Lesson objectives

By the end of this lesson learners will be able to:_

● Describe the main global wind systems
● Use fully annotated diagrams to show understanding
● To apply knowledge to exam style questions.

Task
Create a series of fully annotated diagrams to describe the main global winds.
Refer to pages 35 to 38 in your textbook, the links and videos included. (videos are in no particular order)

Add your work to the following slide.

https://earth.nullschool.net/ - animated world’s winds in real time

 Polar Easterlies Hadley Cells: Located from the equator to 30° of
Polar Cells latitude on each hemisphere. High insolation results
H
in low pressure because the warm air rises because
Westerlies of contact with the hot land. Trade winds are drawn
Ferrel Cells at these low pressure belts and meet at the ITCZ.
L
The winds warmed at the ITCZ, rise in strong
NE Trade Winds Tropic Of Cancer
Subtropical high convection. As the air cools and vapour condenses,
H Hadley Cells
pressure the latent energy is released and transfers to the
ITCZ poles. As it reaches the poles, it is deflected by left or
L right depending on the hemisphere it is in. By the
Hadley Cells time it reaches 30° N or S, it is influenced by the
H Coriolis Force and won’t go to the poles much. Air
SE Trade Winds Tropic Of Capricorn subsides at 30° N or S beneath the sub-tropical jet
L streams , causing high pressure cells at surface. The
Subtropical high Ferrel Cells trade winds blow down the pressure gradient
pressure Westerlies
between these sub-tropical high pressure cells and
H equatorial low pressure cells, completing the hadley
Polar Cells
call
Polar Easterlies

Ferrel Cells: Not thermally induced. Some of the air that

sinks in sub tropical high pressure belts moves towards
the low pressure belts where it meets colder air from the
polar cells moving to the equator. The surface between
the air masses is the polar front. It is the boundary
between the polar and ferrel cells. Here the warm air
rises up the frontal surface to the tropopause where it
moves back towards the equator to complete the call by
sinking again in the sub-tropical high pressure zones.
Polar Cells: Polar air chills over the ice cap, to make high pressure at the
surface. The air moving away from polar high pressure is going to areas
of wider space because of Earth’s shape, so it spread out. This reduces
the pressure at 50° to 60° N or S. This means that the warm air rises at
these latitude and chills over the polar ice caps and completes the cell.
Air mass Temperature Humidity

Equatorial maritime (mE) warm Very moist

Tropical maritime (mT) - Mild in winter moist

- Warm in summer

Tropical continental (cT) Very warm dry

Polar maritime (mP) cool moistd

Polar continental (cP) cold dry

Continental Arctic and Very cold Very dry

Antarctic
(cA and cAA)