Introduction
Nature is definitely unpredictable and hence it is possible that even after so many studies are conducted there are still a lot of things that are left untouched. For example, when walking through a park or near the beach you feel two different temperatures of the breeze hitting you but you might have not yet wondered where do they originate from or how are they formed! So here is a guide through Vedantu where you get to know the difference between Land Breeze and Sea Breeze, how these are formed, and how they tend to be a lot different than just normal air.
Have you tried walking barefoot on the sand during noon? You can barely touch the sand because it is scorching hot. When such a thing happens, you may need to dip your feet in a lake nearby.
Although the sun warms up both water and sand, the pace at which water absorbs heat is not the same as sand. This difference in heating is the basis for the formation of land and sea breeze.
What is a Sea Breeze?
Before learning about the difference between a land breeze and a sea breeze, let us learn a bit more about what a sea breeze is.
The sea breeze blows during the day. The sun heats up both the land and sea at this time. However, the land heats up sooner, which causes the air over land to become hot faster than its counterpart above the sea. This hot air expands and rises, causing a low-pressure system.
At the same time, air over the sea remains cooler since water can retain its temperature more than the land. This cooler air is heavy and quickly flows toward the low-pressure region on land. This flow of cooler air from sea to land during the day is known as a sea breeze.
What is a Land Breeze?
A land breeze blows during the night. The process explained above is reversed when night falls. Land heats up quickly but also cools quickly. Thus, after the sun sets, sea air remains hotter for a longer duration. This leads to low-pressure creation over this sea. Land air being cooler, it quickly flows to replace the lighter air over the sea.
After understanding the basics, one can quickly assess the difference between a land breeze and a sea breeze. Read on to help you with this distinction.
Difference between Land and Sea Breezes
Several factors distinguish between the land breeze and sea breeze. Assess the table below for further knowledge regarding this difference.
Quick Question
Q. Why do land and sea breezes occur?
Ans. Land and sea breeze occurs due to the difference in the heat absorption and retention capacity of land and water. If water and land retained heat at the same pace, such winds would not occur.
Temperature Difference on Land and near the Sea
Now that you can differentiate between land and sea breeze, you can also understand why locations near seas tend to experience limited temperature variance throughout the year. This means that such locations usually witness constant temperature. In the case of inland locations, the temperature difference is more prominent.
During the day, temperatures soar in such inland areas. However, as night falls, these places tend to experience cooler weather.
Interesting Note
You can perceive clouds from a coastal area at night, which dissipates in the morning. This happens due to this flow of breeze.
Our app can further accelerate your understanding of the difference between a land breeze and a sea breeze. With expert teaching staff, we can give you an edge over others, ensuring better learning and grades.
Things to Remember Regarding the Difference between Land Breeze and Sea Breeze
Both the land and sea breeze occur near the shores of the sea.
Both of the breeze types tend to influence the precipitation rates, the air temperature, and even the humidity of the air.
The land breeze is comparatively slower and weaker than the sea breeze.
The temperature that is present along the water bodies tends to not vary much due to the breeze flowing. The inland areas however tend to have a fluctuation in temperature.
FAQs on Difference between Land Breeze and Sea Breeze
1. How does land and sea breeze occur?
Land breeze occurs at night when a low-pressure system forms over the sea. During the day, low-pressure formation occurs over the land, thereby allowing wind from sea to fill in this deficit.
2. What is the maximum speed for sea breeze?
A sea breeze is faster than its land counterpart, with top speeds of up to 2.5 m/s.
3. What is the difference between land breeze and sea breeze?
Land breeze and sea breeze differs on many accounts, including depth, speed, moisture, direction, strength, etc.
4. How is the sea breeze formed?
The following steps occur before the sea breeze is formed:
It is during the day that the sun heats up the land
The air that is present above the land then keeps on getting warmer and warmer than the air that is present above the water.
As it is seen that the air that is present above the land is quite warm than that present above the sea, it starts getting dense in nature and begins to rise
Due to the above step, low pressure is formed
The denser air that is formed will now travel towards the space above the land and this cool air that goes above the land is called the sea breeze.
5. How is the land breeze formed and what are the steps involved?
The steps of the formation of land breeze can be provided as follows:
When night comes in there is a loss of heat happening which tends to quickly cool down the land and hence release heat to the surrounding air
As compared to land, water tends to retain heat much longer which causes the air above it to have lower density and hence rise above the level.
Low pressure tends to form above the water while there is high pressure being formed above the land
The air that is dense hence moves above the land.
As wind tends to blow typically from a higher pressure area to one that has lower pressure the cooler breeze now flows from the shore and is called the land breeze.
6. What are some of the features of the land breeze that need to be kept in mind?
The features of the land breeze can be provided as follows:
The land breeze has a typical movement of flowing from land to water bodies
The land breeze arises due to the difference in heating and the pressure levels
The temperature of land tends to change about ten degrees during the daytime
The conduction of water from land to water or vice versa tends to cool the air that is present above both.
The land breeze does not consist of moisture and is hence dry.
7. Why is it important to know the difference between Land Breeze and Sea Breeze?
The concept of the Difference between Land Breeze and Sea Breeze helps students to understand the different types of winds that are associated with the water bodies. The land breeze while it is formed on the mainland tends to not stay on the land itself and flows towards the water while the breeze formed over the water bodies tends to be carried away towards the shore. These concepts involved in the breeze types help us understand how it affects the land as well as the sea.
8. How does the sea breeze help glider pilots and why is it beneficial to fly over sea rather than land?
Gliding is not only a competitive sport but is also a recreational activity that has been taken up by a lot of people. Those people who are trained in riding the sailplanes are called the glider pilots. In order to get a decent flow of the sailplanes, it is necessary that strong air is being present in the surrounding area. This strong air is present only in the sea breeze and not the land breeze. The land breeze which is dry has a quite mild range of strength and does not allow pilots to steer through. It is hence easier for pilots to ride through sea breeze than a land breeze.