Wind (meteorology)

Wind is the movement of air relative to Earth’s surface, driven mainly by pressure differences and shaped by planetary rotation, friction, and terrain.

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Pressure-gradient force: A force that accelerates fluid from regions of higher pressure toward regions of lower pressure. It initiates atmospheric motion by pushing air down pressure differences.
Atmospheric pressure: The force per unit area exerted by the weight and motion of air. Horizontal pressure differences are the immediate driver of most winds.
Wind power: The conversion of wind’s kinetic energy into useful electricity or mechanical power. Turbines exploit persistent winds, while their output depends on speed and variability.
Atmospheric circulation: The large-scale movement of air that redistributes heat and moisture around Earth. Wind is the moving-air component of this global transport system.
Updraft: A localized upward current of air, often associated with convection or storms. It is vertical air motion, unlike the predominantly horizontal movement called wind.
Coriolis effect: The apparent deflection of moving objects caused by observing motion in a rotating reference frame. Earth’s rotation deflects winds to the right in the Northern Hemisphere and left in the Southern.
Wind speed: The rate at which air moves relative to a reference point. It quantifies the strength of wind separately from its direction.
Wind chill: A measure of how wind increases heat loss from exposed skin in cold conditions. Moving air makes cold weather feel colder by accelerating convective heat loss.
Trade winds: Persistent tropical easterly winds that blow toward the equator from the subtropics. They are a major, regular wind belt within global circulation.
Turbulence: Irregular fluid motion characterized by fluctuating velocities and interacting eddies. It describes chaotic fluctuations that can occur within otherwise organized wind.