa. Andrew passed through the northwestern Bahamas, southern Florida and southwestern Louisiana, killing 65 people and destroying large number houses, in many cases leaving only a concrete foundation. The total damage caused by the hurricane in all affected regions exceeded $26 billion (as of 1992).
The Great Hurricane of 1780 or "San Calixto II" - the deadliest tropical cyclone North Atlantic basin, which killed more than 22,000 people in the Lesser Antilles and Bermuda, between October 10–16, 1780. The specifics and exact strength of it are unknown, since the official database on hurricanes began to be maintained in 1851. There is an assumption that the wind force could exceed 320 km/h.
“Ike” is a tropical cyclone of danger category 4 (wind speed more than 215 km/h) on the five-point Saffir-Simpson scale. Sailed through the Greater Antilles and the southern coast of the United States between September 1–14, 2008. It originated in last days August off the coast of Africa and at the time of reaching North America near Galveston, Texas, the storm's diameter was more than 1,450 km, making it the largest tropical cyclone in the Atlantic Ocean on record. According to preliminary estimates, property damage from Hurricane Ike amounted to approximately $37.5 billion. It claimed the lives of 195 people in the United States, Cuba, Dominican Republic and Haiti.
"Iniki" - powerful hurricane 4 categories, formed on September 5, 1992 and passed through the territory Hawaiian Islands. The wind speed reached 233 km/h. The total damage from Hurricane Iniki was about $1.8 billion (as of 1992). The hardest hit island was Kauai, where 5,152 homes were heavily damaged and another 1,421 were completely destroyed. As a result of the hurricane, more than 7 thousand people were left homeless and 6 people died. Iniki dissipated on September 13, halfway between Hawaii and Alaska.
The Galveston Hurricane was the deadliest hurricane in U.S. history, making landfall near Galveston, Texas on September 8, 1900. As a result, from 6 thousand to 12 thousand people died (the most often mentioned figure is 8000). At average speed Winds of 233 km/h were assigned to the 4th danger category on the Saffir-Simpson hurricane scale. The material damage caused is estimated at $20 million (in 1900). Then more than 3,600 houses were destroyed, and only ruins remained of the largest city at that time in the state of Texas with a population of 42 thousand.
Pauline is one of the deadliest Pacific hurricanes to ever reach the shores of Mexico. It was formed on October 5, 1997, approximately 410 km southwest of the city of Santa Maria Huatulco. It initially moved east and then turned northwest, reaching peak wind speeds of 215 km/h. Moving parallel to the Mexican coast, Hurricane Pauline caused heavy rains, causing floods and landslides in some of Mexico's poorest areas, killing 230–500 people. As a result of the hurricane, tens of thousands of homes were destroyed and damaged, and about 300 thousand people were left homeless. Total damage was $7.5 billion (as of 1997).
Kenna is third on the list of the most destructive hurricanes in history. This is a powerful hurricane that formed in the northeastern part Pacific Ocean October 22, 2002. Having reached a peak wind speed of 270 km/h, it was assigned danger category 5. The hardest hit cities were San Blas in the Mexican state of Nayarit and Puerto Vallarta in the state of Jalisco, where more than 100 people were injured. As a result of the hurricane, thousands of homes were damaged or completely destroyed. In total, it claimed 4 lives and caused $101 million in damage (as of 2002).
Typhoon Nina is a category 4 tropical cyclone ( maximum speed winds reached 250 km/h), which took place in early August 1975 across Taiwan and China. In central China's Henan province, heavy flooding caused by rain destroyed the Banqiao Dam and caused 62 dams to break. As a result of the flood, 26 thousand people died (according to other sources up to 85,000), and later - due to famine - about 145 thousand more. In addition, over 300,000 livestock died and approximately 5,960,000 buildings were destroyed. The hurricane is estimated to have caused $1.2 billion in damage (1995).
Cyclone Bhola - a destructive tropical cyclone of category 3 (maximum wind speed reached 205 km/h), which struck the territory of East Pakistan (now Bangladesh) and Indian state West Bengal 12 November 1970. This is a tropical cyclone with a record number of casualties, and one of the worst natural disasters in the world. modern history. An estimated 300,000–500,000 people lost their lives, mostly as a result of the 9m high storm surge, which swept away entire villages and farmland in the region along its path. In the worst-hit upazilas of Thanh and Tazumuddin, more than 45% of the population died. The total damage from the cyclone was $86.4 million (as of 1970).
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Strong piercing winds are not uncommon for our country. But experts managed to find the windiest place in Russia. All the coldest and windy places Russia is located in the eastern part of our large country.
There is probably not a single resident of Russia for whom the wind would be a surprise. Even if it is strong and piercing. Of course, Russians from southern regions encounter this phenomenon much less often. But with the arrival of autumn, residents of the central part of the country feel the severity of Russian weather. Cities located in the east suffer even more from the wind.
Experts even conducted a study regarding the windiness of certain regions. As a result, they were able to make interesting discoveries. This is how the windiest place in Russia was discovered. It turned out to be Chukotka. To be more precise, this is small town Pevek. It is in this place that wind gusts can reach 40 meters per second. Quite an unpleasant phenomenon. Although, according to surveys, residents of this city have long been accustomed to such wind and note that the main thing is to dress according to the weather. With warm clothes made of thick, windproof fabric, such problems are not a problem. Moreover, today in stores you can easily find stylish and high-quality windbreaker jackets for every taste.
The unprecedented windiness of the Chukotka city is quite easy to explain if you study the features of its climate. From time to time this place is subject to the strongest southern wind, which hits it from the coastal hills. Interestingly, it is almost impossible to predict the occurrence of this phenomenon. The wind begins to blow completely unexpectedly and suddenly. During the cold season, strong snow flurries also form. When the wind speed reaches its maximum (which is 40 meters per second, as noted above), city residents are advised to go outside only while observing the rules of caution. If there is such an opportunity, then it is better to stay at home during this period.
After all, parallel to the appearance of wind, atmospheric pressure drops sharply. And its speed in gusts can reach 80 meters per second. Most often, severe icy weather lasts no longer than 3-4 days. But there have been cases where it persisted for 15 days. All this time, residents of Pevek refused to go for walks, hid light items from the streets that the wind could carry away, and also did not allow pets into the yard.
Understand exactly when it will occur gusty wind(its name is “Yuzhak”), is extremely difficult, but there are some signs by which one can determine its approach. For example, before this, small cumulus clouds. But in general, even experienced weather forecasters are unable to predict the described weather change.
There are other windy places in Russia. For example, residents of the northern capital experience this phenomenon almost every day. Of course, in St. Petersburg the wind is less strong and gusty.
Experts were able to determine which place in Russia turned out to be the windiest. Today, the Chukotka city of Pevek occupies a leading position in the ranking. But research on the topic under discussion is still ongoing.
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